Dem
47
GOP
53
Donald Trump met yesterday with newly elected Canadian PM Mark Carney, and tried to woo him to join America as the 51st state by offering tax cuts. Carney told Trump that he was not interested and Canada is not for sale and won't ever be. But Carney was wearing a suit, so he wasn't treated as badly as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy when he visited the Oval Office in February.
Carney understood the White House protocol. All visiting dignitaries are expected to praise Trump as the greatest leader anywhere in the world since Ramses II. Carney did what he was supposed to do, but it didn't help. Reporters asked questions of the two leaders. Many were about tariffs. In particular, when asked if there was anything Carney could offer to get Trump to lift the tariffs on aluminum, steel, and cars, Trump simply said: "No." Carney continued that most cars sold in both countries are partly made in the other one. Trump said "We want to make our own cars. We don't really want cars from Canada. And we don't want steel from Canada because we make our own steel."
Carney barely got a word in edgewise. Trump dominated the entire conversation, frequently veering off topic and rambling. Trump said that trade between the U.S. and Canada favors Canada, even though it follows the USMCA agreement signed by one Donald J. Trump on Nov. 30, 2018. All in all, nothing was accomplished at the meeting. Carney scrupulously avoided picking a fight with Trump, but Ontario Premier Doug Ford was less restrained. He said: "I can't wait for the midterms, and we'll fix his little red wagon." (V)