Carney says Canada not for sale


During an on-camera Oval Office meeting, Trump doubled down on his suggestion that Canada would benefit from becoming the 51st state even as Carney was adamant it would not happen.

“I still believe that. But it takes two to tango, right?” Trump said, suggesting Canada joining the U.S. would lead to major tax cuts and other benefits for Canadian citizens.

Trump indicated he and Carney would not be discussing the prospect of Canada becoming the 51st state as part of their private talks. But Carney made clear it wasnÂ’t up for discussion anyway.

“It’s not for sale. It won’t be for sale ever, but the opportunity is in the partnership and what we can build together,” Carney said, later adding that the views of the people of Canada on the issue would not change.

But Trump signaled he would not give up on the idea so easily.

“I say ‘never say never.’ I’ve had many, many things that were not doable, and they ended up being doable,” Trump said. “Canada loves us, and we love Canada. That’s I think the number one thing that’s important. But we’ll see. Over time, we’ll see what happens.”

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Trump less antagonistic toward Carney

Even as Trump refused to back off on tariffs and talk of Canada potentially becoming the 51st state, he was largely friendlier toward the new prime minister than he had been in recent months toward his predecessor.

Trump praised Carney as “a very talented person” and commended the prime minister on his victory in Canada’s elections.

“He won a very big election in Canada. And I think I was probably the greatest thing that happened to him, but I can’t take full credit,” Trump quipped. “His party was losing by a lot, and he ended up winning.”

CarneyÂ’s Liberal Party won CanadaÂ’s federal elections last week in a race that was influenced heavily by TrumpÂ’s constant talk of targeting the longtime ally and making it a state.

Trump had mocked former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in social media posts as “governor” in the weeks before Trudeau announced he would step down as prime minister. The two men often had a frosty relationship dating back to Trump’s first term.

“This is not going to be like — we had another a little blow up with somebody else,” Trump said at one point Tuesday, a reference to a contentious Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“That was much different. This is a very friendly conversation,” Trump added.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told President Donald Trump that his country will never be for sale.