Trump hosts Canada's new premier amid trade disputes, pursuit of northern neighbor as 51st state
'It's not for sale, won't be for sale ever, but the opportunity is in the partnership and what we can build together,' says Mark Carney
United States President Donald Trump (L) greets the Prime Minister of Canada, Mark Carney (R) as he arrives at the White House in Washington, DC on May 6, 2025.
WASHINGTON
US President Donald Trump is hosting recently elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney for talks at the White House on Tuesday in a visit that has been overshadowed by the president’s contentious policies and pursuits.
Carney's visit comes one week after he won nationwide elections in a bitter defeat for Canada's conservatives. Trump and his contentious trade and annexation efforts loomed large in the polls, with Canadians seeking a bulwark in their next leader.
Sitting alongside Trump in the Oval Office, Carney continued to rebuff Trump's desire to make Canada a US state, saying, "Respectfully, Canadians’ view on this is not going to change, on the 51st state."
"It's not for sale, won't be for sale, ever, but the opportunity is in the partnership and what we can build together," he added.
Trump imposed 25% duties on steel and aluminum exports and 25% duties on cars exported to the US since assuming office in January. Canada retaliated by imposing a 25% tariff on an estimated $30 billion in US goods, and 25% tariffs on US steel and aluminum products.
Trump continued to talk tough on his tariff push, saying Canada "wants a piece of our market."
"We don't want a piece of their market. We don't care about their market. They want a piece of our market," he told reporters.
Trump released a social media post minutes before Carney arrived at the White House in which he said that he looks forward to hosting the Canadian premier. "I very much want to work with him, but cannot understand one simple TRUTH — Why is America subsidizing Canada by $200 Billion Dollars a year, in addition to giving them FREE Military Protection, and many other things?"
"We don’t need their Cars, we don’t need their Energy, we don’t need their Lumber, we don’t need ANYTHING they have, other than their friendship, which hopefully we will always maintain," he said. "They, on the other hand, need EVERYTHING from us! The Prime Minister will be arriving shortly and that will be, most likely, my only question of consequence."
Trump continued to claim that the US "subsidizes" Canada to "maybe" $200 billion per year. It is unclear how Trump came to that figure.
"You know, it's not fair. But why are we subsidizing Canada $200 billion a year, or whatever the number might be, it's a very substantial number, and it's hard for the American taxpayer," he said.
