Trump insults Canada ahead of its prime minister’s arrival at the White House

By ROB GILLIES and JOSH BOAK WASHINGTON AP President Donald Trump gave Canada s new prime minister Mark Carney a frosty welcome to the White House on Tuesday saying on social media just before his arrival that the United States doesn t need ANYTHING from its northern neighbor Related Articles Friedrich Merz becomes Germany s chancellor hours after stunning defeat US stocks sink again as more companies detail damage they re taking because of Trump s commerce war Trump administration says it ll pay immigrants in the US illegally to leave the country George Ryan dies at former Illinois governor halted executions but went to prison amid corruption embarrassment Kohl s fires CEO Ashley Buchanan for cause I very much want to work with him but cannot understand one simple TRUTH Why is America subsidizing Canada by Billion Dollars a year in addition to giving them FREE Military Protection and a multitude of other things Trump wrote on Truth Social We don t need their Cars we don t need their Potential we don t need their Lumber we don t need ANYTHING they have other than their friendship which hopefully we will inevitably maintain The president added that his inquiry about why the U S demands anything from Canada will be the bulk likely my only question of consequence It s a claim that defies the underlying economic material as the United States depends on oil produced in Canada in addition to an array of other goods that cross demarcation exchange have helped to make more affordable in approaches that benefit enhancement Carney won the job of prime minister by promising to confront the increased aggression shown by Trump even as he has preserved the calm demeanor of an economist who has led the central banks of both Canada and the United Kingdom Trump has shattered a decades-old alliance by saying he wants to make Canada the st U S state and levying steep tariffs against an essential partner in the manufacturing of autos and the supply of oil electricity and other goods The outrage provoked by Trump enabled Carney s Liberal Party to number a stunning comeback accomplishment last month as the ongoing business war and attacks on Canadian sovereignty have outraged voters The Republican president has repeatedly threatened that he intends to make Canada the st state He explained in an interview with NBC s Meet the Press that aired Sunday that the territory line is an artificial line that prevents the two territories from forming a beautiful country Trump s openly adversarial approach has raised questions for Carney and other world leaders on how to manage relations with the U S A few world leaders such as U K Prime Minister Keir Starmer engaged in a charm offensive Others such as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy were met by Trump with anger for not being sufficiently deferential Robert Bothwell a professor of Canadian history and international relations at the University of Toronto announced Carney shouldn t meet with Trump We ve seen what he does We saw what he did with Zelenskyy Bothwell stated And he would sure as hell try to do the same with Carney It s not in Carney s interest It s not in Canada s interest Trump and Carney will meet in the Oval Office and have lunch Carney has stressed that he was elected to specifically stand up to the U S president and that Canada is in a once-in-a-lifetime problem Carney noted he expects arduous but constructive conversations with his U S counterpart Trump explained reporters on Monday that he wasn t quite sure why Carney was visiting I m not sure what he wants to see me about Trump announced But I guess he wants to make a deal U S Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick further stoked doubts about their interest in repairing the relationship with Canada in a Monday interview on Fox Business Grid s Kudlow show Demanded if the U S could make a deal with Canada Lutnick called the country a socialist regime that has been basically feeding off America Lutnick commented Tuesday s meeting would be fascinating Carney at a Friday news conference ahead of his trip mentioned the talks would focus on immediate deal pressures and the broader economic and national measure relationships He explained his establishment would fight to get the best deal for Canada and take all the time necessary to do so even as Canada pursues a parallel set of talks to deepen relations with other allies and lessen its commitments with the U S Trump has maintained that the U S doesn t need anything from Canada He is actively going after a Canadian auto sector built largely by U S companies saying They re stopping work in Mexico and they re stopping work in Canada and they re all moving here He also disclosed the U S doesn t need Canada s vitality though nearly one-fourth of the oil that the U S consumes daily comes from the province of Alberta The president has also disparaged Canada s military commitments despite a partnership that ranges from the beaches of Normandy in World War II to remote stretches of Afghanistan Trump has explained that Canada spends less money on military than practically any nation in the world They pay NATO less than any nation he disclosed They think we are subsidizing They think we are going to protect them and really we are But the truth is they don t carry their full share and it s unfair to the United States and our taxpayers Bothwell noted that Carney might be under little pressure to reach a quick deal as Trump has at times reversed delayed or defanged his tariffs such that over time Trump might be in a weaker position if talks are prolonged It may not matter as much in the summer as it does in the present day because every time he s made one of these announcements next week it s Oh I had my fingers crossed I didn t mean it he mentioned of Trump Daniel B land a political science professor at McGill University noted Carney needed the fast scheduled meeting with Trump to address the contract war started by the U S Trump has imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum and tariffs on other products outside the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement in specific cases ostensibly to address relatively low volumes of fentanyl intercepted at the dividing line between the two countries Carney wants to show that he s doing everything he can including taking political risks to protect Canadian jobs in areas such as the auto industry B land mentioned If he had postponed his first meeting with President Trump for months and months opposition parties and commentators could have accused him of being overly shy and doing a disservice to Canada because of that Canada is the top export destination for U S states Nearly billion Canadian US billion worth of goods and services cross the limit each day About of U S crude oil imports are from Canada and of U S electricity imports are from Canada Canada is also the largest foreign supplier of steel aluminum and uranium to the U S and has critical minerals and metals that the Pentagon is eager for and investing in for national assurance Canada is one of the the majority trade-dependent countries in the world and of Canada s exports go to the U S