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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation as Liberal leader comes just two weeks before Donald Trump takes office as US president, threatening to impose 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian imports on day one.
Trudeau has said he will stay on as prime minister until a successor is chosen, raising the prospect that Canada will have a limping prime minister just as its biggest trading partner slaps high tariffs on exports.
Trudeau’s resignation leaves Canada and its economy vulnerable to what Trump plans to impose, says Xavier Delgado, senior program fellow at the Wilson Center Canada Institute in Washington, DC
“This is an extraordinary time for the prime minister to announce that he is leaving office,” Delgado said in an interview Monday with CBC News. “In the context of Canada-US relations, it really doesn’t make a lot of sense.”
Trump reacted to Trudeau’s resignation with a post on his page Truth Social platform.
“Many people in Canada LOVE to be the 51st country. The United States can no longer tolerate the massive trade deficits and subsidies that Canada needs to survive. Justin Trudeau knew that and resigned,” Trump said in the post.
“If Canada merged with the US,” Trump continued, “there would be no tariffs, taxes would be much lower, and they would be COMPLETELY SAFE from the threat of Russian and Chinese ships constantly surrounding them. Together, what would it be like?” great nation!!!”
Trudeau cites need to ‘stand up for Canadians’
Trudeau’s decision to step down raises questions about how the government will handle any negotiations with the Trump administration.
“By announcing that he is resigning, Trudeau is effectively becoming a lame-duck prime minister,” Delgado said. “He doesn’t really have a mandate, given the fact that people here in Washington know he’s not going to be around much longer.”
During his press conference outside Rideau Cottage, Trudeau was asked how the government can protect Canada from the tariff threat if key cabinet ministers are involved in the leadership race.
“The government and cabinet will remain very focused on doing the job that Canadians elected us to do in 2021, which is to fight for their interests, advocate for their well-being and make sure that Canadians … are protected and strong,” he said. is Trudeau.
“I can assure you that the tools and the need to stand up for Canadians, to protect Canadians in their interests and continue to fight for the economy is something that everyone in this government will be very focused on.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the Liberal government will remain “solely focused” on protecting Canadian interests and continuing to “fight for the economy” even as the party moves through a leadership race following Trudeau’s resignation announcement. Trudeau made the comments when asked by a reporter how the Liberal government can protect Canada from US President-elect Donald Trump’s threat of tariffs if the Liberals are focused on who will be the next party leader.
Trudeau did not directly respond to a question about whether Liberal leadership contenders would be required to vacate their seats during the race.
Several top cabinet ministers working on the Canada-US file — including Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly and Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc — are considered candidates for the leadership.
Couple traveled to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in late December to meet with two of the president-elect’s cabinet picks and brief them on Ottawa’s plan to improve border security, which Trump has called for, if Canada hopes to avoid harsh tariffs.
Speaking to reporters Monday afternoon, Ontario Premier Doug Ford says Justin Trudeau’s number one focus before he resigns should be creating a plan to avoid Donald Trump’s tariff threat.
Trudeau’s resignation “couldn’t come at a worse time for U.S.-Canada relations,” said Laura Dawson, executive director of the Future Borders Coalition, an organization made up of business leaders from both countries.
“The government is in an interim regime,” Dawson said in an interview with CBC News. “The relationship (with the US) simply cannot be put on hold like that.”
Dawson says she’s not sure if Trudeau’s resignation puts Trump in a stronger negotiating position on tariffs, but she says it means Canada now lacks the capacity to quickly and nimbly respond to any new questions Trump raises.
“Who drives this bus?” she asked. “There is no leadership.”
Announcing his resignation as Liberal leader and prime minister after a new leader is elected, Justin Trudeau says he has asked the governor general to prorogue Parliament until March 24. Here’s everything you need to know about what that means — and what happens next.
