Politics

‘Why are we losing $200 billion a year’: Trump Willing to to Gain Canada as a New State

Published on: January 9, 2025 at 12:23 AM
By Divya Verma
Trump and Trudeau
Trump and Trudeau at G20 summit 2018. Image Credit: White House (Shealah Craighead)

Donald Trump, on Tuesday, again stated his desire to acquire Canada as the 51st state of the United States. While speaking with the press at Mar-a-Lago, Trump said that he wanted to get rid of the “artificially drawn line” between both the countries. 

Previously, Trump expressed his desire to annex the neighboring country in the North as well. This conversation first started when the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau came to Mar-a-Lago to visit and congratulate the president-elect. In an attempt to solidify his claims on Canadian sovereignty as the 51st state, Trump even referred to Prime Minister Trudeau as “governor.” 

The re-iteration of his desire to essentially colonize Canada came after Trudeau’s statement of stepping down soon. On January 6, 2025, Justin Trudeau announced that he would soon step down as the prime minister of Canada just as the new leader of the Liberal Party was chosen.

This time, the Canadian Prime Minister has responded to Trump’s claims. Trudeau took to X, formerly known as Twitter, and wrote- “There isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that Canada would become part of the United States.” Trudeau also said that the citizens of both nations will benefit if the trade and security relationship remains as it is. Members of both Liberal and Conservative parties of Canada have rejected this idea.

Recently, Trump has also shown interest in acquiring Greenland from the Kingdom of Denmark and taking control of the Panama Canal. He wants to take control of these territories for “National Security” reasons. He has said that he wouldn’t hesitate to use military forces to achieve his goals.

When asked if he would use military force with Canada, he clarified that he would rather use “economic force” to gain control. Trump also stated that if the US and Canada could merge, that would be economically beneficial to both nations. 

Trump said that he does not need anything from Canada, including vehicles, as he would rather have them manufactured in Detroit. In 2023, Canada accounted for a total of 14% of vehicles, parts, and engines imported in the US. Donald Trump has claimed that this merger would benefit Canada more as they rely on America for economic and military support. 

During his campaign for the 2024 election, Trump promised an increase in tariffs for foreign nations, up to 25%. Canada had responded to these threats with the promise of an increase in tariffs of their own. PM Trudeau had mentioned that these tariff wars would hinder the economic stability of the country and would ultimately hurt consumers in the US. 

Every year, the US spends a part of its budget on federal aid to Canada as part of the NATO agreement. In 2022, this amount was approximately $32 Million, contrary to Trump’s claim of $200 Billion a year. During his first term, Trump also complained that every nation in NATO should contribute more towards the defense budget rather than relying on the US for monetary gains.

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