Trump making 'joke' about Canada becoming 51st state is 'reassuring': Ambassador Hillman

Canada’s ambassador to the U.S. insists it’s a good sign U.S. president-elect Donald Trump feels “comfortable” joking with Canadian officials, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Trudeau made a surprise visit to Mar-a-Lago Friday — accompanied by a small Canadian delegation — to meet with Trump. The trip came just days after the incoming president threatened to implement 25 per cent tariffs on all imports from Canada and Mexico until the border countries stop the flow of illegal drugs and migrants across the borders.

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According to U.S. network Fox News, Trump joked during the meeting in Florida that if said tariffs debilitated the Canadian economy — as the prime minister conveyed to him — perhaps Canada should become the country’s 51st state.

Canadian politicians responded to the comment on Tuesday, calling it lighthearted teasing.

Trump later posted what appears to be an artificially generated image depicting him standing on a mountaintop, with a large Canadian flag next to him, with the caption “Oh Canada!”

Kirsten Hillman — in an interview on CTV News Channel’s Power Play on Tuesday — said while she hadn’t seen the social media post, the gathering in Florida had “a really happy, joyous kind of atmosphere.”

“(Trump) made jokes, other people at the table made jokes,” Hillman said, who was part of the Canadian delegation to Mar-a-Lago, though she wasn’t seated at the same table as Trump and Trudeau during the three-hour dinner. “People were making jokes, which, actually, I have to say, I find to be reassuring that people are that comfortable with each other, that they're teasing.”

 “Any good joke always hits a little bit of a nerve, and certainly, president(-elect) Trump is one who likes to hit a nerve,” Hillman told host Vassy Kapelos. “So here's what I would say to Canadians: let's focus on the work that we have ahead of us and the work that has already started with the Trump administration.”

Hillman also highlighted the significance of Trudeau travelling to Florida for a meeting with Trump within days of the initial tariff threat.

“Let's focus our attention where it should be, which is on the importance that this dialog is serious and it's continuing, and not on the fact that the president(-elect) is enjoying this this joking moment,” she said. 

Trudeau is the first G7 leader to get an in-person meeting with Trump since he won the presidential election on Nov. 5.

Can Canada escape tariffs?

Two senior government sources told CTV News following Friday’s meeting that it was conveyed to the Canadian delegation the tariffs are unavoidable in the immediacy, but solutions in the longer term are on the table, particularly if the border is better secured.

When asked whether she believes those in Trump’s orbit are aware of the degree to which the tariffs would impact both the Canadian and American economies, Hillman said she’s “deeply confident” they are.

According to the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Trump’s campaign-era threat of blanket 10 per cent tariffs would have an economic impact totally about $30 billion a year in this country.

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Last week, University of Calgary economist Trevor Tombe wrote on social media that adjusting for a 25 per cent tariff would mean the Canadian economy takes an annual real GDP hit of around 2.6 per cent, costing Canadians about $2,000 per person.

Hillman pointed to the retaliatory tariffs Canada implemented during Trump’s first term as “very difficult for the United States.”

“I think though, that we have to remember that he is someone who does believe in tariffs as an economic policy tool,” she added. “So our task is to demonstrate to him that that economic policy tool, whether he believes it's a good thing for the United States, vis à vis other partners, when it comes to applying it to Canada, it is going to hurt Americans.”

When asked whether she believes Canada can escape the imposition of those tariffs, Hillman said she hopes so.

“I think that is the quid pro quo that was put forward in that (first social media) post,” the ambassador said. “That is what we are working on with them, that was the nature of the conversation at Mar-a-Lago.”

Hillman also called it a “huge opportunity” for Canada to work with the Americans on issues of common concern, namely the border.

"We'll see," she said. “I think that one thing that everybody can recognize is that it is very hard to pre-judge what president-elect Trump might do in the future.”

When pressed on whether and when Canada may impose counter-tariffs, Hillman said “we’re not there yet.”

She added that while Canada will have to be prepared to take retaliatory measures, she hopes it doesn’t come to that.

In 2018, during Trump’s first term as U.S. president, Trump triggered a nearly year-long trade war with Canada after imposing a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian steel products and 10 per cent on Canadian aluminum. In response, Canada unveiled a 25 per cent counter tariff on a long list of American steel and aluminum products, along with a 10 per cent surtax on miscellaneous U.S. goods including coffee, prepared meals and maple syrup. Those retaliatory tariffs were eventually lifted in 2019 after Canada, the U.S. and Mexico reached a deal.

Trump once again announced plans to impose a 10 per cent tariff on Canadian aluminum in August 2020. In a statement at the time, Freeland said “Canada intends to swiftly impose dollar-for-dollar countermeasures,” but one month later, Trump hit pause on those tariffs amid the looming presidential election later that year. Trump went on to lose that election to Joe Biden.

You can watch Hillman’s full interview in the video player at the top of this article