Carney confirms Trump spoke to him last month about making Canada a U.S. state

COQUITLAM — Liberal Leader Mark Carney confirmed Thursday that U.S. President Donald Trump brought up his idea of making Canada a U.S. state during their first bilateral call on March 28.

Carney came under fire from some of the other main party leaders after a CBC/Radio-Canada article, citing confidential sources, said Trump pitched Carney on the benefits of Canada joining the U.S.

When Carney first spoke to reporters in Montreal shortly after the call last month, he described the discussion as “cordial” and said Trump treated Canada with respect as a sovereign nation.

Pressed by reporters Thursday on whether he was being truthful in his first description of Trump’s private comments to him, the Liberal leader admitted that the U.S. president did bring up annexation.

“He absolutely did. Look, the president has certain things in his mind that he reverts back to all the time, but treated me as the prime minister, not as something else,” Carney said on Thursday.

Carney defended his earlier description of the call and said he made it clear to Trump that Canada would never become a U.S. state.

“I’m not even going to say the word he used to use about my predecessor,” he said. “He treated me as the prime minister, we had discussions as sovereign nations, we agreed as sovereign nations that these negotiations will begin after the election on Monday, and that is how it was reported back — and that’s absolutely accurate.”

Trump toned down his rhetoric toward Canada following his conversation with Carney, after months of needling former prime minister Justin Trudeau by calling him the “governor” of America’s next state.

Earlier Thursday, before Carney spoke, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh accused the Liberal leader of not being “totally straight up” with Canadians about what Trump said.

“He said that Donald Trump respected our sovereignty. Now it’s come out that he instead actually brought back up the 51st state and threatened our country in that call,” Singh told reporters in Winnipeg. “If he’s not going to tell us about a phone call, what about the details of the negotiation? What about what he’s willing to trade away?”

Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet called Carney’s original description of the call a political “stunt” designed to enhance his image as a great negotiator.

“It appears that it never happened — that the call was not what had been described afterwards, that there was no agreement, no support for Canada’s sovereignty, no beginning for a deal. Just the show of a man who wanted to pretend something which appears not to be true,” Blanchet said in Dorval, Que.

In a post on Truth Social following the call, Trump said it was “an extremely productive call.”

“We agree on many things, and will be meeting immediately after Canada’s upcoming Election to work on elements of Politics, Business, and all other factors, that will end up being great for both the United States of America and Canada,” the president wrote on March 28.

Speaking in Halifax before Carney made his comments, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre did not immediately seize on the issue. He said a Conservative government would stand up for Canadian sovereignty and turn its focus to addressing cost-of-living issues.

Trump’s shadow loomed large over the federal election again on Wednesday when he remarked in the Oval Office that Canada would “cease to exist” without the U.S. — and claimed Trudeau told him so privately.

With just days left until election day on April 28, Trump also said he doesn’t want Canada to play any role in the American auto industry and warned that auto tariffs on Canada could go up.

“I really don’t want cars from Canada,” Trump said. “When I put tariffs on Canada, they’re paying 25 per cent, but that could go up in terms of cars.”

Carney sought to capitalize on Trump’s comments Thursday by underscoring the economic threat the president poses to Canadians. He said his government has already “anticipated the depths” of the crisis facing the industry by planning $2 billion in industry supports.

“The president’s comments yesterday … just underscore how important the choice (is) that Canadians have on Monday,” he said. “Who can stand up to President Trump? Who can build Canada strong? Who has the experience in order to do that?”

— Written by Kyle Duggan in Ottawa and Anja Karadeglija in Coquitlam, B.C.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 24, 2025.

The Canadian Press