U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is extolling his tariff threat against Canada and Mexico, noting Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited him in Florida to discuss Trump’s border concerns soon after.
Trump was referring to a call Trudeau made to him on Nov. 25, shortly after the incoming U.S. president threatened to impose a 25 tariff on Canada and Mexico if they don’t address illegal migration and drug smuggling at their borders.
Trudeau visited Trump at his private club in Palm Beach, Florida, on Nov. 29.
Trump has threatened to impose the tariffs on his first day in office. During his “Meet the Press” interview, Trump repeated his appreciation of tariffs by calling them the “most beautiful word,” while criticizing the trade relationships the U.S. has with other countries.
Trump also discussed tariffs as a tactic to make other strategic gains, saying they’re a “very powerful tool, not only economically but also for getting other things outside of economics.”
“I have stopped wars with tariffs by saying, ‘you guys want to fight, it’s great, but both of you are going to pay tariffs to the United States at 100 percent,’” he said without elaborating.
“I don’t say you use [tariffs] like a madman,” he added, saying “properly-used” tariffs have “many purposes.”
On the trade relationship with its North American partners, Trump said the U.S. has been “subsidizing Canada to the tune of over $100 billion a year” and Mexico for “almost $300 billion.”
“We shouldn’t be subsidizing. Why are we subsidizing these countries? If we’re going to subsidize them, let them become a state [of the U.S.],” Trump added, saying all he wants is a “fair playing field.”
Trump’s suggestion that Canada become a U.S. state was also made directly to Trudeau as a joke when he visited Mar-a-Lago.
Fox News previously reported that when Trudeau said the imposition of 25 tariffs would kill the Canadian economy, Trump responded that if Canada can’t survive despite its $100 billion trade surplus, maybe it should become the 51st U.S. state and Trudeau could be the governor.
“It was, of course, on that issue, in no way a serious comment,” he said.
