United States President Donald Trump has reiterated baseless claims that outgoing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is seeking to use US tariffs against Canada to extend his time in office, as a rift widens between the two countries.
In a social media post on Thursday, Trump said he believed Trudeau “is using the Tariff problem, which he has largely caused, in order to run again for Prime Minister”.
“So much fun to watch!” the US president wrote.
The remark follows a similar post Trump shared on his Truth Social website on Wednesday, accusing Trudeau of using trade tensions as a way “to stay in power”.
“He was unable to tell me when the Canadian Election is taking place, which made me curious, like, what’s going on here? I then realized he is trying to use this issue to stay in power. Good luck Justin!” Trump wrote.
Tensions have soared between the two leaders since Trump first threatened late last year to impose steep tariffs on Canadian goods if Trudeau’s government did not do more to stem irregular migration and drug trafficking over its border with the US.
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This week, the Trump administration followed through on its plans and imposed 25-percent tariffs on most Canadian imports, as well as 10-percent levies on oil and gas.
Canada responded by announcing it would be implementing 25-percent tariffs against $106bn (155 billion Canadian) worth of US goods. Tariffs on $21bn (30 billion Canadian) came into immediate effect on Tuesday.
“This is a very dumb thing to do,” Trudeau told reporters on Tuesday of the US measures, which he described as an unjustified “trade war against Canada”.
Trudeau, who has been Canada’s prime minister since 2015, is set to step down as leader of the governing Liberal Party after it chooses its next leader on Sunday.
The new leader is expected to assume the duties of prime minister after a short transition period.
Asked during a news conference on Thursday whether he would consider staying on as prime minister in a caretaker role to help manage the uncertainty surrounding US tariffs, Trudeau said: “No. I will not be.”
He added, “I look forward to a transition to my duly elected successor in the coming days or week.”
Meanwhile, some experts in Canada have said Trump’s attack on Trudeau underscores his ignorance of the country’s political system.
Stewart Prest, a political science professor at the University of British Columbia, said on social media that the US president’s remarks represent “a reckless disregard for the Canadian democratic system”.
“To be clear, Trudeau will step aside after the Liberal leadership race,” Prest wrote on the social media platform Bluesky on Wednesday.
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Under Canadian electoral rules, the next federal election must be held by October 20.
But the Liberals, as the party in government, can choose to trigger a vote before then.
An election could also be called earlier if opposition parties pass a vote of no confidence in Canada’s Parliament, which is set to resume on March 24.
As it currently stands, no election date has been formally set.
“Parliamentary democracy is by design more flexible than the American presidential system, with its fixed election dates,” Prest explained.
“That’s deliberate, as it makes it much easier to get rid of a leader who is either unfit or unpopular – or both.”
Many experts have speculated that the Liberals may choose to call a vote shortly after their next leader is chosen in an effort to capitalise on a recent upswing in public support.
At the beginning of the year, the Liberals had been trailing the opposition Conservatives by as many as 26 percentage points.
But Trudeau’s decision to resign – coupled with the race to select his replacement as Liberal leader and Trump’s threats against Canada – have helped the party bounce back in the polls.
