By Donald Trump has broken Justin Trudeau’s government.
Canada’s political landscape was thrown into disarray on Monday as Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland resigned, laying bare divisions within Prime Minister Trudeau’s government over how to navigate the looming economic threats posed by the incoming president.
Freeland, a central figure in Trudeau’s Cabinet and a key architect of Canada’s economic policies, pointed to “fundamental differences” over economic priorities and Trump’s plans to impose steep tariffs on Canadian imports. In a sharply worded resignation letter, Freeland warned, “How Canada deals with Trump will define us for a generation, and perhaps longer,” reported Politico.
Trump’s proposal to slap a 25 percent tariff on Canadian goods has rekindled concerns that dominated his first term in America’s northern neighbor, when trade disputes with the United States dominated Canada’s political agenda. Back then, Freeland led Canada’s negotiations to overhaul NAFTA, drawing praise at home for her unyielding approach but also drawing Trump’s ire. The president repeatedly criticized her negotiating style, fueling a tense and at times acrimonious relationship.
Her absence at a recent diplomatic dinner at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate raised eyebrows. Trudeau, instead, brought Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc, who was sworn in on Monday as Freeland’s successor. The decision to sideline Freeland — widely viewed as Canada’s strongest voice on trade issues — at such a pivotal moment deepened speculation of internal disagreements.
Freeland’s resignation was welcomed by Trump, wrote The Hill.
President-elect Trump labeled former Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s behavior as “totally toxic” and argued it is detrimental to the country’s dealmaking with the U.S. shortly following her resignation from the post.
“The Great State of Canada is stunned as the Finance Minister resigns, or was fired, from her position by Governor Justin Trudeau,” Trump wrote in a Monday night post on Truth Social while mocking, again, the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “governor.”
“Her behavior was totally toxic, and not at all conducive to making deals which are good for the very unhappy citizens of Canada,” he added. “She will not be missed!!!”
“Our country today faces a grave challenge,” Freeland wrote. “The incoming administration in the United States is pursuing a policy of aggressive economic nationalism, including a threat of 25 per cent tariffs.”
“We need to take that threat extremely seriously,” she wrote. “That means keeping our fiscal powder dry today, so we have the reserves we may need for a coming tariff war. That means eschewing costly political gimmicks, which we can ill afford and which make Canadians doubt that we recognize the gravity of the moment.”
During their meeting, Trump asked the Canadian prime minister why his country shouldn’t simply be a state if they were so dependent on the United States.
Freeland’s resignation comes at a precarious time for Trudeau’s government, which is facing stagnating economic growth, mounting cost-of-living pressures, and sliding public approval. Sources close to the government say Freeland pushed for increased spending on border security and defense to signal strength to the incoming U.S. administration, while Trudeau preferred a more measured approach, including temporary tax cuts to support working-class families.
Her departure marks the end of a remarkable chapter in Freeland’s career, during which she served as both finance minister and deputy prime minister, emerging as one of Trudeau’s most trusted allies. Though stepping down from her Cabinet role, Freeland will remain in Parliament, leaving the door open for a future leadership bid. Her exit, however, leaves Trudeau without one of his most experienced hands as he braces for another round of tough negotiations with a Trump-led United States.
Trudeau’s conservative opposition has seized on Freeland’s resignation and called for the prime minister’s resignation.
Bring home Canada’s promise: https://t.co/Mlman55m8q pic.twitter.com/hlRgoyrkFL
— Pierre Poilievre (@PierrePoilievre) December 17, 2024
The Free Press noted that “by Monday night, a prominent member of Trudeau’s Liberal Party, Anthony Housefather, went on TV to say the prime minister is “past his shelf life.”
Though the next federal election is scheduled for October 2025, the House of Commons could pass a motion of no confidence in Trudeau’s government at any time. So far, he has beaten all the odds, governing in a minority position since 2019, and even losing the popular vote in two previous elections. In the last two years, a more left-wing socialist New Democratic Party, led by Jagmeet Singh, has kept him in power. But now, recent polls show that the Conservatives hold a 23-point lead over Trudeau’s Liberal Party, as a housing shortage, rising crime, and an immigration crisis have led to widespread dissatisfaction among voters. For the last 18 months, Canada’s GDP per capita has sunk, hitting young voters especially hard. Thirty-five percent of 18- to 34-year-olds in Canada now say they live at home with their parents.
The situation is so bleak that even basic attempts to appease the masses have failed. Over the weekend, Trudeau’s two-month holiday on the Goods and Services Tax kicked into gear. But that, along with a proposed $250CAD credit to families earning less than $150,000CAD, were shrugged off by most Canadians as a gimmick. A whopping 70 percent of the public called the measures ‘purely electoral’—simply a way to win votes.
Hours after Freeland resigned, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre seized his moment, telling reporters in a press conference: ‘What we are seeing is the government of Canada spiraling out of control before our eyes.'”
Since winning the election, Trump has been exerting his influence on foreign policy, making an appearance at the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris and inviting several foreign leaders to his inauguration.
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