Mark Carney, Canada’s prime minister-designate, blasted Donald Trump in a blistering speech after his landslide victory in the governing Liberal Party’s election.
The 59-year-old former central banker made Canada’s increasingly fraught relationship with the Trump administration the centerpiece of his Sunday night address, calling America “a country we can no longer trust” and warning that like-for-like tariffs would continue “until the Americans show us respect.”
Carney takes over from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who remains prime minister until his successor is sworn in in the coming days.
He is expected to call snap elections shortly, with one opinion poll suggesting the Liberal Party has a slight lead over Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative Party, representing a remarkable comeback for the Liberals, given that the Conservativesheld a 26-point advantage in January.
But Trump threatening to slap brutal 25% tariffs on Canadian imports and Trump’s saber-rattling talk of making Canada the 51st U.S. state has revived the Liberal Party’s fortunes, and Carney made certain to channel voter anger in his speech.
In his most explicit reference to the U.S. president, he said, “Donald Trump thinks — thinks — he can weaken us with his plan to divide and conquer. Pierre Poilievre’s plan will leave us divided and ready to be conquered because a person who worships at the altar of Donald Trump will kneel before him, not stand up to him.”
Carney also laid out in the starkest terms how Trump has damaged relations between the neighboring countries.
“I know that these are dark days, dark days brought on by a country we can no longer trust,” he said.
And he made clear that Canada would not back down on retaliatory tariffs.
“The Canadian government has rightly retaliated and is rightly retaliating with our own tariffs that will have maximum impact in the United States and minimum impact here in Canada,” Carney said. “My government will keep our tariffs on until the Americans show us respect.”
In another rallying cry, Carney reached for a sporting metaphor as he made clear Canada’s resistance would continue.
“We didn’t ask for this fight, but Canadians are always ready when someone else drops the gloves. So the Americans, they should make no mistake: In trade, as in hockey, Canada will win,” he added.
Carney’s fighting talk comes as other Canadian politicians ramp up the rhetoric in response to Trump’s policies and ambitions.
On Monday, the premier of Canada’s most populous province warned he was willing to “shut the electricity off completely” to the U.S. states it supplies.
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Ontario Premier Doug Ford said it is charging 25% more for electricity to 1.5 million Americans and is willing to go further.
“I feel terrible for the American people who didn’t start this trade war,” he said. “It’s one person who is responsible; it’s President Trump.”