Donald Trump said, in a Friday press conference, that Canada was a “cherished” state for the United States, even though it did not need its northern neighbor.
Trump told the press, “Canada is not a country we need. We don’t even need its lumber. We don’t need Canada’s energy, we don’t need anything, but it costs us $200 billion per year to keep Canada afloat.”
He added that the United States could not be carrying a nation “right next to our border.”
He said: “It would make a wonderful state. It would be cherished. Canadian citizens’ taxes would be cut by less than half. They do not spend money on their military because they believe we will protect them.”
Trump has said that he will not change his mind about tariffs on Canada even though he gave American automakers a break because it would be unfair to do otherwise.
“Sometimes, flexibility works,” he said. “Nobody knows that Canada is charging our dairy farmers, they have 270% tariffs. Nobody knows that … they have a couple of tariffs at 400%. Nobody knows that; nobody talks about that.”
Trump said that Canada is a “tough trader” but that the Canadians are not.
Trump said, “Canada was a very bad negotiator and took advantage of America for a long time.”
He also dismissed the concern that Canada, as the 51st state of the United States, would be a “blue state”.
He said, “You have this artificial borderline. It is an artificial border that was drawn on the sand or ice. You add that to this country, and what a beautiful landmass.”