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Canadian Member of Parliament Charlie Angus criticized President Trump over his calls to make Canada the 51st state of America, calling the U.S. president “a liar.”
Angus joined CNN’s Brianna Keilar on Monday, just days after Trump signed an executive order that would place a 25 percent tariff on Canada. In remarks from the Oval Office on Monday, Trump reiterated a past desire to have Canada join the United States.
“I think the issue is that Donald Trump is claiming Canada is a narco-state. The man’s a liar,” Angus said.
Trump’s order, which also impacts Mexico and China, has plunged the U.S. into a trade war with its largest trading partners.
The president has defended the tariffs as a way to encourage the U.S. neighbors to help stop the flow of migrants and fentanyl across the border into the U.S.
Angus said he would “love” to have more funds head to the border to “keep American guns” from killing Canadians.
“We would do that to avoid a trade war,” he said. “We’re reasonable as Canadians, but when you have somebody threatening our sovereignty, well, we’re hunkering down for a fight here.”
Angus pointed to Trump’s relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, internationally recognized enemies of Democratic states, and said Trump is choosing to “pick a fight with us.”
“If that’s the way it’s going to be, we will be there, pound for pound,” he said.
“It’s going to hurt us a lot,” Angus added. “But the American people are much more divided than we are right now, and we are unified. So, we will wait to see what comes next.”
On Monday, Trump struck a deal with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to delay the tariffs for a month in exchange for southern and northern border security for the U.S.
“As President, it is my responsibility to ensure the safety of ALL Americans, and I am doing just that. I am very pleased with this initial outcome, and the Tariffs announced on Saturday will be paused for a 30 day period to see whether or not a final Economic deal with Canada can be structured. FAIRNESS FOR ALL!” Trump said on Truth Social announcing the deal with Trudeau.
