When asked why, if Canada’s Mark Carney was such a “great man,” the two leaders still hadn’t managed to reach a deal, Donald Trump replied with a grin, “Because I want to be a great man, too", reported CNN. The remark drew laughter as reporters were ushered out of the Oval Office -- a fittingly uncertain end to a visit that mixed cordial gestures with lingering tension.
Carney, who has spent months trying to smooth over frayed ties with Washington, arrived in the U.S. capital determined to keep things friendly and focused.After all, Canada remains the only G7 country still facing Trump’s steep tariffs on steel, aluminum, automobiles, and lumber -- a political and economic burden that has weighed heavily at home, reported CNN.
“I wore red for you,” he told Trump as they met beneath the West Wing Portico, motioning to his patterned tie chosen to match Republican colors. Trump, dressed in blue, chuckled.
According to the report, their meeting, though polite, offered little clarity. Trump promised that the Canadian delegation would “walk away happy,” but refused to elaborate. “You’ll find out,” he said cryptically.
It was a scene emblematic of their uneasy relationship -- cordial smiles covering deep disagreements. Carney, who once built a reputation as a disciplined central banker, largely let Trump take control of the conversation, the report said. The U.S. president jumped from topic to topic: the government shutdown (“They remind me of Somalia.”), conditions in Washington, D.C. (“This place was a raging hellhole.”), and even his frustrations with Ukraine (“It’s a crazy thing. I thought that would have been one of the easy ones.”).
When asked about fentanyl crossing the border -- the justification for Trump’s 35% tariff -- Carney responded carefully. “Any amount is too much. So we’ve gotten it down. It’s down substantially. It’s less than 1%, but it’s -- look, it’s still too much.”
In earlier encounters, Carney had made clear that while he aimed to be conciliatory, he wouldn’t cede on sovereignty. During their first Oval Office meeting, when Trump half-joked about buying Canada, Carney had responded firmly that the country was “not for sale” and “won’t be for sale, ever.” Trump merely shrugged: “Never say never.”
The same theme resurfaced Tuesday when Carney began praising Trump’s foreign policy achievements, calling him a “transformative president” and listing peace efforts in various global conflicts. Before he could finish, Trump cut in with a grin: “The merger of Canada and the United States?”
Carney burst out laughing. “No! That wasn’t where I was going.”
Trump later told reporters that “Carney is a nice man but he can be very nasty,” a remark that blended backhanded compliment with characteristic showmanship.
Still, the wider relationship remains strained. Canadian tourism to the U.S. has dropped, some retailers have stopped selling American products, and many Canadians feel alienated by their closest ally.
Trump offered his own explanation for the deadlock. “It’s a complicated agreement, more complicated maybe than any other agreement we have on trade. Because, you know, we have natural conflict, we also have mutual love.”
Carney, true to form, stayed quiet -- a deliberate choice from a leader who seems to have concluded that when it comes to Trump, saying less may be the surest way to keep the conversation alive, reported CNN.
With inputs from CNN
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