Justin Trudeau resigned as Canada’s prime minister on Monday amid internal Liberal Party tensions over relations with President-elect Donald Trump, who plans to impose a 25% tariff on Canadian goods. Trudeau’s departure follows weeks of pressure from party colleagues and a failed attempt to mend relations during a meeting at Mar-a-Lago, where he argued against the tariffs, citing potential economic damage. His resignation coincides with Congress certifying Trump’s re-election, and he will remain in power until the Liberal Party elects a new leader before the general election in October. Trudeau has faced declining popularity, exacerbated by the political climate.
Justin Trudeau resigned as Canada’s prime minister on Monday, ending Donald Trump’s stunning fall from power, days before he was sworn in as president for a second time.
The move comes after weeks of pressure from colleagues in the Liberal Party of Canada amid a serious and widening rift over how to handle relations with President Trump, who is in his second term.
After President Trump announced on social media after his re-election that he planned to impose 25% tariffs on products from Canada, Prime Minister Trudeau is trying to mend relations with the next U.S. president before taking office later this month. I was furious. .
The day after announcing the idea, Trudeau, 53, immediately flew to Mar-a-Lago to do damage control.
During that meeting, reports emerged detailing how Trudeau implored President Trump not to impose tariffs, arguing that they would destroy Canada’s economy.
In response, President Trump suggested that the country’s northern neighbor could become America’s 51st state, and in subsequent weeks mocked Canada’s leader by referring to him as Governor Trudeau.
The reason President Trump wants to impose tariffs on Canada is to pressure Ottawa to do more to secure the border and stop illegal immigrants from entering the United States.
Prime Minister Trudeau’s resignation came on the same day that Congress certified the results of the 2024 U.S. presidential election as Trump’s victory, intensifying his efforts to take back the presidency.
Justin Trudeau resigned as Prime Minister of Canada on Monday after weeks of tension within the Liberal Party.
Prime Minister Trudeau’s party disagrees on how to respond to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who announced plans to impose a 25% tariff on Canada to pressure Canada to cooperate in cracking down on the border crisis.
Meanwhile, the Liberal Party of Canada set an emergency meeting for Wednesday to discuss how to address the growing rift within the party, but Prime Minister Trudeau walked out before the meeting could take place.
Prime Minister Trudeau announced his resignation Monday morning during a speech at his Rideau Cottage official residence in Ottawa, Canada.
“After the party selects its next leader through a national competitive process, I intend to resign as party leader and prime minister,” Trudeau announced in a speech given in English and later in French.
Prime Minister Trudeau will remain in power until his party elects a new leader, which must be done before the fall general election, when polls show the Conservatives will win.
Prime Minister Trudeau has been prime minister since November 2015 and lived in Rideau Cottage with his family. He and his wife Sophie, who have three children, announced their separation in August 2023.
His term as prime minister will end in just over eight years.
This week, amid reports that Prime Minister Trudeau’s resignation was imminent, the Canadian dollar began to soar after last month’s record plunge.
Prime Minister Trudeau’s resignation follows the resignation of Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland in mid-December. On his way out, Freeland cited his differences with Trudeau over Trump’s inauguration and how to approach tariff proposals.
Canada is preparing for a general election at the end of October this year.
Once a hugely popular political leader, Prime Minister Trudeau has lost integrity in recent years, especially amid the rise of President Trump. Only one in five Canadians currently feel their country is heading in the right direction with Prime Minister Trudeau at the helm.
Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie announced their separation in August 2023. Photo: May 6, 2023, the former couple attends the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla
Prime Minister Trudeau’s then-wife and three children dressed in gorgeous traditional Indian attire during a trip to New Delhi in 2018 (pictured)
And even Prime Minister Trudeau, who announced in October that Canada would drastically reduce the number of new immigrants it would allow into the country, could not downplay the importance of secure borders.
He acknowledged that the influx of green card residents over the past four years — at a time when President Joe Biden was also leading the country in record illegal immigration — had put undue pressure on the housing market.
The remarks came after Trudeau frequently boasted about how well Canada has done at welcoming immigrants and newcomers compared to other Western countries.
“Even Justin Trudeau wants to close Canada’s border,” President-elect Trump said.
In December, just a month after winning a second term, President Trump announced new ideas for tariffs.
He announced plans to impose a 25% tax on goods from Mexico and Canada in retaliation for refusing to provide more aid to the fentanyl and immigration crisis.
And on China, they want to impose an additional 10% tariff on top of other tariffs.
President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social on November 25th that he intends to impose 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico to pressure North American neighbors to help combat illegal immigration and fentanyl trafficking.
