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Trump 91Ƶjoking91Ƶ when he suggested Canada become 51st state: federal minister

Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc was at the 91Ƶlighthearted91Ƶ meeting where comment made in jest
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Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs Dominic LeBlanc arrives to a cabinet meeting on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

President-elect Donald Trump was joking when he suggested Canada become the 51st U.S. state during a dinner with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Florida on Friday, said a Liberal minister who attended the meeting.

Fox News reported on Monday that Trump made the comment in response to the Canadians raising concerns that tariffs would hurt their economy.

Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc says the incoming president91Ƶs suggestion was said in jest.

91ƵThe president was telling jokes, the president was teasing us. It was of course on that issue in no way a serious comment,91Ƶ LeBlanc told reporters on his way into a cabinet meeting.

He described the meeting at Trump91Ƶs Mar-a-Lago estate as a lighthearted social evening.

91ƵWe had a discussion on trade issues, on border security that was very productive. But the fact that there91Ƶs a warm, cordial relationship between the two leaders and the president is able to joke like that for us was a positive thing,91Ƶ LeBlanc said.

Five days before the dinner Trump threatened to impose a 25 per cent tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico unless the two countries stop migrants and illicit drugs such as fentanyl from entering the U.S.

LeBlanc said on Monday that the group discussed the impact of tariffs on Americans during the meeting, including that imposing tariffs on Canada would hurt the U.S. economy as well.





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