Okay, so like, Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney just came back from his big D.C. moment with President Donald Trump — and even though he didn’t come home with a shiny new trade deal tied up in a bow, he’s totally acting like he’s got this.
In Parliament Wednesday, Carney was basically like, “Chill, guys, we’re still negotiating — and it’s going great.” He said Canadian and U.S. officials are hammering out the “terms” of a deal on tariffs and that Canada already has “the best deal with the Americans.” Oh, and he dropped this confident little bomb: “We will get an even better deal.”
So, what’s the drama? Well, the Trump administration’s tariffs on steel, aluminum, and forestry have seriously slammed Canadian industries — we’re talking thousands of jobs lost and exports dropping off a cliff. Carney says both sides are working on new “modalities” (ugh, fancy word alert) for an auto deal and a fix for the never-ending softwood lumber fight. “We will only accept the best deal,” he insisted, like a guy who’s already visualizing his victory lap.
Carney left Washington without an actual agreement, but Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc stayed behind to keep working with Trump’s people. Apparently, Carney and Trump had a “meeting of the minds” — which sounds kinda wild considering their personalities — and he described their talk as a “granular discussion” (translation: they actually got into the details).
The prime minister also made it clear he’s not obsessed with the U.S. like past leaders. “Our relationship will never again be what it was,” he said, adding that his focus now is on making Canada stronger “on its own.” Cue the patriotic vibes — he even praised “Buy Canadian” and “travel local” campaigns as proof Canadians are taking charge of their economic destiny.
But not everyone was clapping. Conservative Leader Pierre P. totally went off, accusing Carney of “bowing before the president in weakness” and handing Trump “a trillion-dollar gift.” That’s because Carney told Trump that if tariffs come down, Canadian private investors — like big pension funds — are ready to pour up to a trillion dollars into the U.S. economy over the next five years.
Carney, clearly over it, shot back with some shade: “There’s a thing called the private sector.” Translation: it’s not his money to control, and Poilievre should maybe open an economics textbook.
But Carney’s not without his cheerleaders. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she actually likes his approach — saying he’s speaking Trump’s “love language” by talking about investment and even floating a revival of the Keystone XL pipeline. Yup, that Keystone — the one that would send Alberta oil down to U.S. refineries and that Joe Biden shut down back in the day.
Smith said Carney seems to be building a “rapport” with Trump, unlike former PM Justin Trudeau, whose chilly relationship with The Donald got Canada nowhere. “His love language is, ‘Let me tell you how I can make America even greater,’” Smith said. “We should be cheering the prime minister on.”
Meanwhile, Ontario Premier Doug Ford was less about the sweet talk and more about the fight: “If we can’t get a deal, we have to hit him back twice as hard,” Ford said.
So yeah — Carney’s betting big that Canada can smooth things over with Trump and score a better deal. Whether that confidence turns into something real? That’s the billion (or trillion) dollar question.
XOXO,
Valley Girl News
Where diplomacy meets drama and trade wars get personal
