Justin Trudeau left in a hurry, Friday evening, towards Florida, without announcement or warning, and the panelists The Joust analysts assume that he is going there to meet Donald Trump following the threats on customs tariffs made by the latter at the beginning of the week.
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“Everyone is knocking on the door of Mar-a-Lago (Donald Trump’s residence in Florida),” notes Luc Lavoie on the TVA Nouvelles bulletin at 5 p.m.
Mr. Lavoie believes that the Prime Minister of Canada had to find a place in the schedule of the American president-elect to discuss issues at the Canadian-American border.
Photo AFP
Remember that Donald Trump mentioned that he would impose a 25% tax on Canadian products entering the United States if this border and the one that separates Uncle Sam’s country with Mexico were not secure.
But this dynamic where leaders begin to directly negotiate with an American president who is not yet in power is absolutely not normal, points out the analyst.
“Normally, presidents-elect wait until January 20 before really starting to have direct relations with partners,” he says. It’s very special.”
“A head of government does not meet the successor of a president in office,” retorts his colleague Emmanuelle Latraverse. The problem facing Canada is that it has no choice but to engage in this game of corridor politics, of parallel politics, because Donald Trump has completely given until January 20 to be convinced that the border is watertight.”
Former Minister of Health, Gaétan Barrette, points out that this is how Donald Trump works.
“Its legitimacy is based on its behavior in all matters,” he replies. He announces his colors. He has the temperament to apply his colors on a canvas that may not be happy, so the operation that I see today, which is quite secret, is the equivalent for me of the great Canadian confusion that we have experienced in the last few days (and the opportunity) to do what we are going to do at home when the computer is bad, we press the “reset” button.”
Watch the discussion in the video above
