Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation as Liberal leader comes just two weeks before Donald Trump takes office as U.S. president while threatening to impose 25 per cent tariffs on all imports from Canada on Day 1.
Trudeau said he will stay on as prime minister until his successor is chosen, creating the prospect that Canada will have a lame duck head of government just as its biggest trading partner hits its exports with steep tariffs.
The resignation means there is now very little that Trudeau can do now to stave off Trump’s tariff threat, says David MacNaughton, whom Trudeau appointed as Canada’s ambassador to the U.S. in 2016.Â
“The reality is, today you announce you’re stepping down, your power, your influence dissipates almost immediately,” MacNaughton told CBC News on Monday.
He says Trudeau should have made this move months ago to ensure the government was prepared for Trump’s potential return to the White House.Â
“We’re going to have a few months of uncertainty right now … and in the meantime, Trump is feeling pretty cocky these days.”
Trudeau’s resignation leaves Canada and its economy vulnerable to whatever Trump plans to impose, says Xavier Delgado, senior program associate with the Wilson Center’s Canada Institute in Washington.
“It’s a remarkable time for the prime minister to be announcing that he’s stepping down,” said Delgado. “Within the context of Canada-U.S. relations, it really does not make a lot of sense.”
‘People in Canada LOVE being the 51st State’Â
Trump reacted to Trudeau’s resignation with a post on his Truth Social platform.
“Many people in Canada LOVE being the 51st State. The United States can no longer suffer the massive Trade Deficits and Subsidies that Canada needs to stay afloat. Justin Trudeau knew this, and resigned,” Trump said in the post.Â
“If Canada merged with the U.S.,” Trump continued, “there would be no Tariffs, taxes would go way down, and they would be TOTALLY SECURE from the threat of the Russian and Chinese Ships that are constantly surrounding them. Together, what a great Nation it would be!!!”
Trudeau’s decision to step down is bringing questions about how the government will handle any negotiations with the Trump administration.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the Liberal government will remain ‘singularly focused’ on protecting Canadian interests and continuing to ‘fight for the economy’ even as the party undergoes a leadership race in the wake of Trudeau’s resignation announcement. Trudeau made the comments when he was asked by a reporter how the Liberal government could protect Canada from U.S. president-elect Donald Trump’s tariff threat if Liberals were focused on who would be the next party leader.
“In announcing that he’s resigning, Trudeau effectively becomes a lame duck prime minister,” Delgado said. “He does not really have a mandate, given the fact that folks down here in Washington know that he’s not going to be around much longer.”Â
Trudeau cites need to ‘stand up for Canadians’
During his news conference outside Rideau Cottage, Trudeau was asked how the government can protect Canada from the tariff threat if key cabinet ministers are absorbed in a leadership race.
“The government and the cabinet will still be very much focused on doing the job Canadians elected us to do in 2021, which is fight for their interests, stand up for their well-being and make sure that Canadians … are protected and strong,” Trudeau said.
“I can assure you that the tools and the need to stand up for Canadians, to protect Canadians in their interests and continue to fight for the economy, is something everyone in this government will be singularly focused on.”
Trudeau did not directly answer a question about whether the Liberal leadership contestants would be required to quit their post during the race.
Several top cabinet ministers working on the Canada-U.S. file — including Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly and Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc — are considered leadership contenders.
The pair travelled to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in late December to meet with two of the president-elect’s cabinet picks and brief them on Ottawa’s plan for improving border security, for which Trump has asked, if Canada hopes to avoid crushing tariffs.
Speaking to reporters on Monday afternoon, Ontario Premier Doug Ford says Justin Trudeau’s number one focus before his resignation should be to create a plan to avoid Donald Trump’s tariff threat.
Trudeau’s resignation “could not have come at a worse time for U.S.-Canada relations,” said Laura Dawson, executive director of Future Borders Coalition, an organization made of business leaders in both countries. Â
“The government is in this caretaker mode,” Dawson said in an interview with CBC News. “The relationship [with the U.S.] just can’t afford to be put on hold like that. “
Dawson says she’s not sure whether Trudeau’s resignation puts Trump in a stronger negotiating position on tariffs, but says it does mean Canada now lacks the capacity to respond quick and nimbly to any new issues that Trump raises.  Â
“Who’s driving this bus?” she asked. “There’s no leadership.” Â
President Joe Biden’s press secretary described Trudeau as “a stalwart friend of the United States” in comments to reporters Monday.
“We have worked closely together on the full range of issues facing our countries and the world as close allies, neighbours and as members of the G7,” said Karine Jean-Pierre. “The president is grateful for the prime minister’s partnership on all of that and for his commitment to defending North America from the geopolitical threats of the 21st century.”Â
In addition to announcing his resignation as Liberal leader and as prime minister once a new leader is chosen, Justin Trudeau says he has asked the Governor General to prorogue Parliament until March 24. Here’s everything you need to know about what that means — and what happens next.