President Trump says he had a call with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Wednesday that ended in a "somewhat" friendly manner—but it apparently wasn't enough to change Trump's mind about tariffs. "I told him that many people have died from Fentanyl that came through the Borders of Canada and Mexico, and nothing has convinced me that it has stopped," Trump said in a Truth Social post. "He said that it's gotten better, but I said, 'That's not good enough.'" Officials say that the call lasted around 50 minutes and that Vice President JD Vance and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick were also on the line, the CBC reports.
Trudeau was "unable to tell me when the Canadian Election is taking place, which made me curious, like, what's going on here? I then realized he is trying to use this issue to stay in power," Trump wrote, adding: "Good luck Justin!" The CBC notes that the prime minister couldn't say when the next election will happen because it isn't his decision to make. Calling the next election will be up to his successor as Liberal Party leader, who will be named after a leadership vote Sunday, meaning this could have been Trudeau's last conversation with Trump. In a follow-up post, Trump said he told "Governor" Trudeau that he "largely caused the problems we have with them because of his Weak Border Policies, which allowed tremendous amounts of Fentanyl, and Illegal Aliens, to pour into the United States."
According to White House figures, 43 pounds of fentanyl was seized in the northern border region, a small fraction of the amount that came from Mexico. At a news conference Wednesday, however, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Canada had made the US a "dumping ground not just for illegal aliens but fentanyl." Asked about the relatively small amount of the drug, she said fact-checking Trump's claims was "a little disrespectful for the families in this country who have lost loved ones at the hands of this deadly poison." (More Justin Trudeau stories.)
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
