Trudeau faces political crisis after dispute with Trump

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government has been thrown into new disarray by the sudden departure of his Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland.

By the end of a busy Monday, a new finance minister was appointed, but Trudeau was facing calls from members of his own Liberal Party to step down.

Without directly mentioning the news, the prime minister told party donors at an event in Ottawa: “It’s obviously been an eventful day. It hasn’t been an easy day.”

In her sharp resignation letter – published on the day she was due to deliver an economic statement – ​​Freeland cited disagreements with her longtime ally over how to respond to Donald Trump’s threat of tariffs.

The US president-elect, who will return to the White House in January, has vowed to impose a 25% levy on imported Canadian goods unless the shared border is made more secure.

Economists say the tariffs could have a devastating impact on the Canadian economy.

In her letter, Freeland accused Trudeau of choosing “costly political moves” rather than addressing the threat posed by Trump’s “aggressive economic nationalism.”

Trump himself later responded to Freeland, posting that his “behavior was completely toxic, and not at all conducive to making deals that are good for the very unhappy citizens of Canada”.

Freeland said his decision came after Trudeau told him last week he no longer wanted him to be the government’s top economic adviser.

His departure left the government stunned, the fate of a scheduled economic update hanging in the balance for hours, and Trudeau and his shaky minority Liberals pushed to the brink.

In another setback, the Liberals lost control of the Cloverdale-Langley City seat in British Columbia, following a by-election victory by the rival Conservatives. This was the Liberals’ third by-election defeat of the year.

Chris Sands, director of the Wilson Centre’s Canada Institute, told the BBC that Freeland’s sudden departure as finance minister “left Canada feeling quite confused and uncertain”.

“Trudeau finds himself a little bit alone, not very close to any of his ministers, because the big, talented people are now gone,” he said.

Mr. Sands said Trump’s victory in November’s U.S. presidential election has created divisions among U.S. allies, including Canada.

“Do you respond by pushing back against Trump and standing firm, or do you respond by trying to find a way to avoid conflict?” He said.

Trudeau has made several offers, including flying to the president-elect’s Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, last month to dine with Trump.

But Mr. Sands said, Freeland’s perspective was closer to that of Mexico — which also faces the threat of tariffs — and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.

Mexico, he said, has positioned itself under the idea that “now is the time to say no, to step back, to take a stance of fighting”.

He said, many politicians remember the challenges faced during Trump’s first term.

“He hasn’t been inaugurated yet, but people are already reacting as if he’s president and taking serious steps.”

Freeland, who also served as deputy prime minister, previously led Ottawa during the Trump administration in the successful renegotiation of the U.S.-Canada-Mexico free trade agreement.

“It was a really stressful and overwhelming process for Canada,” Mr. Sands said.

In addition to members of the prime minister’s own party, who called on him to step down, Canada’s three opposition party leaders said Monday that Trudeau should go.

Pierre Poilievre, leader of Canada’s opposition Conservative Party, called for early federal elections.

“Everything is getting out of control. We can’t continue like this,” he said.

Canada’s next federal election should be held as soon as possible in October.

Laura Stephenson, chair of the political science department at Western University, told the BBC it was unclear how the change in leadership would affect current US-Canada dynamics.

“I have no confidence that Trump will react any differently to Poilievre than he did to Trudeau,” he said.

After nine years in power, Trudeau faced growing calls to resign due to concerns that he was impacting his party’s fortunes.

According to a poll tracker, the Liberal leader’s approval rating has dropped from 63% when he was first elected in June this year to 28%.

Opinion polls also show that if the election were held today, the Liberals could face a huge loss to the Conservatives.

Some Liberal members of Parliament have been pressuring Trudeau to step down for months — with eight MPs publicly expressing that sentiment on Monday, Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail reports.

In a meeting with his caucus following Freeland’s resignation on Monday, Trudeau reportedly heard some calls for her to step down directly. Others also expressed their concerns and reservations about his leadership.

According to sources who spoke to Canadian media about the meeting, Trudeau addressed them by saying he was not stepping down immediately, but that he would consider the day’s events.

Trudeau did not answer questions as he headed to a fundraiser in Ottawa, but he told the crowd he was “very proud” of his government’s accomplishments.

In brief remarks he said that working for Canadian values ​​”makes us liberals.”

“That is why we, as a party, are here even on the toughest of days.”

Trudeau has rejected previous calls to step down and has repeatedly said he plans to run in the next federal election.

Also on Monday, leaders from Canada’s provinces and territories met in Toronto to address Trump’s tariff threat.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said, “There is chaos in Ottawa right now.”

Ford said the premier will “make sure we let the world know there is stability here, there is certainty in Canada”.