President-elect Donald Trump welcomed some Canadians to his Mar-a-Lago estate over the weekend as he doubles down on his long-shot push for Canada to become the 51st state.
But the visit does not indicate that MAGA-friendly Canadians are jumping onboard with his plans to annex the close U.S. ally.
Among those who made the trek to Mar-a-Lago was Daniella Smith, the conservative premier of Alberta, who shared that she had a ‘friendly and constructive’ conversation with the 78-year-old president-elect.
Also in attendance was Kevin O’Leary, aka Mr. Wonderful, who met up with Trump as he sets his own course on how the Canadian businessman and Shark Tank host can work with the incoming administration.
Trump has been arguing that the country of roughly 40 million should join the U.S. as its newest state, but Canadians have largely rejected the idea.
Smith is a member of the country’s conservative party and has been a fierce critic of outgoing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
She has advocated for Canada and U.S. to increase their partnership as her province is extremely rich in gas and oil. But Smith notably has not come onboard with the statehood push despite her visit.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith with President-elect Trump and Canadian businessman and Shark Tank host Kevin O’Leary
‘We had a friendly and constructive conversation during which I emphasized the mutual importance of the U.S. – Canadian energy relationship, and specifically, how hundreds of thousands of American jobs are supported by energy exports from Alberta,’ Smith wrote after spending an evening and morning at Mar-a-Lago.
‘I was also able to have similar discussions with several key allies of the incoming administration and was encouraged to hear their support for a strong energy and security relationship with Canada,’ she added on X.
The premier posted several images of her standing with Trump as well as O’Leary.
She noted that the U.S. and Canada are ‘both proud and independent nations’ and wrote they need to ‘preserve our independence while we grow this critical partnership.’
Her visit comes after Smith had publicly said that Trump’s push for Canada to join the U.S. was resonating more with Americans than Canadians and a growing number of Canadians are concerned that Trump’s discussion of Canada as a state continues.
Smith has been rejected tariffs and for the U.S. and Canada to preserve its trade partnership even as Trump has threatened to slap 25 percent tariffs on imports from its northern neighbor and top trade partner.
Alberta Premier Smith speaking with Trump at Mar-a-Lago. The Canadian leader said they had a ‘friendly and constructive conversation’
Meanwhile, O’Leary has also been focused on other ways he could support the incoming Trump administration including efforts to facilitate a deal to buy TikTok.
The Shark Tank host posted an image of him with Trump and Smith over the weekend in which he praised him as a ‘gracious host.’
O’Leary has already said Canadians do not want to join the U.S. but he has suggested that is not what the president-elect actually wants either.
He told The Fox News Rundown podcast that he is ‘intrigued’ by Trump’s push which he believes could lead to no tariffs between the two countries to common currency and passports.
Kevin O’Leary posted an image of his ‘Trump burger’ after his visit to Mar-a-Lago over the weekend and praised the president-elect as a ‘gracious host’
While Trump has been trolling Trudeau by calling him a governor and repeated his call for Canada to join the U.S. as recently as last week, the proposal has been viewed as far-fetched.
Trudeau has stated point-blank that it is never going to happen and warned that it is a distraction by the president-elect from his tariff threat which would raise prices for consumers on both sides of the border.
Not only have Canadians largely rejected Canada joining the U.S., the move to make Canada the 51st state would also be political disastrous for Republicans moving forward.
Adding two U.S. senators from Canada as well as a large number of House members would have an impact on the majorities in both chambers as large swaths of the liberal-leaning country is more likely to elect lawmakers who align more with Democrats in Washington.
It would also have an impact on the Electoral College and Republicans path to the White House should Canada become a new state.
