Mark Carney set to have first meeting with Trump in Washington

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Prime Minister Mark Carney will soon find out what kind of reception he will receive from U.S. President Donald Trump and members of his administration, as the two leaders are set to sit down today for their first face-to-face meeting. Carney is in Washington hoping to talk trade, tariffs and security with Trump. For his part, the U.S. president told reporters on Monday, as the prime minister was arriving, that he was not sure “what (Carney) wants to see me about, but I guess he wants to make a deal.” U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who will be attending Tuesday’s meetings, told Fox News on Monday that Canada was “socialist regime” that had for decades been “feeding off of America.” “I think it’s going to be a fascinating meeting,” he said. “I’m glad I’m going to be there listening.” He then added: “I just don’t see how it works out so perfectly.” Tuesday’s meeting comes after a call Carney had with Trump following his recent election victory. The pair had agreed to meet earlier when they spoke back in March, shortly after the federal election campaign got underway. Carney successfully ran a campaign that focused on the economic threats coming from the Trump administration, pitching himself to voters as the leader with the experience necessary to manage the headwinds. While Tuesday’s meeting will be the first between Carney and Trump, the pair are not strangers. Both attended the G20 meeting staged in Hamburg, Germany, back in 2017. Trump was there during his first term in office and Carney was serving as chair of the Financial Stability Board, an international group that provides advice about global finances. Trump has so far been more complimentary of Carney than his predecessor, former prime minister Justin Trudeau, whom the president took to calling “Governor Trudeau,” referring Trump’s desire for Canada to become a U.S. state. While the president has shown no signs of backing down from saying he wants Canada to become a state and referring to the Canada-U.S. boundary as an “artificial line,” as he recently did on NBC, Trump has called Carney a “very nice gentleman” and a “very nice man.” Whether those earlier compliments signal anything about the relationship to come will be revealed when they sit down later Tuesday. The leaders are set to meet in the Oval Office and also attend a working lunch at the White House. During his first post-election press conference last Friday, Carney was asked directly about how he could avoid a situation like unfolded in the Oval Office when Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky visited back in February. That meeting descended into Trump and Vice-President JD Vance shouting at Zelensky, whom they accused of not being grateful of U.S. support as it defends itself from Russia’s invasion, which began in 2022. Carney told reporters he was expecting to have “difficult, but constructive discussions.” Several of Carney’s ministers were set to join him during his set of meetings International Trade and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc travelled with him, as did Public Safety Minister David McGuinty. The same with several top deputy ministers in the government. Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly was also expected to attend. Carney has stated his top priority is dealing with the tariffs Trump has placed on Canada, but also wants to discuss both countries’ trade and security relationship more broadly. Vehicles and auto-parts not covered by the free trade agreement between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico have been subject to 25 per cent U.S. tariffs since April. The same goes for Canadian imports and energy products, not covered by the deal, save for energy exports, which are subject to a 10 per cent levy. Back in March, the president’s 25 per cent tariffs on steel and aluminum also took effect, with the White House giving no carveout for Canada. The federal government has responded by hitting back with retaliatory tariffs on billions of dollars’ worth of U.S. goods. Ontario Premier Doug Ford released a public letter ahead of Carney’s meeting with Trump, underscoring development projects in the province he wants the federal government to prioritize, given the prime minister has pledged to speed up development and remove all federal trade barriers by Canada Day. “As Canada moves forward with the United state on a renewed security and economic partnership, Ontario expects frequent, ongoing and meaningful engagement by the federal government with all provinces and territories at all stages to ensure our core interests are reflected in any outcome.” More to come… – With additional reporting from The Canadian Press National Post staylor@postmedia.com Get more deep-dive National Post political coverage and analysis in your inbox with the Political Hack newsletter, where Ottawa bureau chief Stuart Thomson and political analyst Tasha Kheiriddin get at what’s really going on behind the scenes on Parliament Hill every Wednesday and Friday, exclusively for subscribers. 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