Maybe he’s not joking? Trump revives 51st state talk about Canada

President-elect Donald Trump is taunting Canada again.

Mr. Trump said Wednesday that making Canada the 51st state would be a great idea and appeared to bemoan the U.S. trade deficit with the northern neighbor.

“No one can answer why we subsidize Canada to the tune of over $100,000,000 a year? Makes no sense! Many Canadians want Canada to become the 51st State. They would save massively on taxes and military protection. I think it is a great idea. 51st State!!!” Mr. Trump posted on Truth Social.

The president-elect floated the idea of annexing Canada during a recent meeting at his South Florida estate with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Mr. Trump said if Mr. Trudeau cannot handle the pain of new tariffs, his country should become part of the U.S. to avoid the levies.

Mr. Trump hasn’t let it go, posting pictures and social media messages that refer to Mr. Trudeau as a “governor.”

He’s twisting the knife while Mr. Trudeau deals with turmoil back home. His finance minister, Chrystia Freeland, abruptly resigned from the government this month, saying Mr. Trudeau tried to demote her to a different position and was relying on “political gimmicks” to deal with inflation instead of protecting reserves to deal with Mr. Trump’s tariff threats.

Mr. Trump says he is ready and willing to impose a 25% tariff on goods from Canada and Mexico if they fail to rein in illegal immigration and drug trafficking.