Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told Donald Trump on Tuesday that his country will never be for sale, shutting down the U.S. president’s repeated calls to make Canada the 51st state.
“There are some places that are never for sale,” Carney said in the Oval Office.
Canada is “not for sale” and “won’t be for sale ever,” the prime minister said.
Trump replied: “Never say never.”
What would it even mean to “sell” Canada? Whatever deal they make, the US could just back out of once Canada became a state, and Canada wouldn’t be able to do anything about it. It’s a non-sensical idea.
Selling territories makes sense, but selling your own sovereignty does not.
Carney had to use a word Trump understands.
While reframing the conversation.
I’ve understood it more as buying the politicians out. That’s the only thing that could really be “for sale”, and thankfully we picked one that isn’t (at least not in this context).