Trump Threatens 250% Canadian Dairy Tax in Latest Tariff Saga Twist

Liam Archacki
Sat, March 8, 2025 

DAILY BEAST


Alex Wong / Getty Images


President Donald Trump has threatened to impose yet another set of tariffs on Canada—the latest twist in a saga that has seen the president repeatedly institute and then delay sweeping taxes on close allies.

A day after offering a partial one-month reprieve on the 25 percent tariff on all goods from Canada and Mexico, Trump declared Friday, “Canada has been ripping us off for years on lumber and on dairy products.”

He added that the U.S. would be matching Canada’s existing 250 percent tariff on dairy, although he equivocated on when the tax would go into place.

“We may do it as early as today, or we’ll wait until Monday or Tuesday,” the president said. “We’re going to charge the same thing. It’s not fair. It never has been fair, and they’ve treated our farmers badly.”


Trump has made trade wars with Canada, Mexico, and China a central part of his early-term agenda.

Donald Trump listens to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during a meeting at the White House on Oct. 11, 2017. / AFP Contributor / AFP via Getty Images

However, a White House official seemed to undercut Trump’s latest threat.

“Discussions with Canada continue,” an unnamed official told NBC News. ”While we don’t have any specific actions to preview at the moment, the president is always ready to take action to save American lives from the scourge of illicit drugs flowing over our borders and shore up our border security.”

Trump has cited fentanyl trafficking as the reason for levying steep tariffs against America’s neighbors, although less than 1 percent of fentanyl seized entering the U.S. comes through the northern border; 98 percent comes from Mexico.

Outgoing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau fired back at Trump’s tariffs as they were introduced this week, before the president rolled them back for another month.

“Now, it’s not in my habit to agree with The Wall Street Journal, but Donald, they point out that even though you’re a very smart guy, this is a very dumb thing to do,” Trudeau said on Tuesday. “We two friends fighting is exactly what our opponents around the world want to see.”

He added that Canada, which had already retaliated with new tariffs against America, would also challenge the legitimacy of the taxes at the World Trade Organization. Canada and the U.S. have a free trade agreement.

The threat appeared to work, as the tariff roll-back that soon followed reverts the taxes on products protected by the three-way agreement between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.

Noem aware Mexican, Canadian leaders have own ‘political environments,’ but Trump ‘means business’ on tariffs

SHE SHOT THE FAMILY DOG, AND BRAGS ABOUT IT

Tara Suter
Sun, March 9, 2025 


Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on Sunday that she knows Mexican and Canadian leaders have their own “political environments” but that President Trump “means business” on tariffs.

“We all recognize that each one of these leaders has political environments in their home countries as well, but President Trump means business, and he meant it when he ran to be president of the United States again, and since he’s taken office, that he will put America first,” Noem told CBS News’s Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation.”

Last week, the president imposed 25 percent tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico alongside an extra 10 percent tariff on Chinese goods. Trump cited irritation over the stream of fentanyl into his country, but experts have noted not much of the drug comes into the U.S. via its border with Canada.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau went after the Trump tariffs aimed at Canada on Tuesday, noting a Wall Street Journal editorial calling them “dumb.”

“Now, I want to speak directly to one specific American,” Trudeau said at the time. “Donald, in the over eight years you and I have worked together, we’ve done big things. We signed a historic deal that has created record jobs and growth in both of our countries.”

“We’ve done big things together on the world stage, as Canada and the U.S. have done together for decades, for generations. And now, we should be working together to ensure even greater prosperity for North Americans in a very uncertain and challenging world.”

Later in the week, Trump went forward with tariff exemptions for imports from Canada and Mexico in line with a 2020 North American trade agreement.


On Sunday, Noem said that the president is “taking action to make sure that we’re cleaning up the mess that Joe Biden left behind and that we have a much safer country where Americans can look forward to the future.”

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Trump’s Threat to Take Over Canada Is a Scandal

Asawin Suebsaeng
Sat, March 8, 2025 

As an American teenager who grew into a semblance of political consciousness during the height of George W. Bush’s War on Terror, it was easy to notice how the post-9/11 period corroded our political culture and our grasp of decency in ways from which we have never truly recovered. One thing I’ll never forget is how so many people in the United States lost their minds over Iranians who once chanted a “Death To America” jingle.

To this day, too many members of the U.S. media and political elite still believe bombing Iran is a rational policy. Imagine, if you will, that in 2002, Iranian leaders had gone a step further and, with grins on their faces, had repeatedly and openly propagandized about annexing large swaths of American territory, thus putting millions of our citizens under their rulers’ authority.

How do you think our nation would have responded, collectively, to that unrealistic threat? Would we have a shred of patience for anyone telling us not to worry about it?

Our many millions of neighbors to the north are hearing similar threats today from our new president, Donald Trump. They are not laughing it off.

Of course, Iran is on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, and is a markedly less powerful nation than the United States. The Canadians share a border with the U.S. and are currently being menaced by a profanely imperialistic leader who not only keeps trying to destroy the Canadian economy with large tariffs for nonsensical reasons, but who also controls the mightiest military on the planet — and he keeps talking about taking over their country and referring to Canada as “the 51st state.”

“The excuse that he’s giving for these tariffs today of fentanyl is completely bogus, completely unjustified, completely false,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Tuesday, responding to Trump’s latest salvo in his buffoonish trade war on Mexico and Canada. “What he wants is to see a total collapse of the Canadian economy, because that’ll make it easier to annex us.”

Whenever I press senior Trump advisers, other administration officials, and Republican sources close to the White House about the president’s threats against Canada, I am typically told that it’s just Trump being Trump, and that I’m being a hysterical leftist. Or, I’m told that the president is once again doing his Art Of The Deal-style diplomacy, and that there’s a method to the reality-TV-grade madness. Other times, I get an earful about how Canada’s prime minister is the real problem, and that finding offense in Trump’s words is a whiny waste of time.

On occasion, I’ll get a moment of candor that gives away a larger game, even if the comment is to be taken with some grain of irony.

“Donald Trump should not accept Canada as the 51st state; it should obviously be a territory,” says one Trump administration official, who notes that making Canada a state would likely add “so many liberal voters” that it would risk tipping the Electoral College in the Democratic Party’s direction. (U.S. territories, like Puerto Rico, are not allowed electoral votes for the presidency.)

There are numerous reasons why Trump and his government’s pervasive blathering about turning Canada into the “51st state” shouldn’t be dismissed as a “Madman Theory”-negotiating tactic, or as performative MAGA trolling. During a private phone call last month, according to a Friday New York Times report, Trump “told Mr. Trudeau that he did not believe that the treaty that demarcates the border between the two countries was valid and that he wants to revise the boundary. He offered no further explanation.”

Lately, Trump — a man who would never try to do anything world-historically rash like ending democracy in America — has told every news camera that would listen and broadcast his message to the world that he would like to rule Canada, one of the U.S.’s most vital allies. It’s not just Trump blurting it out: This has become the position of the United States federal government; his White House press secretary and his Homeland Security secretary are now, too, calling Canada “the 51st state.”

“Canada could do a lot more. Canada has been taken over, Bret, by Mexican cartels,” top Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro, bizarrely, told Fox News host Bret Baier on Wednesday, attempting to justify Trump’s tariffs. (At least Trump White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt practically admitted the tariffs are about forcing Canada’s annexation.)

The president and his senior administration officials may have been talking about our partner on the northern border, but the invocation of the U.S. fentanyl crisis and violent Mexican drug kingpins as justification for reckless economic decisions potentially spells far more doom and pain for our neighbors to the south.

For years, Trump and numerous heavy hitters in the Republican Party elite — at think tanks, in Congress, and now within the highest levels of his second administration — have moved the idea of invading and bombing Mexico from the fringes of right-wing fantasy and into the GOP’s mainstream. It’s in proposed legislation. The policy papers have been written. Trump campaigned on it during his successful reelection bid.

“President Trump is committed to calling them a terrorist organization and using the full might of the United States special operations to take them out,” Trump’s “border czar” and immigration-crackdown ringleader Tom Homan said in November.

Whether or not Trump ultimately sends in a single troop or launches a drone strike on Mexican soil within the next 200 weeks, it would be criminally negligent of the Mexican government to view this talk as an empty threat. The Republican Party, not just its bloviating leader, has made it abundantly clear that they believe they can violate Mexican sovereignty in spectacularly violent ways, if and whenever they feel like it. The justifications they cite, of course, are the drug cartels and fentanyl.

How is the average Canadian supposed to process the fact that the new Trump administration is now consistently wielding those exact same justifications when discussing economic war on Canada and a desired territorial takeover of their country? The fact that the U.S. federal government is squawking in one loud, highly irritating voice — in your name and mine, and doing so on our taxpayers’ dime — that it would like to obliterate the national sovereignty of our longtime friend and ally to the north is in and of itself a scandal.

Not a troll, or a joke, or mere bluster — a scandal.

Ever since Trump’s rise in 2015 — during a decade-long political career that has only grown more fascistic and lawless with age — it has become standard practice for too many members of the elite ranks of the media and political class to describe various Trump outbursts or actions as little more than a “distraction” from the real issues. This includes but is sadly not limited to pundits and politicos insisting that the president’s recent announcement that he considers himself “THE KING” is a frivolous distraction, even as Trump and his lieutenants have been deploying everything in their arsenals to grant him the powers of one.

Indeed, it would be easier to dismiss Trump’s cartoonishly imperialistic talk of conquering Canada, a country of roughly 40 million souls, if this weren’t occurring against the backdrop of an administration working to impose its degenerate MAGA incarnation of American imperialism on a war-torn European nation.

Over the past 10 years, a hallmark of Trumpist propaganda has been that The Donald is a new kind of Republican on foreign policy: He’s no neocon, he’s not Bush or Cheney, he is “ending endless war,” he wants his own version of “peace through strength.” That propaganda has always been bullshit, and only further revealed itself to be just that during his first administration — when Trump escalated the war in Afghanistan and refused to end it, as President Joe Biden finally did.

The second presidency of “Donald The Dove” has further inflamed that contradiction, as Trump and his senior officials seek to bully the Ukrainian government into signing over access to its valuable fossil fuel and mineral resources, as the nation continues to suffer under a brutal Russian invasion. It is a uniquely depraved shakedown, and demonstrates that Trump’s primary interest in the Russia-Ukraine conflict is to join Vladimir Putin in a joint mission to divvy up the spoils of war.

Closer to home, the Canadians can all watch this play out on the evening news. Will U.S. Marines be marching on Quebec next week? No, probably not.

And yet, the damage is already done. Canadians are experiencing the same politics of extortion and harassment that Trump has unleashed on Ukraine.

It is, or at least it should be, a damp stain on our national conscience, and your average outraged Canadian is responding rationally. If anything, it’s the American public that should be taking Trump’s depravity more seriously. We allowed this to happen.

FULL SPEECH: 

Former PM Jean Chrétien addresses tariff war during Liberal leadership speech

Former prime minister Jean Chrétien tells Trump to 'stop this nonsense'

OTTAWA — Moments before the new Liberal leader was announced on Sunday, former prime minister Jean Chrétien took to the stage to reprimand U.S. President Donald Trump over tariffs and threats to Canada's sovereignty.

Catherine Morrison, 

The Canadian Press


Former prime minister Jean Chretien delivers a speech at the Liberal leadership announcement event in Ottawa, Sunday, March 9, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick


OTTAWA — Moments before the new Liberal leader was announced on Sunday, former prime minister Jean Chrétien took to the stage to reprimand U.S. President Donald Trump over tariffs and threats to Canada's sovereignty.

Chrétien warned a crowd of Liberals gathered in Ottawa that Canada’s “long and fruitful” relationship with Americans was falling apart with continued hostility coming from the Trump administration.

The former prime minister applauded Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government and Canada’s premiers for their leadership in the last few weeks standing up to Trump’s threats.

He said the government is right to retaliate and said Canadian governments could go even further, hitting Americans "where it really hurts" by imposing an export tax on oil and gas, potash, steel, aluminum and electricity. The money could be used to build up infrastructure, he suggested

Chrétien said the "unjustified" duties will be a lose-lose situation for both Canadians and Americans but that, for Canada, this is about “more than money.”

He urged Canadians to stand up for the country, adding that while Canada is a good neighbour, it’s also a proud and independent country.

“From one old guy to another old guy, stop this nonsense,” Chrétien told the crowd. “Canada will never join the United States.”

Chrétien said Canada will remain “the best country in the world.” He thanked Trump for uniting Canadians "as never before" and joked that he should receive the Order of Canada.

“Historically, despite our friendship, we have had problems but we always found a way to solve them,” he said. “We have worked with and collaborated with the U.S. in the past and I’m telling you we will do so in the future.”

“We are going to be living very difficult times but I’m confident, I’m very confident that the next prime minister will work with the premiers, the leaders of all the political parties in the House of Commons and allies around the world to stand together to meet the challenges that Mr. Trump is creating for the whole world.”

Trump has threatened Canada with tariffs and "economic force" to make it the 51st state.

After imposing and then quickly pausing 25 per cent tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada that sent markets tumbling over concerns of a trade war, Trump said in a taped interview with Fox News Channel's “Sunday Morning Futures" that his plans for broader "reciprocal" tariffs will go into effect April 2.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 9, 2025.

Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press

Chretien says we should hit the U.S. ‘where it hurts’; and Canada should build a natural gas pipeline from Alberta to Quebec

By Phil Hahn
March 09, 2025

CTV

Former PM Chrétien gives U.S. President Trump a ‘history lesson’

Former prime minister Jean Chrétien gives U.S. President Trump a ‘history lesson’ and jokes about burning down the White House.


Former prime minister Jean Chrétien gives U.S. President Trump a ‘history lesson’ and jokes about burning down the White House.

Former prime minister Jean Chretien said Canada had every right to retaliate the way it did in the ongoing trade war with the United States, adding it should hit back even harder by imposing taxes on major exports and using the money to bolster our infrastructure, including a pipeline “from Alberta to Quebec.”

Chretien, 91, took to the stage Sunday evening at the Liberal Party leadership convention in Toronto where Mark Carney was elected in a landslide to become the party’s new head, and Canada’s next prime minister, replacing Justin Trudeau.

After touting the Liberal Party’s past accomplishments including medicare, the Charter of Rights, putting Indigenous rights into the Constitution, toughening gun control laws and making same-sex marriage legal, Chretien addressed the “elephant in the room” – the “long and fruitful” friendship between Canada and the U.S. that is now “falling apart before our eyes.”

He said in French that a friendship long characterized by mutual respect and trust has now given way to “wariness and more and more open hostility” by the Trump administration towards Canada.
Hitting ‘where it hurts’

He congratulated the Trudeau government as well as Canada’s premiers for the way they have reacted to the “completely unjustified” tariffs imposed on us by the U.S.

“If necessary, the governments altogether can consider going further,” he said, by hitting America “where it hurts, by imposing an export tax on oil, gas, potash, aluminum and electricity.”


He said Canada could then use the money from the export tax to build infrastructure needed in Canada, “for example, to build a pipeline for natural gas from Alberta (to) Quebec.”

Chretien called the U.S. the most powerful country in the world that has been built upon a rules-based order that has brought us peace and prosperity.
Trump has decided to ‘throw it all out the window’

“It has allowed all of us to sleep well every night, and Donald Trump has decided to throw it all out the window,” he said, calling upon the next prime minister and premiers to continue working together to stand up and meet the challenges that Trump is creating for the world.

Chretien then brought up a lesson from history that could serve as inspiration today: During the Treaty of Paris, in 1776, American negotiators, including Benjamin Franklin, spent a year in Montreal trying to convince the people of Quebec to join the American Revolution. “And he was told by the Francophones, ‘non, merci.’”

Former prime minister Jean Chrétien gives U.S. President Trump a ‘history lesson’ and jokes about burning down the White House.

In an exclusive interview with CTV Question Period in January, Chretien had appealed for the Liberal Party to go back to the “radical centre” to help its electoral fortunes. When Carney took the stage to accept his victory, he thanked Chretien for his years of service as prime minister for 10 years, between 1993 and 2003.

“You still know how to raise the Liberal party up like no one,” Carney told Chretien from the stage. “You showed us how to stand up. You inspired my family to become Liberals, including my father, to run as a Liberal candidate in Alberta in 1980.”

“Some elections are tougher than others,” said Carney.

Read Mark Carney’s full speech after becoming Liberal leader and PM

By Tammy Ibrahimpoor


Published: March 09, 2025 
Mark Carney delivers his first speech after being elected as the new Liberal leader with a strong first-ballot victory. A LANDSLIDE OF 86% 

Sunday marked a pivotal moment in Canadian politics with Mark Carney taking the reins as the new leader of the Liberal Party. He addressed Canadians in his first speech as party leader, reflecting on the challenges facing the country and the values that would guide his approach to leadership. His speech focused on unity, progress, and the need for strong, collaborative efforts to tackle the issues ahead.

 Here is his full speech:

This room is strong. This room is Canada Strong. Thank you, Cleo. Thank you to my wife, Diana, and our children Cleo, Tess, Amelia, and Sasha. Without your support, I wouldn’t be standing here. Without your examples, I wouldn’t have a purpose. Without your love, I wouldn’t have the strength that I need for what lies ahead.

Monsieur Chrétien, you inspired my family to become Liberals, including my father to run as a Liberal candidate in Alberta in the 1980s, and myself to continue your tradition of fiscal responsibility, social justice, and international leadership.

Prime Minister Trudeau, my time doesn’t permit for me to recognize all of your accomplishments. You have combined strength and compassion as a fighter for Canada. You have led us through some of the hardest challenges that this nation has ever faced. I pledge to you, and to all Canadians, that I will work day and night with one purpose: to build a stronger Canada for everyone. I will need help. Lots of it. So, thank you to Chrystia, Frank, and Karina for the energy and ideas you have brought to this campaign. Thank you to those Ministers who have remained in their posts to serve Canada directly at this time of great peril. And to the incredible group of Liberal MPs: You are the voices for your communities and the conscience of our party. Thank you for your service.

To give a sense of that service, let me quote from a message that I and my fellow candidates received from Bob Zettel, who—full disclosure, goes to my church—actually, I go to Bob’s church as he’s there far more often than me. Anyway, Bob wrote to us, and I quote: “Right now, everyone sees the main threat as the Trump tariffs, [but] the far greater challenge will be, as it has always been, to foster unity and a sense of the common good. There are those who will seek power by dividing us and we need you to continue in positions of leadership to promote a united Canada… a commitment to the common good and a respect for justice and the rule of law throughout the world.” Right now, all Canadians are being asked to serve in their own ways. We are all being called to stand up for each other and for the Canadian way of life. So, let me ask you: Who’s ready? Who’s ready to stand up for Canada with me? Yes, Canada, the Liberal party is united and strong, and ready to fight to build an even better country.

Everything in my life has helped prepare me for this moment. Two months ago, I put my hand up to run for leader because I felt we needed big changes, guided by strong Canadian values. Values I learned at the dinner table from my parents Bob & Verlie and my three siblings Brenda, Sean, and Brian. Values that I learned at the hockey rinks of Edmonton from my coaches, such as Storman-Norman Lee. My parents were teachers who stressed the importance of hard work, community, and tolerance. My coaches were dedicated volunteers who taught me the importance of teamwork, ambition, and humility. I carried those values with me to university. I kept them close as I managed crises here in Canada and elsewhere in the world. These same values guided me in my work to build strong economies. And today, I hold on to them as we face the greatest crisis of our generation.

Canadians know that new threats demand new ideas and a new plan. They know that new challenges demand new leadership. Canadians want positive leadership that will end division and help us build together. In response, my government will put into action our plan to build a stronger economy, to create new trading relationships with reliable partners, and to secure our borders. To be clear, this will require change, big change. But I know that Canadians are ready. They tell me so across the country. People want change because they are worried. They are worried about the cost of living and the housing crisis. They are worried about the future of young people. And they are worried about Canada’s future, in the face of President Trump’s threats and a more divided and dangerous world. Now, I’m a pragmatist above all. And that means when I see something that’s not working, I’ll change it. So, my government will immediately eliminate the divisive consumer carbon tax on families, farmers, and small and medium-sized businesses. And we will stop the hike in the capital gains tax because we think builders should be incentivized for taking risks and rewarded when they succeed. Canada needs more of this type of change. Change that puts more money in people’s pockets. Change that makes our companies more competitive. Change that builds the strongest economy in the G7.


There’s someone who’s trying to weaken our economy. Donald Trump. Donald Trump has put unjustified tariffs on what we build, on what we sell, on how we earn a living. He’s attacking Canadian workers, families, and businesses. We can’t let him succeed and we won’t. I’m proud of the response of Canadians who are making their voices heard and their wallets felt. I’m grateful for how Canadian provinces are stepping up to the fight. Because when we’re united, we are Canada Strong. The Canadian government is rightly retaliating with our own tariffs that will have maximum impact in the United States and minimum impact here in Canada. My government will keep our tariffs on until the Americans show us respect … And make credible, reliable commitments to free and fair trade. In the meantime, we will ensure that all proceeds from our tariffs will be used to protect our workers.

The Americans want our resources, our water, our land, our country. Think about that for a moment. If they succeed, they will destroy our way of life. In America, healthcare is a big business. In Canada, it’s a right. America is a melting pot. Canada is a mosaic. America does not recognize differences. It does not recognize the First Nations. And there will never be rights to the French language. The joy of living, culture, and the French language are part of our identity. We must protect them; we must promote them. We will never, ever, trade them for any trade deal!

America is not Canada. And Canada never, ever, will be part of America in any way, shape, or form. We didn’t ask for this fight, but Canadians are always ready when someone else drops the gloves. So, Americans should make no mistake… In trade, as in hockey, Canada will win. But this victory will not be easy. We are facing the most significant crisis of our lives. We will have to do extraordinary things … together. We will have to build things we never imagined, at a pace we never thought possible. And above all, we must put people before money. We must unite, to build the strongest, fairest, and freest country in the world.

There’s someone else who will weaken our economy. It’s Pierre Poilievre. He just doesn’t get it. He’s that type of lifelong politician and I have seen them around the world, who worships at the altar of the free market, despite never having made a payroll. Now, in the face of Trump’s threats, Pierre Poilievre still refuses to get his security clearance. This, at a time when our national security is under threat as never before. He would undermine the Bank of Canada at a time of immense economic insecurity. Pierre Poilievre wants to shut down CBC and Radio-Canada at a time when disinformation and foreign interference are rising. He insults our mayors and ignores the First Nations when it’s time to build. He would end international aid while democracy and human rights are in peril around the world. And he would let our planet burn. Pierre Poilievre would let our planet burn. That’s not leadership, it’s ideology. It’s ideology that betrays what we as Canadians value… each other. And it is an ideology that represents a fundamental misunderstanding of how the economy works.

Unlike Pierre Poilievre, I have actually worked in the private sector. I know how the world works, and how it can be made to work better for us. That knowledge and experience is especially useful now in the service of Canadians, when we must build a new economy and create new trading relationships. Let me tell you something else that we know that Pierre Poilievre doesn’t: We know that markets don’t have values, people do. And we know, as Liberals, that it’s our job to make our markets work for all Canadians. Markets are the most powerful tool we have ever invented. They can help find solutions to our greatest problems. When markets are governed well, they deliver great jobs and strong growth better than anything. But markets are also indifferent to human suffering and are blind to our greatest needs. So, when they’re governed badly - or not at all - they’ll deliver enormous wealth for a lucky few and hard times for the rest. In this crisis, we need to help those who are hit hardest by the American tariffs and build our strength here at home. That’s the right thing to do. That’s the fair thing to do. That’s the Canadian thing to do. That’s what makes us strong.

Mark Carney criticizes Pierre Poilievre and Donald Trump during his first speech after being elected as Liberal leader.

Donald Trump thinks he can weaken us with his plan to divide and conquer. Pierre Poilievre’s plan will leave us divided and ready to be conquered. Because a person who worships at the altar of Donald Trump will kneel before him, not stand up to him. And Pierre Poilievre’s slogans aren’t solutions. His anger isn’t action. His division isn’t strength. Division won’t win a trade war. Division won’t pay the rent or the mortgage. Division won’t bring down the price of groceries. Division won’t make Canada Strong. This is where negative politics of division and anger lead. Half of the United States fears the other and distrusts them. We can’t let this happen in Canada. Americans are becoming more and more divided, which will weaken them. We will win this battle if we are united and strong. Yes, we can argue about politics. We can argue about hockey. We can even be an Oilers fan in Ottawa. It’s a free country. But when it comes to Canada, we’re all on the same team. Let’s choose to be strong. Canada strong.

I’ve learned from long experience that in a crisis, ‘plan beats no plan’, and that you need to first distinguish between what you can change and what you can’t change. We can’t change Donald Trump. We must understand what we can, and must change. We are masters in our own house. We can control our economic destiny with a plan that puts more money in your pockets. A plan that will ensure your government spends less so Canada can invest more. A plan that builds millions of homes. A plan that makes Canada an energy superpower. A plan that creates new trade corridors with reliable partners. A plan that creates one Canadian economy, not thirteen, because Canada is stronger when we are united. We can give ourselves far more than Donald Trump can ever take away. It will take extraordinary efforts. This won’t be business as usual. We will have to do things that we haven’t imagined before, at speeds we didn’t think possible. We will do it for the common good so that every Canadian benefits.

I care about the economy, not because I am an economist, but because I care about people. That’s why I am a Liberal, That’s why we’re Liberals. We know that the value of a strong economy begins with workers who have good jobs, well paid today, and brighter futures for the youth of tomorrow. We know, as Liberals, that we cannot redistribute what we don’t have. We know that we cannot be strong abroad if we are weak at home, and we know that we cannot build a better future if we can’t manage the present. So, when we’re fighting for a strong economy, we’re fighting for: Good Canadian health care for everyone; strong support for our seniors, who built this country; childcare for young, hardworking families; dental care and pharmacare for everyone who needs it. We’re fighting for a strong economy, so we can create a more sustainable world for our children and grandchildren, and we will deliver.

I know these are dark days. Dark days brought on by a country we can no longer trust. We’re getting over the shock, but let us never forget the lessons: We have to look after ourselves and we have to look out for each other. We need to pull together in the tough days ahead.

To the families watching this evening in Fort Smith, in Edmonton, and in every community across Canada, I promise you this: Together, we can—and will—get through this crisis. We can—and will—come out of it stronger than ever because Canada is built on the strength of its people. From our mines to our ports; from our logging roads to our city streets, we’re strongest, when we’re united. When we’re one economy, not thirteen. When we can cheer for different teams, and still be one team when it counts. When we come together, we build things that last. Because we are Canada Strong.

Mark Carney: Canada’s next Prime Minister

Former Bank of Canada and Bank of England governor Mark Carney speaks after he won the race to become leader of Canada's ruling Liberal Party and will succeed Justin Trudeau as Prime Minister, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada on March 9, 2025.Amber Bracken, REUTERS

Former Bank of Canada and Bank of England governor Mark Carney and Justin Trudeau embrace after Carney won the race to become leader of Canada's ruling Liberal Party and will succeed Justin Trudeau as Prime Minister, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada on March 9, 2025.Amber Bracken, REUTERS

Mark Carney listens as Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks on the day members of Canada's Liberal Party gather to choose a successor to Trudeau, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada on March 9, 2025.Carlos Osorio, REUTERS

Canada's Liberal Leader and Prime Minister-elect Mark Carney speaks after being elected as the new Liberal Party leader, in Ottawa on March 9, 2025. Canada's Liberal Party overwhelmingly elected Mark Carney as its new leader and the country's next prime minister on March 9, 2025, tasking the former central banker with helming Ottawa's response to threats from US President Donald Trump.DAVE CHAN, AFP Via Getty Images

Canada's Liberal Party candidate Mark Carney toasts with supporters during a hockey watch party in Ottawa, Canada on February 15, 2025.DAVE CHAN, AFP Via Getty Images

Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England unveils the new twenty pound note at the Turner Contemporary gallery on October 10, 2019 in Margate, England. The new twenty pound note will be made of polymer rather than paper, also the current portrait of Scottish economist Adam Smith on the obverse, will be replaced with one of english artist J.M.W Turner. The new note will start to enter circulation in 2020 as the older note is gradually phased out.Pool Photo By Leon Neal Via Getty Images
Bank of England governor Mark Carney poses with a new polymer five pound note at Whitecross Street Market on September 13, 2016 in London, United Kingdom. The new plastic note is designed to be more durable and features a portrait of former British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill.Pool Photo By Stefan Wermuth Via Getty Images

Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney pauses during a news conference upon the release of the Monetary Policy Report in Ottawa October 23, 2008. Canada reinforced its banking sector with loan guarantees on Thursday in a bid to mute the impact of a global financial crisis that is forecast to push the country to the edge of recession. Carney said he would not describe the economic outlook as recessionary, just sluggish, and Flaherty said he thought a recession could be avoided.Chris Wattie, REUTERS
Bank of England governor Mark Carney tests a new polymer five pound note as he buys lunch at Whitecross Street Market on September 13, 2016 in London, United Kingdom. The new plastic note is designed to be more durable and features a portrait of former British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill.Pool Photo By Stefan Wermuth Via Getty Images

Protesters hold up Bank of England Governor Mark Carney masks outside the bank as it staff begins a three day strike over pay, in the City of London, Britain on August 1, 2017.Peter Nicholls, REUTERS

Mark Carney, governor of the Bank of England, talks to apprentices during his visit to the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) on March 12, 2015 in Sheffield, England. Governor Mark Carney told guests that policy makers intend to return inflation back to their goal within two years.Christopher Furlong, Getty Images

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney holds a press conference on the quarterly inflation report at his office, on November 12, 2014 in London, England. Carney predicted that inflation will fall below 1% over the next six months and also cut the UK's growth forecast.Pool Photo By Stefan Rousseau Via Getty Images
Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of Canada (2nd R) sits next to Jacob Lew, U.S. Treasury Secretary, and Jim Flaherty, Canadian Finance Minister (R) at the start of the G7 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting on Friday May 10, 2013 in Aylesbury, England. The role of central banks in shoring up the global economic recovery is set to be a key point of discussion among top financial officials from the world's seven leading economies when they gather in the UK this weekend. In a statement Friday ahead of the Group of Seven's two-day meeting at a country house around 50 miles (80 kilometers) northwest of London, British finance minister George Osborne said the main task officials face over the coming two days is looking at how to "nurture" the recovery. (Photo by Alastair Grant - WPA Pool / Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 168597308 ORIG FILE ID: 168501795Pool Photo By Alastair Grant Via Getty Images

Mark J. Carney, Governor of the Bank of Canada, attends a session of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting (WEF) on January 26, 2013 at the Swiss resort of Davos.JOHANNES EISELE, AFP/Getty Images

Mark Carney, crisis-fighting central banker, to lead Canada through US trade war

David Ljunggren
Updated Sun, March 9, 2025

Mark Carney, crisis-fighting central banker, to lead Canada through US trade war
FILE PHOTO: Liberal Party leadership candidate Carney speaks in Windsor, Ontario


By David Ljunggren

OTTAWA (Reuters) -Mark Carney, soon to become Canada's new prime minister, is a two-time central banker and crisis fighter about to face his biggest challenge of all: steering Canada through Donald Trump's tariffs.

The Liberals announced Carney as Justin Trudeau's successor on Sunday after party members voted in a nominating contest. Trudeau resigned in January, facing low approval ratings after nearly a decade in office.

The 59-year-old Carney is a political outsider who has never held office, which would in normal times have killed his candidacy in Canada. But distance from Trudeau and a high-profile banking career played to his advantage, and Carney argues he is the only person prepared to handle Trump.


"I know how to manage crises ... in a situation like this, you need experience in terms of crisis management, you need negotiating skills," Carney said during a leadership debate late last month.

Carney was born in Fort Smith in the remote Northwest Territories. He attended Harvard where he played college level ice hockey, starring as a goalkeeper.

Carney, who garnered the most party endorsements and the most money raised among the four Liberal candidates, will soon be the first person to become Canadian prime minister without being a legislator and without having had any cabinet experience.

He argues Canada must fight Trump's tariffs with dollar for dollar retaliation and diversify trading relations in the medium term.

In the next election, which must be held by October 20, the Liberals will face off against the official opposition Conservatives, whose leader Pierre Poilievre is a career politician with little international exposure.


By contrast, Carney is a globetrotter who spent 13 years at Goldman Sachs before being named deputy governor of the Bank of Canada in 2003. He left in November 2004 for a top finance ministry job and returned to become governor of the central bank in 2008 at the age of just 42.

POACHED BY THE BANK OF ENGLAND

Carney won praise for his handling of the financial crisis, when he created new emergency loan facilities and gave unusually explicit guidance on keeping rates at record low levels for a specific period of time.

Even at that stage, rumors swirled that he would seek a career in politics with the Liberals, prompting him to respond with a prickliness that is still sometimes evident.

"Why don't I become a circus clown?" he told a reporter in 2012 when asked about possible political ambitions.

The Bank of England was impressed enough though to poach him in 2013, making him the first non-British governor in the central bank's three-century history, and the first person to ever head two G7 central banks. Britain's finance minister at the time, George Osborne, called Carney the "outstanding central bank governor of his generation".

Carney, though, had a challenging time, forced to face zero inflation and the political chaos of Brexit.

He struggled to deploy his trademark policy of signaling the likely path of interest rates. The bank said its guidance came with caveats but media often interpreted it as more of a guarantee, with Labour legislator Pat McFadden dubbing the bank under Carney as an "unreliable boyfriend."

When sterling tumbled in the hours after the Brexit referendum result in 2016, Carney delivered a televised address to reassure markets that the bank would turn on the liquidity taps if needed.

"Mark has a rare ability to combine a central banker's steady hand, with a political reformer's eye to the future," said Ana Botin, Santander's executive chairman, in a written comment to Reuters. She said Carney "steadied the ship" in the UK after Brexit.


'HIGH PRIEST OF PROJECT FEAR'

But he infuriated Brexit supporters by talking about the economic damage that he said was likely to be caused by leaving the European Union. Conservative lawmaker Jacob Rees-Mogg called him the "high priest of project fear" but Carney said it was his duty to talk about such risks.

Carney also showed irritation with his predecessor in the job, Mervyn King, whom he said had not spotted the risks building in the financial sector before the 2007-08 financial crisis.

From 2011 to 2018 Carney also headed the Financial Stability Board, which coordinates financial regulation for the Group of 20 economies.

After leaving the Bank of England in 2020, Carney served as a United Nations envoy on finance and climate change.

After launching the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero in 2021 to act as an umbrella group for financial sector efforts to get to net-zero emissions, Carney oversaw a surge in membership as boards rushed to signal a willingness to act.

As the implications of moving to renewable energy began to filter down to the real economy, though, a political backlash from some Republican states accusing companies of breaching anti-trust rules ultimately led a number of large U.S. companies to drop their membership.

He also served on the board of Brookfield Asset Management and was chair of the Bloomberg board but resigned as the U.N. special envoy and left all commercial posts after he launched his bid for the Liberal leadership on January 16.

Carney's lack of political experience showed when the Conservatives pressed him over a decision by Brookfield to move its headquarters from Canada to the United States. Carney said the move took place after he resigned in January but the Conservatives found a letter he wrote to shareholders in December 2024 recommending the move.

"Sometimes I answer questions that go into details when I should keep it at a higher level. That's part of the problem with not being a politician," he told reporters when asked about Conservative allegations he had lied.

(Additional reporting by William Schomberg, Elisa Martinuzzi and Simon Jessop in London; Editing by Caroline Stauffer and Sandra Maler)




Canada picks a new leader to replace Trump target Justin Trudeau

Josh Fellman
Sun, March 9, 2025 

Photo: Andrej Ivanov (Getty Images)


Donald Trump won’t have Justin Trudeau to kick around any more. Canada’s ruling Liberal party picked Mark Carney — a former central bank governor known as a competent technocrat — as its new leader. He’s likely be sworn in as prime minster within days, replacing Trudeau.

Observers said Carney is expected to call an election almost immediately — one is due no later than October this year — which must be held on a Monday no more than 51 days after being announced. That would mean Parliament, currently suspended, wouldn’t resume sitting on March 24 as scheduled.

The election is likely to turn on a single issue: Who can best battle Trump over tariffs and resist his threats to annex the country as “the 51st state.” So far, Canada’s famously fickle — and now irate — voters have shown more trust in the Liberals, who are leading the opposition Conservatives in opinion polls for the first time since 2021.

“The next federal election is the most important of my lifetime,” said Ravi Kahlon, British Columbia’s housing minister and house leader for the left-of-center New Democratic Party-led government. While he doesn’t care who leads the federal Liberal party, he wants the next PM to be someone who will stand up for Canada. “People want someone in there who will fight for the country and not cave,” he said before Carney’s selection was announced.


Given Trump’s public derision of Trudeau, who he slights by calling “governor,” the selection of a new Canadian PM leader may change the political temperature. Carney, a former head of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, is known as a careful operator able to manage difficult political situations.

Main opposition leader Pierre Poilievre will have to battle public perceptions that he’s ideologically too close to the U.S. president and so he wouldn’t take a sufficiently tough stance in talks. A pivot is possible: Premier Doug Ford of Ontario won reelection after flipping from public Trump fan to tariffs foe.

The trade war will probably stay live during the campaign, with Trump only suspending some duties until early April and then on Friday threatening new levies on Canadian softwood lumber and dairy products. S&P Global (SPGI) economists cut their GDP forecast for Canada in the event of a long dispute.

New Canadian PM Mark Carney vows to fight US trade war ‘until Trump shows respect’

Alexander Butler
Sun, March 9, 2025 

Former Bank of England governor Mark Carney has succeeded Justin Trudeau as Canadian PM (REUTERS)


Canada’s new prime minister, Mark Carney, has vowed to take on Donald Trump and urged his country to unite in a defiant acceptance speech during a fierce trade war with the United States.

The former Bank of England governor, who will be sworn in as Justin Trudeau’s successor in the coming days, was on Sunday night elected as Canada’s new prime minister by the country’s governing Liberal Party as tensions escalate over tariffs with its closest neighbour.

After winning with with 85.9 per cent of the votes cast by 150,000 members, Mr Carney hit out at Mr Trump for “attacking Canadian families” and wanting to “destroy the Canadian way of life”, describing the US president’s tariffs and threats as the “greatest crisis of our lifetime”.

“There is someone who is trying to weaken our economy. Donald Trump. Donald Trump has put unjustified tariffs on what we build, sell and how we make a living,” he said.

Mark Carney has succeeded Justin Trudeau as Canada’s Liberal Party leader (AP)

After the US last week slapped sweeping 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods, Canada retaliated with its own 25 per cent tariffs on up to $155bn in US goods over the course of this month.


Mr Trudeau said in a televised address last week: “It’s not in my habit to agree with the Wall Street Journal, but Donald, they point out that even though you are a very smart guy, this a very dumb thing to do.”

While Mr Trudeau described the neighbouring countries as “two friends fighting”, Mr Carney said the US was a country Canada “could no longer trust”.

Mr Carney, 59, will now have to negotiate with Mr Trump as he threatens additional tariffs that could further cripple Canada’s economy.

During his speech Mr Carney said: “The Canadian government has rightly retaliated with tariffs. We will keep our tariffs on until the Americans show us respect.

“We did not ask for this fight. But Canadians are always ready when someone else drops the gloves. Make no mistake, Canada will win.”

He then turned his attack on Canadian opposition leader Pierre Poilievre, who he said "worships at the altar of Donald Trump”.

Mark Carney hit out at Donald Trump for trying to ‘destroy the Canadian way of life’ (EPA)

While the Conservative party has been gaining ground in recent months, like in other Western democracies, a surge in Canadian nationalism amid aggression from the US over trade and threats to make Canada America's 51st state has bolstered the Liberal Party's chances in the parliamentary election expected within days or weeks.


"We have made this the greatest country in the world and now our neighbours want to take us. No way," Mr Carney added. “We can’t change Donald Trump … [but] because we’re masters in our own home, we can control our economic destiny.”

Mr Carney’s fiery stance marks a dramatic shift in the rhetoric of Western leaders speaking out against Mr Trump, and will be watched closely by those in the UK and Europe, with the US president vowing to put tariffs on the EU, which he said was created to “screw” the United States.

Repeating the phrase “Canada strong”, Mr Carney said Canadians could give themselves “far more than Donald Trump could”.

“We have to look out for ourselves and we have to look out for each other, we need to hold together for the tough days ahead,” he said. “We can and we will get through this crisis.”

Mr Trudeau announced in January that he would step down after more than nine years in power as his approval rating plummeted, forcing the ruling Liberal Party to run a quick contest to replace him.


Mr Carney has said his experience as the first person to serve as the governor of two central banks – Canada and England – meant he was the best candidate to deal with Mr Trump.

He said he supported dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariffs against the United States and a coordinated strategy to boost investment. He has repeatedly complained that Canada's growth under Mr Trudeau was not good enough.

Mr Carney could legally serve as prime minister without a seat in the House of Commons but tradition dictates he should seek to win one as soon as possible.

He will also have to decide when to call a general election, which must be held on or before 20 October of this year.

Former central banker favored to replace Trudeau as Canada PM

MARK CARNEY WON LANDSLIDE 86%

AFP
March 9, 2025 


Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called plastic pollution a "global challenge," and said Canada had a unique opportunity to take the lead as the country with the world's longest coastline AFP/File / Lars Hagberg

Canada's Liberal Party looked set Sunday to choose a former central banker and political novice as its next leader, replacing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as it confronts threats from US President Donald Trump.

Mark Carney, who served as the governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, is widely expected to be named the new Liberal leader when results from a vote of around 400,000 party members are announced later Sunday.

The other main challenger is Trudeau's former deputy prime minister, Chrystia Freeland, who held several senior cabinet positions in the Liberal government that was first elected in 2015.

Whoever wins the vote will take over from Trudeau as prime minister, but will soon face a general election that polls currently show the rival Conservative Party as slight favorites to win.

Carney has racked up endorsements, including from much of Trudeau's cabinet, and a Freeland win would be a shock for the Liberals as they head towards a general election.

Despite dramatically breaking with the prime minister in December, analysts say voters still tie Freeland to Trudeau's unpopular record.


Carney and Freeland have both maintained that they are the best candidate to defend Canada against Trump's attacks.

The US president has repeatedly spoken about annexing Canada and thrown bilateral trade, the lifeblood of the Canadian economy, into chaos with dizzying tariff actions that have veered in various directions since he took office.

- 'Most serious crisis' -

Carney has argued that he is a seasoned economic manager, reminding voters that he led the Bank of Canada through the 2008-2009 financial crisis and steered the Bank of England through the turbulence that followed the 2016 Brexit vote.

Trump "is attacking what we build. He is attacking what we sell. He is attacking how we earn our living," Carney told supporters at a closing campaign rally near Toronto on Friday.

"We are facing the most serious crisis in our lifetime," he added. "Everything in my life has prepared me for this moment."


Data released from the Angus Reid polling firm on Wednesday shows Canadians see Carney as the favorite choice to face off against Trump, a trait that could offer the Liberals a boost over the opposition Conservatives.

Forty-three percent of respondents said they trusted Carney the most to deal with Trump, with 34 percent backing Tory leader Pierre Poilievre.

Most polls, however, still list the Tories as the current favorites to win the election, which must be held by October but could come within weeks.

- Not a politician? -

Carney made a fortune as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs before entering the Canadian civil service.

Since leaving the Bank of England in 2020, he has served as a United Nations envoy working to get the private sector to invest in climate-friendly technology and has held private sector roles.

He has never served in parliament or held an elected public office.

Analysts say his untested campaign skills could prove a liability against a Conservative Party already running attack ads accusing Carney of shifting positions and misrepresenting his experience.

The 59-year-old has positioned himself as a new voice untainted by Trudeau, who he has said did not devote enough attention to building Canada's economy.


On Friday, Carney said Canadians "from coast to coast" wanted change, and referred to himself as a political outsider.

"It's getting to the point where after two months I may have to start calling myself a politician," he joked.

Trudeau has said he would agree on a transition of power once the new Liberal leader is in place, declining to give an exact date.

When ready, the pair will visit Canada's Governor General Mary Simon -- King Charles III's official representative in Canada -- who will task the new Liberal chief with forming a government.


The new prime minister may only hold the position for several weeks, depending on the timing and outcome of the looming election.

Canada Liberal Party to choose new leader to replace Trudeau as PM


By AFP
March 9, 2025


Canada's Liberal Party looks set to choose former central banker and political novice Mark Carney as its next leader - Copyright AFP/File ANDREJ IVANOV

Michel Comte with Ben Simon in Toronto

Canada’s Liberal Party names its next leader Sunday, with a former central banker and political novice favored to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as the country confronts threats from US President Donald Trump.

Mark Carney, who served as the governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, is the front-runner to be tapped Liberal leader when results from a vote of party members are announced later Sunday.

The other main challenger is Trudeau’s former deputy prime minister, Chrystia Freeland, who held several senior cabinet positions in the Liberal government that was first elected in 2015.

Whoever wins will take over from Trudeau as prime minister, but will soon face an election that polls currently show the rival Conservative Party as slight favorites to win.

Carney has racked up endorsements, including from much of Trudeau’s cabinet and more than half of Liberals in parliament.

A Freeland win remains possible but would be a surprise for the party as it heads towards an election that must be held by October, but could come within weeks.

Both Freeland and Carney have maintained that they are the best candidate to defend Canada against Trump’s attacks.

The US president has repeatedly spoken about annexing Canada and thrown bilateral trade, the lifeblood of the Canadian economy, into chaos with dizzying tariff actions that have veered in various directions since he took office.

– ‘Most serious crisis’ –

Party supporters were gathering Sunday at an Ottawa hall draped in red where the winner will be announced.

Luciana Bordignon, a 59-year-old sales representative from Vancouver, told AFP she was backing Carney but was confident the party would be emboldened after the vote.

“I expect to have a good, new, strong leader,” she said.

Lozminda Longkines told AFP that Trump’s repeated musings about making Canada the 51st US state were “a blessing in disguise.”

“We are so united… We have a common enemy,” the 71-year old said.

Carney has argued that he is the ideal counter to Trump’s disruptions, reminding voters that he led the Bank of Canada through the 2008-2009 financial crisis and steered the Bank of England through the turbulence that followed the 2016 Brexit vote.

Trump “is attacking what we build. He is attacking what we sell. He is attacking how we earn our living,” Carney told supporters at a closing campaign rally near Toronto on Friday.

“We are facing the most serious crisis in our lifetime,” he added. “Everything in my life has prepared me for this moment.”

Data released from the Angus Reid polling firm on Wednesday shows Canadians see Carney as the favorite choice to face off against Trump, potentially offering the Liberals a boost over the opposition Conservatives.

Forty-three percent of respondents said they trusted Carney the most to deal with Trump, with 34 percent backing Tory leader Pierre Poilievre.

Before Trudeau announced his plans to resign in January, the Liberals were headed for an electoral wipeout, but the leadership change and Trump’s influence have dramatically tightened the race.

– Not a politician? –

Carney made a fortune as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs before entering the Canadian civil service.

Since leaving the Bank of England in 2020, he has served as a United Nations envoy working to get the private sector to invest in climate-friendly technology and has held private sector roles.

He has never served in parliament or held an elected public office.

Analysts say his untested campaign skills could prove a liability against a Conservative Party already running attack ads accusing Carney of shifting positions and misrepresenting his experience.

The 59-year-old has positioned himself as a new voice untainted by Trudeau, who he has said did not devote enough attention to building Canada’s economy.

On Friday, Carney said Canadians “from coast to coast” wanted change, and referred to himself as a political outsider.

“It’s getting to the point where after two months I may have to start calling myself a politician,” he joked.

In the coming days, Trudeau and the new Liberal chief will visit Canada’s Governor General Mary Simon — King Charles III’s official representative in Canada — who will task the leader with forming a government.

Justin Trudeau delivers farewell speech as Canadian Prime Minister

Copyright Sean Kilpatrick/AP

By Malek Fouda

Published on  10/03/2025 - 

Trudeau gives his final speech as Canadian Prime Minister.

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivered an emotional farewell speech to a conference of his Liberal Party on Sunday.

The Canadian leader served in his post for almost a decade, assuming the top job on 4 November, 2015.

Trudeau resigned from his post on 6 January after months of domestic problems which saw his popularity plummet. The declining economic conditions and the country’s direction resulted in dismal polls for Trudeau, who fell in popularity by a significant two digit margin to his main rival Pierre Poilievre of the Conservative Party.

Trudeau was also under growing pressure from his own party who lost confidence in him. Trudeau however decided to remain in power until his successor is named.

But all of that was forgotten in Sunday’s conference, as Trudeau spoke to a crowd who cheered and clapped for him, thanking him for his nine-year tenure.

The outgoing prime minister expressed his gratitude to his party and the Canadian people, saying he was “damn proud” of his time in office, which he said was filled with successes and great accomplishments.

Trudeau also warned the Liberal Party crowd that Canada needs them now more than ever, referencing the growing international crises that threaten to tear down the international rules-based order, and the growing uncertainty in the face of US President Donald Trump’s economic threat on the country.

The Liberal Party will announce a replacement for Trudeau on Sunday to lead the country until a general election is held this year.

Liberal Party members look set to pick former central bank governor Mark Carney as the new party leader and Canada's next prime minister in a vote to be announced on Sunday evening.

Carney, 59, navigated crises when he was the head of the Bank of Canada and when in 2013 he became the first noncitizen to run the Bank of England since it was founded in 1694. His appointment won bipartisan praise in the U.K. after Canada recovered from the 2008 financial crisis faster than many other countries.

A general election must be held on or before 20 October. Either the new Liberal party leader will call one, or the opposition parties in Parliament could force one with a no-confidence vote later this month.

 

A longer, sleeker super predator: Megalodon’s true form

Novel study paints more accurate picture of extinct, gigantic shark

University of California - Riverside

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Shark biologists now say a lemon shark, like this one, is a better model of the extinct megalodon's body than the great white shark.

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Credit: Albert Kok

The megalodon has long been imagined as an enormous great white shark, but new research suggests that perception is all wrong. The study finds the prehistoric hunter had a much longer body—closer in shape to a lemon shark or even a large whale.

The study team, which included researchers from University of California, Riverside and across the globe, used a novel approach to estimate the shark’s total body length, moving beyond traditional methods that rely primarily on tooth size. By examining megalodon’s vertebral column and comparing it to over 100 species of living and extinct sharks, they determined a more accurate proportion for the head, body, and tail.

The findings, published today in the journal Palaeontologia Electronica, suggest the prehistoric predator may have reached about 80 feet, or about two school buses in length. It also likely weighed an estimated 94 tons, comparable to a large blue whale, but with a body designed for energy-efficient cruising rather than continuous high-speed pursuit.

“This study provides the most robust analysis yet of megalodon’s body size and shape,” said Phillip Sternes, a shark biologist who completed his Ph.D. at UCR. “Rather than resembling an oversized great white shark, it was actually more like an enormous lemon shark, with a more slender, elongated body. That shape makes a lot more sense for moving efficiently through water.”

Great white sharks have a stocky, torpedo-shaped body built for bursts of speed, with a broad midsection that tapers sharply toward the tail. In contrast, lemon sharks have a leaner, more uniform body shape, with a less pronounced taper. Their longer, more cylindrical build allows for smoother, more energy-efficient swimming. If megalodon had a body structure more like a lemon shark, as this study suggests, it would have looked much sleeker than the bulky predator often depicted in popular media.

Sharks, like airplanes or Olympic swimmers, must minimize drag to move smoothly and easily.

“You lead with your head when you swim because it’s more efficient than leading with your stomach,” said Tim Higham, UCR biologist who contributed insights to the study on how animals move through water. “Similarly, evolution moves toward efficiency, much of the time.”

The study highlights how large aquatic animals including sharks, whales, or even extinct marine reptiles, follow similar patterns when it comes to body proportions. “The physics of swimming limit how stocky or stretched out a massive predator can be,” Higham said.

The research also sheds light on megalodon’s swimming capabilities. While debates have raged over whether it was a high-speed predator or a slower, cruising hunter, the new findings suggest a balance. The shark likely swam at moderate speeds, with the ability to burst forward when attacking prey. Given its sheer size and energy demands, constant high-speed swimming wouldn’t have been efficient.

The study also indicates that as a newborn, a megalodon could have been nearly 13 feet long, roughly the size of an adult great white shark. “It is entirely possible that megalodon pups were already taking down marine mammals shortly after being born,” Sternes said.

A key breakthrough of this study was identifying the lemon shark as the best living analog for megalodon’s proportions. Unlike the great white, lemon sharks have a more elongated body. When the researchers scaled up the proportions of a lemon shark to megalodon’s estimated length, it was a near-perfect match.

“This research not only refines our understanding of what megalodon looked like, but it also provides a framework for studying how size influences movement in marine animals,” Sternes said.

Beyond reshaping our understanding of megalodon, the study offers insight into why only certain animals can evolve to massive sizes.

“Gigantism isn’t just about getting bigger—it’s about evolving the right body to survive at that scale,” Sternes said. “And megalodon may have been one of the most extreme examples of that.”

---

Journal

Palaeontologia Electronica

Article Publication Date

9-Mar-2025

Megalodon’s body size and form uncover why certain aquatic vertebrates can achieve gigantism

DePaul University Paleobiology Professor Kenshu Shimada leads study with 28 experts

DePaul University

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Revised tentative body outline of 24.3 meters (80 feet) extinct megatooth shark, Otodus megalodon. Important notes: 1) the exact shape, size, and position of most fins remain unknown based on the present fossil record; and 2) an adult human (Homo sapiens) is depicted for size comparison, but it must be emphasized that the two species never coexisted

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Credit: (DePaul University/Kenshu Shimada).

CHICAGO — A new scientific study provides many new insights into the biology of the prehistoric gigantic shark, Megalodon or megatooth shark, which lived nearly worldwide 15-3.6 million years ago. Paleobiology professor Kenshu Shimada of DePaul University led the study along with 28 other shark, fossil, and vertebrate anatomy experts around the globe. Findings from the study will be published in the journal “Palaeontologia Electronica.”

Formally called Otodus megalodon, it is primarily known only from its serrated teeth, vertebrae, and scales in the fossil record with no known complete skeletons. Although much smaller, the modern-day great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) also has serrated teeth, and thus the prehistoric shark has been traditionally assumed to have superficially looked like a gigantic version of the great white shark in previous studies as well as in novels and sci-fi films, including “The Meg.”

Nevertheless, a nearly complete, fossilized vertebral column, or the “trunk” portion, of O. megalodon measuring about 11 meters (36 feet) in length in Belgium has been well-researched. The new study asked a simple question, “How long were the parts not represented in the vertebral column specimen, notably the head and tail lengths of the O. megalodon individual?”

To address the question, the team of researchers from Australia, Austria, Brazil, France, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the U.K., and the U.S. surveyed the proportions of the head, trunk, and tail relative to the total body length across 145 modern and 20 extinct species of sharks. Assuming that O. megalodon had a body plan consistent with the vast majority of sharks, the team determined that its head length and tail length possibly occupied about 16.6% and 32.6%, respectively, of the total body length. Because the Belgian “trunk” vertebral specimen measures 11 meters, its head and tail were calculated to be about 1.8 meters (6 feet) and 3.6 meters (12 feet) long, respectively, making the estimated total length of 16.4 meters (54 feet) for the specific O. megalodon individual.

The largest vertebra of the Belgian specimen measures 15.5 centimeters (6 inches) in diameter, but putative O. megalodon vertebrae measuring as much as 23 centimeters (9 inches) in diameter are reported from Denmark. If the Danish vertebrae represent the largest vertebrae in the body, that individual could have measured about 24.3 meters (80 feet) long.

“The length of 24.3 meters is currently the largest possible reasonable estimate for O. megalodon that can be justified based on science and the present fossil record,” said Shimada, who belongs to DePaul University’s Department of Environmental Science and Studies and Department of Biological Sciences.

Shimada and his team’s study didn’t end there. Based on comparisons of their body part proportions, they determined that the body form of O. megalodon likely resembled superficially the modern lemon shark (Negaprion brevirostris), which has a more slender body than the modern great white shark. They also noticed that modern-day gigantic sharks, such as the whale shark (Rhincodon typus) and basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus), as well as many other gigantic aquatic vertebrates like whales (Cetacea), have slender bodies because large stocky bodies are hydrodynamically inefficient for swimming. In contrast, the great white shark with a stocky body that becomes even stockier as it grows can be large but cannot be gigantic (no more than 7 meters or 23 feet) because of hydrodynamic constraints. The implication is profound because the team unexpectedly unlocked the mystery of why certain aquatic vertebrates can attain gigantic sizes while others cannot.

The research team also included Shimada’s two former master’s students at DePaul University, Phillip Sternes and Jake Wood.

“Our new study has solidified the idea that O. megalodon was not merely a gigantic version of the modern-day great white shark, supporting our previous study [https://doi.org/10.26879/1345],” said Sternes, who is now an educator at SeaWorld San Diego.

“What sets our study apart from all previous papers on body size and shape estimates of O. megalodon is the use of a completely new approach that does not rely solely on the modern great white shark,” added Wood, now a doctoral student at the Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida.

The new study also reassessed other biological aspects. For example, a 24.3-meter-long O. megalodon would have weighed around 94 tons, and the cruising speed estimated from scale morphology was 2.1–3.5 kilometers (1.3–2.2 miles) per hour, which is no faster than the modern great white shark. The growth patterns recorded in the vertebral specimen from Belgium suggested that O. megalodon gave live birth to newborns measuring about 3.6–3.9 meters (12–13 feet) long and that embryos nourished themselves through egg-eating behavior. Additional newly inferred growth patterns along with the known fossil record of O. megalodon and the white shark lineage support the idea that the rise of the great white shark roughly 5 million years ago likely played a role in the ultimate demise of O. megalodon due to competition.

“Many interpretations we made are still tentative, but they are data-driven and will serve as reasonable reference points for future studies on the biology of O. megalodon,” said Shimada, who hopes a complete skeleton would be discovered someday to be able to put the interpretations to test.

The new study, “Reassessment of the possible size, form, weight, cruising speed, and growth parameters of the extinct megatooth shark, Otodus megalodon (Lamniformes: Otodontidae), and new evolutionary insights into its gigantism, life history strategies, ecology, and extinction,” will appear in the forthcoming issue of Palaeontologia Electronica, which will be freely available online at https://doi.org/10.26879/1502. It is authored by: Kenshu Shimada, Ryosuke Motani, Jake J. Wood, Phillip C. Sternes, Taketeru Tomita, Mohamad Bazzi, Alberto Collareta, Joel H. Gayford, Julia Türtscher, Patrick L. Jambura, Jürgen Kriwet, Romain Vullo, Douglas J. Long, Adam P. Summers, John G. Maisey, Charlie Underwood, David J. Ward, Harry M. Maisch IV, Victor J. Perez, Iris Feichtinger, Gavin J.P. Naylor, Joshua K. Moyer, Timothy E. Higham, João Paulo C.B. da Silva, Hugo Bornatowski, Gerardo González-Barba, Michael L. Griffiths, Martin A. Becker, and Mikael Siversson.

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Journal

Palaeontologia Electronica

DOI

10.26879/1502 

Subject of Research

Animals

Article Title

Reassessment of the possible size, form, weight, cruising speed, and growth parameters of the extinct megatooth shark, Otodus megalodon (Lamniformes: Otodontidae), and new evolutionary insights into its gigantism, life history strategies, ecology, and extinction

Article Publication Date

9-Mar-2025