Summary
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in a private meeting inadvertently broadcast via a hot mic, warned that Donald Trump is seriously considering annexing Canada to secure its critical mineral resources.
Speaking to business and labor leaders, Trudeau claimed Trump’s administration is keenly aware of Canada’s resource wealth and sees annexation as a means to control it.
The comments, cut off after staff realized they were audible, underscore growing economic and political tensions.
He also stressed the need to diversify trade, noting, “Geography means we’re always going to both benefit and be challenged by trade with the United States.”
Well a lot of what he does is distraction. But yeah I think he wants Canada (even though it would shift things left, which he hasn’t thought about and likely won’t acknowledge) and Greenland, cuz big land.
I keep hearing this and, ignoring the fact that it annoys me that we’re even entertaining the idea of annexation, it doesn’t make much sense. For one, there’s no way we’d be given the right to vote; And two, Canada will be a bombed out warzone for the far foreseeable future. It’s more likely the USA will break apart before Canadians accept being American. Even if we pretended that we wouldn’t call on NATO for help, Canadians would go guerrilla until the last Canadian is standing
I think Americans underestimate the level of pride Canadians take in not being American.
~rural Alberta is a different story though~
I think you are underestimating the might of a military that has 1 Trillion dollars a year spent on it and has over 1 million active duty members. Trump is also dumb enough to authorize the use of nuclear weapons.
Well I’m talked out about this, so what I said to other people: I really don’t think you can not give 41 million people the vote. Even trump when he says 51 state implies that it’s a merger, to use that word.
The only way to do this without becoming THE international pariah on the likes of North Korea is to do it peacefully.
If there is an invasion that comes to blows, the US will become person non grata on the international stage. Everyone will boycott everything from the US and to do with US. This is where you say but but but iraq, and that’s where I say that was different. If the US invades an ally, its finished internationally. I know it’s all rah rah USA number 1 but you need international support/trade/commerce/cooperation. It’s not that people care that much about Canada, it’s that no one will ever want to do or find the need to do business with the US again when there is no trust. They would have just showed that there is no such thing as cooperation with the US. It will be down to Russia and NK (and China will sell things, but China basically thinks they are above having friends/allies). So it you think a right wing authoritarian government is not stupid, they wouldn’t do it, except “peacefully”.
It’s not going to shift things left if Canada was annexed. Even if they were given voting rights (which is doubtful), their population is both a magnitude smaller, and Alberta exists.
How much was the election won by? Pretty sure it was less than 41 million.
They can influence the popular vote, but that legitimately means nothing as far as presidential elections are concerned. For example, if they give the entire country 2 electoral college votes as a state, it’s voter base is effectively irrelevant to the outcome of any future election.
Should Canada be turned into a state and not just controlled as a puppet, they would more likely be given one vote per province, which is 13 votes. With a couple of their provinces being heavily conservative already, as far as shifting things left goes, that would be more like 10 votes. And for context, the state of Florida has 30.
If it were to happen the way it’s “supposed” to, if Canada were admitted as one state it would instantly become the largest state and gain FIFTY electoral votes, as a state gets the same number as they do Senators and Representatives combined. Again, barring the very shenanigans that would likely be the only way this could happen, those fifty votes would be Democratic-leaning for at least a generation. Alberta and the Prairies combined don’t have many more people than the GTA.
You could mitigate the presidential-electoral hit by letting them in as 13 provinces, but then you’re probably adding 16-18 Dem Senators versus 8-10 Republican. The only real hope is to get the Canadians to vote against their interests and split their Electoral votes when almost no other states (and no other large states at all) do so.
That’s assuming it happens aboveboard, of course, which naturally it wouldn’t, and would instead plunge the entire continent into violent misery if not outright war.
Thank you for adding more detail.
Yeah, I’m running under the pessimistic assumption here that incorporating Canada into the United States would not be done fairly or reasonably if it happened. I suspect that they would get a pittance in terms of political representation, justified by the xenophobic and nationalistic guise that “all those Canadian immigrants shouldn’t be influencing American politics.” Probably using talking points like,
Administratively it wouldn’t be one state, it would be 10 states because of the 10 provinces. You have 10 provincial governments that run pretty much the same as state governments. If you didn’t do that you’d have “state” level for the country, and then a second State level for the province, before you get into counties and lower. Canada can not run as one state, as states are set up.
If anything it would be 10 US territories. It would take years before it was ever allowed to become a state even if peacefully annexed which would not be how this would happen.