Peter Navarro accused of threatening redraw of US-Canada border amid tariff battle
President Donald Trump made headlines all over the world when he suggested that Canada should consider becoming the 51st state, and his subsequent references to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “governor” only gave additional credence to the notion that he was serious about the plan.
Now, it seems that it is not just Trump who may be serious about the future of relations between Canada and the U.S., with administration advisor Peter Navarro reportedly weighing in with an idea -- or perhaps even a threat -- of his own, as Newsmax reports.
Navarro's big idea?
Serving as Trump's senior counselor for trade and manufacturing, Navarro recently weighed in on the rising tension between Canada and the United States.
According to a report in The Telegraph, Navarro raised the prospect of redrawing the border between the two countries, doing so as something of a negotiating tactic amid a tariff battle launched by the president.
Canada is currently facing a Tuesday imposition of 25% tariffs, a situation Trump says is necessary due to the country's lax stance on border security, one which has allowed fentanyl to come into the U.S. at high volumes.
Writing last week on Truth Social, Trump indicated that despite a prior pause on the tariffs, they are poised to go into effect this week, stating, “Drugs are still pouring into our Country from Mexico and Canada at very high and unacceptable levels....We cannot allow this scourge to continue to harm the USA, and therefore, until it stops, or is seriously limited, the proposed TARIFFS scheduled to go into effect on MARCH FOURTH, will, indeed, go into effect, as scheduled.”
According to sources, Navarro's hardline stance has been so abrasive to Canada, that its officials have put a stop to negotiations with the U.S. until Jamieson Greer, poised to serve as trade representative, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick are settled into their positions.
“Ruling the roost”
The source who spoke to the Telegraph suggested that Navarro's brusque approach is ruling the day simply due to his – currently – sole proximity to the process.
“Peter Navarro is in post, and he is taking advantage of being there by himself with no one else in post to challenge his extreme positions. This will change soon as the many other trade and economic positions are filled,” the insider said.
The source continued, “By default of no competition, he is temporarily ruling the roost.”
Navarro, for his part, has asserted that some of the positions attributed to him, such as a rumor that he sought Canada's removal from the Five Eyes intelligence alliance as retribution for tariff objections, are patently false, but whether his denial extends to the notion of redrawing borders remains unclear.
In his defense, Navarro said, “My view is that we should never have to comment on any story where it's based on unnamed sources. We would never, ever jeopardize our national security, ever, with allies like Canada, ever.”
