Imagine waking up one morning and discovering that Canada is no longer Canada—another U.S. state squeezed between Montana and Alaska. Sounds crazy, right? Well, maybe not as crazy as you think.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was caught on a hot mic suggesting that Donald Trump, the current U.S. president, has a very real interest in annexing Canada. Not just trade deals. Not just tariffs. Full-on annexation—turning Canada into the 51st state.
Trudeau was speaking to business leaders when he made the shocking statement:
“I suggest that not only does the Trump administration know how many critical minerals we have, but that may be even why they keep talking about absorbing us and making us the 51st state.”
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The room went silent. He continued:
“They’re very aware of our resources, of what we have, and they very much want to be able to benefit from those. But Mr. Trump has it in mind that one of the easiest ways of doing that is absorbing our country. And it is a real thing.”
The mic was still on. Trudeau quickly asked a staffer to turn off the recording, but the words had already spread by then.
So, what exactly does Trump want? One word: minerals.
Canada is one of the world’s most significant sources of critical minerals like lithium, cobalt, and nickel. These are essential for making everything from smartphones to electric car batteries—and, more importantly, for military equipment. The U.S. needs these minerals, and Trump seems to believe the easiest way to secure them is to, well, take Canada.
François-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s Industry Minister, brushed it off as a “negotiation tactic,” saying: “They need us more than ever. They understand, particularly the military guys, they are very worried about strategy in terms of being their partner, in terms of critical minerals, yeah,” he said. “I would say this is a great leverage for Canada because the military folks understand that they cannot rebuild their industrial base, their defense, military industrial base, without Canada.”
But not everyone is so calm. Union leader Lana Payne is taking the threat very seriously: “I have a lot of members whose jobs are at stake in this climate of chaos and instability.”
Believe it or not, the U.S. has a history of wanting to expand north. In 1812, the U.S. invaded Canada during the War of 1812, hoping to claim it as their own. That didn’t go so well. British and Canadian forces pushed back, and the U.S. never tried again—at least not with military force.
However, in the 1860s, some American politicians floated the idea of annexing British North America, especially after they bought Alaska from Russia in 1867. Some even suggested that Canada was “too weak” to survive independently. Canada’s response? They quickly united as a country in 1867, forming their own government and waving a very polite but firm “no thanks” to the U.S.
And then there was the 1980s, when a book called The Nine Nations of North America predicted that parts of Canada would eventually merge with the U.S. due to economic and cultural ties. Thankfully, that prediction never came true.
So, is this a real threat or just more of Trump’s tough talk? Hard to say.
Featured image via Screengrab
