Trump says Canada will end up being the 51st state

What Trump brought up

• Canadian tariffs on milk
• Car companies moving factories to the U.S.
• Renaming Lake Ontario “Lake America”

At a campaign rally in Bullhead City, Arizona, on Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump listed old grievances with Canada, including its tariffs on milk.

“They’ll end up being the 51st state, because that’s the only way it works,” Trump said. “We don’t need them, but they need us.”

— Donald Trump, U.S. president

U.S. Ambassador Pete Hoekstra suggested Canadian politicians' actions could amount to election interference; Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said Canada would never do that.

Why it matters

The remarks come before the U.S. midterm elections in November, with Republicans trailing in several races in states bordering Canada where the trade war is an issue.