States of the Union

• 17 March 2025 10:50 UTC+01:00
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Since before his inauguration, Orange Don has been on a diplomatic rampage. Among other things, referring to the USA's northern neighbour as the 51^st state and its prime minister as Governor Trudeau.

While crassly amusing to some of us on the outside, it understandably put the wind up the denizens of the frozen north.

a Canadian official told me in a voice which underlined the nervous disbelief shared by most Canadians – Trump is not joking when he calls Canada the United State's "51st state".

Lyse Doucet, BBC News

I don't believe that Trump is entirely serious when he calls Canada the 51^st state. Although the population of Canada is only 12% of its southern neighbour's, it's comparable in land area. Moreover Canada is made up of thirteen provinces and territories, many of which dwarf individual US states. Therefore, to consider the entire nation as equivalent to a single state is ridiculous; he's winding them up.

What he's probably thinking of is Canada becoming the 51^st to 63^rd states of the Union. I hope this helps assuage the concerns of any nervous Canucks out there.