Prime Minister Justin Trudeau publicly congratulated the 45th and now 47th U.S. President, Donald Trump, for his election win. But their past relationship has been fraught with tension and public sparring.
Over the years, Trump has targeted everything from the Prime Minister’s handling of the Freedom Convoy protests to his public remarks on trade and defense policies.
1. June 9, 2018 – Trump called Trudeau “Weak and Dishonest”
After the 2018 G7 Summit in Quebec, Trudeau’s pledge that Canada would respond to U.S. tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum. Trudeau had said that Canada would “not be pushed around.”
Later that day on X, formerly Twitter, Trump called Trudeau “very dishonest and weak,” suggesting that Trudeau’s public statements were crafted to show strength to Canadian media.
2. December 4, 2019 – Trump called Trudeau “Two-Faced”
At a NATO summit in London in 2019, Trump called Trudeau “two-faced” after a video surfaced in which Trudeau was caught on a hot mic mocking Trump for holding lengthy press briefings.
When asked about the incident, Trump suggested that Trudeau’s comments projected his frustration over the fact that Trump publicly criticized Canada’s financial contributions to NATO.
3. February 2022 – Trump called Trudeau a “Far-left Lunatic”
During the Canadian Freedom Convoy protests in 2022, Trump publicly referred to Trudeau as a “far-left lunatic,” criticizing the Prime Minister’s tyrannical COVID-19 policies.
In an official statement, Trump wrote, “Facebook and Big Tech are seeking to destroy the Freedom Convoy of Truckers. The Freedom Convoy is peacefully protesting the harsh policies of far left lunatic Justin Trudeau who has destroyed Canada with insane Covid mandates.”
The protests, driven by opposition to Trudeau’s extremely coercive vaccine mandates and derogatory language towards unvaccinated individuals, saw many truckers and thousands of supporters gathering in Ottawa, demanding an end to the mandates. Trudeau ultimately invoked the Emergencies Act to use supreme powers, including freezing protesters’ bank accounts, to end the protests. His decision to invoke the Emergencies Act in response to the protesters was later ruled by a federal judge to have been in violation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
4. February 26, 2022 – Trump accused Trudeau of “Woke Tyranny”
Shortly after Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act, Trump again condemned Trudeau’s response to the Freedom Convoy while speaking at CPAC, calling his actions “woke tyranny.” He argued that Trudeau’s actions were not just overly strict but reflective of a broader, authoritarian agenda.
5. August 2024 – Trump called Trudeau a communist, and speculated that he could be related to Fidel Castro
In August 2024, Trump said in an interview: “They say he’s the son of Fidel Castro and could be. Anything’s possible in this world, you know?”
Moreover, in his recent book, Save America, Trump noted that Trudeau’s mother was “somehow associated” with Castro, and wrote, “a lot of people say that Justin is his son.”
Trump further said, “He swears that he isn’t but how the hell would he know! Castro had good hair, the ‘father’ didn’t, Justin has good hair, and has become a Communist just like Castro.”
While there is widespread speculation of the claim due to a striking resemblance between Justin Trudeau and Fidel Castro, along with numerous photos and a video of Margaret Trudeau utterly fawning over the Cuban dictator, the theory lacks credibility. This is largely because Justin Trudeau was born five years before his mother is believed to have first met Castro.
Justin Trudeau faced significant backlash for his statement on Fidel Castro’s death in November 2016. The Prime Minister’s official remarks described Castro as a “larger than life leader” and “legendary revolutionary and orator,” while highlighting improvements in Cuba’s education and healthcare under his rule.
The statement drew widespread criticism for its positive tone, with opponents arguing it glossed over Castro’s human rights abuses and authoritarian regime.
