Carney Warns U.S. Is Trying to ‘Break’ Canada as Trump Revives ‘51st State’ Threat
Carney, who was raised in Edmonton, Alberta, on Thursday framed the referendum as an opportunity for voters to “stand up for Alberta, the heart of Canada” and “recognize that we’re all responsible for each other.”
How Trump’s threats could also help Carney
The pressure and rhetoric from the U.S. could actually work in Carney’s favor, experts tell TIME.
“The effect of Trump’s comments has been unifying,” says Lori Turnbull, a professor in political science at Dalhousie University. Despite discussions of independence in Alberta and Quebec, she says “there isn’t widespread panic that the country is coming apart.”
In fact, research conducted by the Environics Institute for Survey Research in 2025 found that “in almost every province, the proportion of residents who are very attached to Canada is greater than the proportion who are very attached to their province.”
Between Trudeau’s resignation on Jan. 6, 2025, and a general election in Canada months later on April 28, Carney’s Liberal Party went from 20% to 42.8% in the polls, according to CBC, with Carney’s message of defiance in the face of Trump proving to be a rallying point.
