|
Carney used a high-profile speech last week at the World
Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland to condemn economic
coercion by great powers on smaller countries and since then he
has as since sparred with Trump and Bessent about related trade
issues. Trump on Saturday threatened to impose a 100% tariff on
goods imported from Canada over a trade deal Carney is pursuing
with Beijing.
“I would not pick a fight going into USMCA to score some cheap
political points -- either you’re working for your own political
career or you’re working for the Canadian people," Bessent said
during a CNBC interview.
“I’ve seen what happens when a technocrat tries to pivot and
become a politician.” Bessent added, in a reference to Carney's
background as a central banker. “It never really works out
well.”
Trump and Carney spoke on Monday, after which Bessent told Fox
News that the prime minister “was very aggressively walking back
some of the unfortunate remarks he made at Davos.”
Carney had a different characterization the next day.
“To be absolutely clear, and I said this to the president, I
meant what I said in Davos,” Carney told reporters.
The North American trade agreement signed in 2020 during Trump's
first term, but lately the Republican president has expressed
indifference to it. Earlier this month, he said, "I don’t really
care about it.”
Bessent, in his CNBC appearance, did say that in the end, “I
think we will end up in a good place — may not be a straight
line.”
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved
|
|
