US Ambassador Hoekstra Explains Repost of Trump’s ’51st State’ Comment

U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra said he amplified a post by U.S. President Donald Trump calling again for Canada to join the United States because he wanted to present the president’s viewpoint.

“As the president’s representative to Canada, I present the president’s views, the United States’ views to Canada,” Hoekstra told reporters in Quebec City on June 3.

Trump made a post on Truth Social on June 1 that simply read “51st State!” alongside a link to a Bloomberg article about Canada hitting a technical recession. Statistics Canada reported on May 29 that Canada’s GDP declined for the past two consecutive quarters on an annualized basis, meeting the common definition of a technical recession.

Hoekstra’s X account reposted Trump’s post the following day. In his remarks to reporters on June 3 he noted he doesn’t manage the social media account alone. 

“Mechanically, I don’t do all the reposting and retweeting myself. My understanding is we repost 100 percent of the president’s tweets that deal with Canada,” he said.

He also said that if he had not retweeted that post, then the Canadian media would have instead written articles about a rift between himself and Trump

When Hoekstra was asked if Canada is the 51st state, he replied, “that’s a great discussion for the president and the prime minister to have.”

Hoekstra’s repost came shortly after Ottawa gave official notice to the United States and Mexico that it wants the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) to be renewed between the three countries. The U.S. administration has suggested in recent months it wants to see some changes made to the pact. 

Trade discussions between Canada and the United States have moved at a slower pace than those between the United States and Mexico. The first round of formal talks around the CUSMA review between the United States and Mexico ended last week, and two more rounds have been scheduled for June and July.

Carney told reporters on June 2 that there is currently a “bifurcated discussion” among CUSMA partners because the United States has different issues with Canada than with Mexico. He said there are about 30 trade issues between Canada and the United States, compared with roughly 60 between the United States and Mexico. 

When Prime Minister Mark Carney was asked later in the day on June 2 about Trump’s comments on the 51st state, he said his government would “take the [U.S.] administration as it is” and continue working together in a variety of areas.

Carney also said he would not ask Hoekstra to leave his position. “In another world, it’s a bit strange, but we live in this current world, and it’s an aspect of U.S. negotiations,” he said.