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Canada's incumbent Liberal Party staged a powerful comeback after riding a wave of anti-Trump animosity to victory in the country's federal elections.
And even though his support was the kiss of death to Canada's conservatives, Donald Trump himself apparently couldn't help taking credit.
"You know, until I came along, remember that the conservative was leading by 25 points," the mercurial president admitted and/or boasted in an interview with The Atlantic published on Monday.
"Then I was disliked by enough of the Canadians that I’ve thrown the election into a close call, right? I don’t even know if it’s a close call,” he added.
Pollsters projected that the Liberals would be the largest party in Canada's parliament once all the votes are counted, giving veteran central banker and current prime minister Mark Carney, 60 — not most people's idea of a populist firebrand — another term in office.
Liberals won more seats than Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative party, though it wasn't clear until all votes are counted if the party would win an outright majority among all parties in the election.
Only five months ago, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre and his party enjoyed a 25-point lead following nearly ten years of Liberal rule.
Poilievre himself is a rather Trumpish figure who campaigned hard on crime and immigration, complained about "woke ideology,” and embraced the anti-lockdown trucker protests of 2022.
One conservative strategist, speaking to The Financial Times, described Poilievre's philosophy as: "Take no prisoners, cede no ground, forcefully argue every position. Do not take a step back."
But that was before Donald Trump slapped massive tariffs on Canada and began demanding it become the 51st state of the U.S., catalyzing a new wave of anti-American sentiment reminiscent of the War of 1812.
Trump was still banging that drum when he spoke to The Atlantic.
"I say it would make a great 51st state. I love other nations. I love Canada," he said. "You know, they do 95 percent of their business with us. Remember, if they’re a state, there’s no tariffs."
When Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg observed that Canada as a state would probably lean heavily Democratic, Trump said: "A lot of people say that, but I’m okay with it if it has to be."
His reasoning was that the Conservatives were doing fine if not for him, indicating at least some level of support for right-wing policies in Canada.
"They didn’t like Governor Trudeau too much," Trump crowed, referring to Carney's predecessor as prime minister Justin Trudeau. "I would call him Governor Trudeau, but he wasn’t fond of that."
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