June 10, 2018

Trump’s Chief Economic Adviser Says Justin Trudeau “Stabbed Us in the Back”

Another White House official suggested there was a “special place in hell” for the prime minister.

President Donald Trump’s top economic adviser Larry Kudlow accused Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of “betrayal,” after Trudeau defended Canada against Trump’s proposed tariffs and announced that he would be moving forward with retaliatory measures against the US.

“He was polarizing,” Kudlow said during a Sunday morning appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “You know, here’s the thing. He really kind of stabbed us in the back. He really actually, you know what, he did a great disservice to the whole G-7.”

When pressed on how exactly Trudeau may have betrayed the US, Kudlow revealed that the White House was interpreting Trudeau’s comments as a stunt designed to threaten Trump’s much-anticipated upcoming meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this week. “Kim must not see American weakness,” he said.

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro went a step further, suggesting to Fox News Sunday morning that there’s a “special place in hell” for the Canadian prime minister.

The remarks on Sunday escalate a pair of shocking tweets by Trump from the day before, in which the president charged a “dishonest and weak” Trudeau with making false statements. Completely upending an already fraught G-7 summit, Trump also announced that the US would be pulling out of a joint G-7 agreement.

Kudlow’s appearance on CNN Sunday makes clear that the White House isn’t pleased with the timing of Trudeau’s relatively staid remarks, as they came just days before Trump is set to sit down with Kim.

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BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things they don’t like—which is most things that are true.

No one gets to tell Mother Jones what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

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