Fact Check: Did Trump offer associate membership in USA to Canada?
WASHINGTON, DC: Amid the trade war between the United States and Canada, a rumor is circulating online claiming that President Donald Trump offered Canadian President Mark Carney and Canadians an associate membership in the United States. The claim has sparked mockery and speculation online, calling for a fact-check.
Claim: Trump offered Canadians associate membership in the United States
The rumor appeared as a post on X, claiming to show a post by Trump on his official Truth Social handle dated November 3.
The alleged post read, “I WANT TO OFFER MARK CARNEY AND CANADIANS AN ASSOCIATE MEMBERSHIP IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THANK YOU FOR YOU ATTENTION TO THIS IMPORTANT MATTER!!! PRESIDENT DJT.”
The post has garnered almost half a million views as of this writing, with comments indicating that many believe it to be an authentic post by Trump, while others expressed skepticism and called for a fact-check.
Fact Check: Donald Trump made no such post
The claim, however, is false, as the president has not posted anything about offering a membership to Carney or Canadians.
A search for the post on Trump’s Truth Social handle and on commentary accounts on X that archive all his posts yielded no results. Additional searches on all other official accounts of the president, including Facebook and Instagram, also returned no results that match the text in the screenshot.
A search on Google to check if he has posted any as such and then deleted it also yielded no credible reports, which, if true, would have been widely reported by prominent news media outlets, making headlines.
Donald Trump's tariff relief on Canadian goods
The claim surfaced weeks after Trump lifted 50% tariffs on several Canadian products used by Maine’s agricultural industry.
A White House proclamation removed tariffs from a range of goods, including corrugated boxes, crates, plastic sacks, packing machinery, refrigeration equipment, and seaweed.
The relief also applies to certain processing equipment, plywood sheets, and paper products used by businesses operating across Maine’s agricultural and manufacturing sectors.
“President Trump is further refining the scope of the July 20 and September 8 actions to better serve the public interest, and to ensure these measures continue to effectively offset the burden or disadvantage to US commerce from Canada’s discriminatory measures,” the White House said.
But the Democrats accused the White House of using the decision to help Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a closely contested race.
