U.S. President Donald Trump to speak to Congress
U.S. President Donald Trump is set to deliver a speech to Congress tonight.
The speech, scheduled to start at 9 p.m. ET, is not an official State of the Union speech, but it will be the president's first major address since his return to Washington.
It will also be his first time speaking publicly since he launched a trade war against America's three largest trading partners.
The theme of the speech is "Renewal of the American Dream," according to the White House.
CBC News will have special coverage of the speech with chief correspondent Adrienne Arsenault, starting at 8 p.m. ET.
Trump is expected to lay out his plans for the American people over the next weeks and months after an intense start to his second term, which has seen the president prove his willingness to cast aside longstanding diplomatic relationships in favour of the "America first" vision for his administration.
No relationship was targeted more swiftly than the one with Canada.
The president's crushing tariffs on virtually all of the Canadian goods flowing into the United States came into effect on Tuesday despite Ottawa's attempts to placate the president over the last 30 days. Canada swung back with its own tariffs on $30 billion worth of American goods, driving a stake firmly between two typically-kindred nations.
Earlier Tuesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described Trump's decision as a "very dumb" move. He said he was at a loss as to why the American president would go after an ally, but said he suspects he wants to hit the Canadian economy in the back of the knees because he believes that will make the country easier to absorb.
"He can do damage to the Canadian economy but he is going to rapidly find out, as American families are going to rapidly find out, it's going to hurt people on both sides of the border," Trudeau said.
The tariffs had a profound and immediate effect Tuesday, upending diplomatic relationships and rattling global financial markets. Economists have warned the trade war could increase inflation.
Some Democratic lawmakers said they would skip Trump's speech to Congress. First lady Melania Trump will be joined at the address by selected guests, including the family of Corey Comperatore, a firefighter killed by the gunman who grazed Trump with a bullet during a campaign rally in Butler, Pa., last July.
Other Democratic lawmakers reportedly plan to wear blue and yellow scarves to show support for Ukraine, which is no longer receiving military aid from the U.S. after a meeting between the two nations' leaders unravelled at the White House last Friday.
WATCH | Canada's finance minister on the government's plans for the trade war:
We saw this trade war coming. How has Canada prepared?
51 minutes ago
Duration 10:00
As the U.S. imposes 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian goods, The National's Adrienne Arsenault asks Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc about what the federal government is doing to cushion the effects of the tariffs and how it will respond to a trade war.
Trump and U.S. Vice-President J.D. Vance berated Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy inside the Oval Office, speaking loudly over the European leader as they called him "disrespectful" and said he had been ungrateful for American aid.
Trump tried to pressure Zelenskyy to agree to negotiating a peace deal with Russia, the nation that invaded his own three years ago. On Monday, Zelenskyy said on X that the meeting was "regrettable" and that he intended to "make things right."
Throughout his campaign, Trump made clear that a second presidency would see him crack down on other nations he perceived as taking advantage of the United States.
He has threatened to annex Canada as the 51st state, seize Greenland from Denmark and take back control of the Panama Canal.
In addition to freezing military aid for Ukraine, he also cut off foreign aid to countries in other parts of the world. He went ahead with tariffs on goods from China, Mexico and Canada, despite Ottawa's attempts to placate the president over the last 30 days.
Those moves and intentions align with the theme of Trump's inaugural address on Jan. 20.
"America will reclaim its rightful place as the greatest, most powerful, most respected nation on Earth, inspiring the awe and admiration of the entire world," Trump said in that speech.
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Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Trump authorizes additional 2,000 National Guard members to Los Angeles, US officials say
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They say he is putting public safety at risk by adding military personnel even though police say they don't need the help. Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said in a statement he was confident in the police department's ability to handle large-scale demonstrations and that the Marines' arrival without coordinating with the police department would present a 'significant logistical and operational challenge' for them. Newsom called the deployments reckless and 'disrespectful to our troops' in a post on the social platform X. 'This isn't about public safety,' Newsom said. 'It's about stroking a dangerous President's ego.' The protests began Friday in downtown Los Angeles after federal immigration authorities arrested more than 40 people across the city. The smell of smoke hung in the air downtown Monday, one day after crowds blocked a major freeway and set self-driving cars on fire as police responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and flash-bang grenades. Additional protests against immigration raids continued into the evening on Monday in several other cities including San Francisco and Santa Ana in California and Dallas and Austin in Texas. In Austin, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said in a post on X that more than a dozen protesters were arrested, while in Santa Ana, a spokesperson for the city's police department said the National Guard had arrived in the city to secure federal buildings. California pushes back against presence of federal troops California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit over the use of National Guard troops following the first deployment, telling reporters in his announcement Monday that Trump had 'trampled' the state's sovereignty. 'We don't take lightly to the president abusing his authority and unlawfully mobilizing California National Guard troops,' Bonta said. He sought a court order declaring Trump's use of the Guard unlawful and asking for a restraining order to halt the deployment. Trump said Monday that the city would have been 'completely obliterated' if he had not deployed the Guard. U.S. officials said the Marine troops were deployed to protect federal property and personnel, including federal immigration agents. Trump's Monday order put more National Guard members on active duty, but one U.S. official warned that the order was just signed and it could take a day or two to get troops moving. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss troop movements. Despite their presence, there has been limited engagement so far between the Guard and protesters while local law enforcement implements crowd control. Bass criticized the deployment of National Guard troops and Marines as a 'deliberate attempt' by the Trump administration to 'create disorder and chaos in our city.' She made a plea to the federal government: 'Stop the raids.' Early protests remained peaceful On Monday, thousands flooded the streets around City Hall for a union rally ahead of a hearing for arrested labor leader David Huerta, who was freed a few hours later on a $50,000 bond. Huerta's arrest on Friday while protesting immigration raids has become a rallying cry for people angry over the administration's crackdown. He is the president of the Service Employees International Union California, which represents thousands of the state's janitors, security officers and other workers. Early protests had a calm and even joyful atmosphere at times, with people dancing to live music and buoyed by Huerta's release. Protesters linked hands in front of a line of police officers outside the downtown federal detention center where Huerta was being held. Religious leaders joined the protesters, working with organizers at times to de-escalate moments of tension. There was a heavy law enforcement presence in the few square blocks including the federal detention facility, while most in the immense city of some 4 million people went about their normal business on peaceful streets. Chanting against a line of National Guard troops with Homeland Security officers behind them surrounding the federal buildings ramped up in the afternoon as people yelled, 'Free them all!' and 'National Guard go away.' As the crowd thinned, police began pushing protesters away from the area, firing crowd-control munitions as people chanted, 'Peaceful protest.' Officers became more aggressive in their tactics in the evening, occasionally surging forward to arrest protesters that got too close. At least a dozen people remaining in the busy Little Tokyo neighborhood were surrounded by police and detained. Other protests took shape Monday across LA County. 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Guard deployment is a nearly unprecedented escalation The deployment appeared to be the first time in decades that a state's National Guard was activated without a request from its governor, a significant escalation against those who have sought to hinder the administration's mass deportation efforts. The last time the National Guard was activated without a governor's permission was in 1965, when President Lyndon B. Johnson sent troops to protect a civil rights march in Alabama, according to the Brennan Center for Justice. In a directive Saturday, Trump invoked a legal provision allowing him to deploy federal service members when there is 'a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States.' ___ Sullivan reported from Minneapolis. Associated Press writers Dorany Pineda in Los Angeles, Amy Taxin in Orange County, California, Lolita C. Baldor in Washington, Hallie Golden in Seattle and Jake Offenhartz in New York contributed to this report.
Toronto Star
2 hours ago
- Toronto Star
Canada Post, union trade shots Monday as progress stalls
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Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
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Los Angeles' image is scuffed since ICE raids and protests, with World Cup and Olympics on horizon
LOS ANGELES (AP) — This isn't the image Los Angeles wanted projected around the globe. Clouds of tear gas wafting over a throng of protesters on a blocked freeway. Federal immigration agents in tactical garb raiding businesses in search of immigrants without legal status. A messy war of words between President Donald Trump and Gov. Gavin Newsom. Photos captured several Waymo robotaxis set on fire and graffiti scrawled on a federal detention center building, while videos recorded the sounds of rubber bullets and flash-bang grenades hitting crowds. In a city still reeling from January's deadly wildfires — and with the World Cup soccer championships and the 2028 Olympics on the horizon — Mayor Karen Bass has been urging residents to come together to revitalize LA's image by sprucing up streets, planting trees and painting murals so LA shows its best face to nations near and far. 'It's about pride,' she's said. 'This is the city of dreams.' Instead, a less flattering side of Los Angeles has been broadcast to the world in recent days. Protests have mostly taken place in a small swath of downtown in the sprawling city of 4 million people. As Trump has activated nearly 5,000 troops to respond in the city, Bass has staunchly pushed back against his assertions that her city is overrun and in crisis. Bass, in response to Trump, said she was troubled by depictions that the city has been 'invaded and occupied by illegal aliens and criminals, and that now violent, insurrectionist mobs are swarming our federal agents. I don't know if anybody has seen that happen, but I've not seen that happen.' The series of protests began Friday outside a federal detention center, where demonstrators demanded the release of more than 40 people arrested by federal immigration authorities. Immigration advocates say the people who were detained do not have criminal histories and are being denied their due process rights. An international city Much like New York, Los Angeles is an international city that many immigrants call home. The city's official seal carries images referencing the region's time under Spanish and Mexican rule. Over 150 languages are spoken by students in the Los Angeles Unified School District. About half of the city's residents are Latino and about one-third were born outside the U.S. Bass faulted the Trump administration for creating 'a chaotic escalation' by mobilizing troops to quell protests. 'This is the last thing that our city needs,' Bass said. Los Angeles resident Adam Lerman, who has attended the protests, warned that protests would continue if the Trump administration pushes more raids in the city. 'We are talking about a new riot every day,' Lerman said. 'Everybody knows they are playing with fire.' It's not the publicity LA needs as it looks to welcome the world for international sporting events on a grand scale. 'At this stage in the process, most host cities and countries would be putting the final touches on their mega-event red carpet, demonstrating to the world that they are ready to embrace visitors with open arms,' said Jules Boykoff, a Pacific University professor who has written widely on the political and economic impacts of the Olympic Games. The scenes of conflict are 'not exactly the best way to entice the world to plan their next tourist trip to the U.S. to watch a sports mega-event.' A mayor under pressure The federal raids and protests have created another dicey political moment for Bass, who has been struggling with a budget crisis while trying to recover from political fallout from the wildfires that ignited when she was out of the country. She's been careful not to discourage protests but at the same time has pleaded for residents to remain peaceful. The mayor will likely face backlash for involving the Los Angeles Police. And she needs to fight the perception that the city is unsafe and disorderly, an image fostered by Trump, who in social media posts has depicted Bass as incompetent and said the city has been 'invaded' by people who entered the U.S. illegally. Los Angeles is sprawling — roughly 470 square miles (750 square kilometers) — and the protests were mostly concentrated downtown. 'The most important thing right now is that our city be peaceful,' Bass said. 'I don't want people to fall into the chaos that I believe is being created by the (Trump) administration.' On Monday, workers were clearing debris and broken glass from sidewalks and power-washing graffiti from buildings — among the structures vandalized was the one-time home of the Los Angeles Times across the street from City Hall. Downtown has yet to bounce back since long-running pandemic lockdowns, which reordered work life and left many office towers with high vacancy rates. Trump and California officials continued to spar online and off, faulting each other for the fallout. At the White House, Trump criticized California leaders by saying 'they were afraid of doing anything' and signaled he would support Newsom's arrest over his handling of the immigration protests. If Los Angeles' image was once defined by its balmy Mediterranean climate and the glamor of Hollywood, it's now known 'primarily for disaster,' said Claremont McKenna College political scientist Jack Pitney. 'A lot of perception depends on images,' Pitney added. Right now, the dominant image 'is a burning Waymo.' ___ Associated Press writer Jason Dearen contributed.
