--- title: J.D. Vance Calls Canada a ‘State,’ Claims ‘Freudian Slip’ description: The Vice President's remark came after being asked about the recent heated trade talks between the U.S. and its northern neighbor. canonical: https://time.com/article/2026/08/24/vance-canada-state-freudian-slip-us-trade-trump-carney-ford/ author: Chantelle Lee article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-08-24T23:05:20.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-25T19:14:41.516Z article:section: Politics og:title: J.D. Vance Calls Canada a ‘State,’ Claims ‘Freudian Slip’ og:description: The Vice President's remark came after being asked about the recent heated trade talks between the U.S. and its northern neighbor. og:url: https://time.com/article/2026/08/24/vance-canada-state-freudian-slip-us-trade-trump-carney-ford/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt097747d9feb86ce6/6a8ccc5cf9cfdf15937a9771/Vance-Canada.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: Vance-Canada.jpg og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: J.D. Vance Calls Canada a ‘State,’ Claims ‘Freudian Slip’ twitter:description: The Vice President's remark came after being asked about the recent heated trade talks between the U.S. and its northern neighbor. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt097747d9feb86ce6/6a8ccc5cf9cfdf15937a9771/Vance-Canada.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # J.D. Vance Calls Canada a ‘State,’ Claims ‘Freudian Slip’ > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: Canada Retaliates Against Trump’s Tariffs With Levies Of Up To 50% On U.S. Goods [Watch (HLS stream): Canada Retaliates Against Trump’s Tariffs With Levies Of Up To 50% On U.S. Goods](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/J5Xh6hxZ.m3u8) (2:07)  _Published 2026-08-25. The Vice President's remark came after being asked about the recent heated trade talks between the U.S. and its northern neighbor._ by [Chantelle Lee](https://time.com/author/chantelle-lee/) ## Chantelle Lee Reporter Aug 24, 2026 11:05 PM UTC  U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance delivers remarks in Brewer, Maine, on Aug. 24, 2026. U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance delivers remarks in Brewer, Maine, on Aug. 24, 2026. Anna Moneymaker—POOL/AFP/Getty Images by [Chantelle Lee](https://time.com/author/chantelle-lee/) ## Chantelle Lee Reporter Aug 24, 2026 11:05 PM UTC Vice President J.D. Vance on Monday called Canada a “state,” before claiming it was an accident. “We have to remember, Canada is a state—sorry, Freudian slip,” Vance [said](https://x.com/Acyn/status/2091928760081936789) during a political event in Maine, after being asked about the [recent heated trade talks](https://time.com/article/2026/08/24/-we-don-t-need-canada-trump-escalates-trade-war-with-threat-of-50-auto-tariffs/) between the U.S. and its northern neighbor. “That was actually an accident.” He went on to say that “Canada is a country that has underinvested in its military that quite literally would get invaded by a foreign country were it not for the umbrella of protection provided by the United States of America.” Vance’s slip-up comes after President Donald Trump has hurled a number of barbs at Canada and its political leaders since he took office for a second term. The President has repeatedly referred to Canada as the “51st state,” [suggesting](https://time.com/7297490/trump-plan-to-annex-canada-51st-state-mark-carney/) that the U.S. should annex its northern neighbor. In March, Trump [called](https://time.com/article/2026/03/10/trump-carney-canada-future-governor-annexation/) Canadian Prime Minister [Mark Carney](https://time.com/7357333/carney-trump-row-united-states-canada-relationship/) the “future Governor of Canada.” Carney has repeatedly and firmly pushed back on Trump’s comments; last year, the Canadian Prime Minister [said](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4j38gk8edo) of the suggestion of annexing Canada: “As I’ve said to anyone who’s raised this issue in private or in public, including the President, it will never happen.” When [TIME](https://time.com/7280114/donald-trump-2025-interview-transcript/) asked Trump last year whether he was “trolling a little bit” when he speaks about making Canada a U.S. state, Trump replied, “Actually, no, I’m not.” ## **Trump: ‘Without the United States, Canada couldn’t survive’** In a [Truth Social post](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/117151799569745572) on Monday afternoon, Trump continued to fling digs at Canada. “America has been carrying Canada for decades, but no longer!” Trump said in his post. “The U.S.A. will always be far bigger, richer, and stronger than Canada. Without the United States, Canada couldn’t survive — It’s where they get all of their money and, because of their current bad leadership, primarily Governor Carney, and his Flunky, Ford, they will not be allowed to keep taking advantage of the United States — Their key to survival.” Trump referred to Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who has been a vocal critic of the tariffs that the Trump Administration has imposed or threatened to impose on Canadian goods. In addition to calling Ford Carney’s “Flunky,” Trump said the Premier was “the less charismatic, intelligent, and overall unimpressive brother of the late, great, Rob Ford,” a former mayor of Ontario’s capital, Toronto. Tensions between the allied countries have escalated in recent days. Trump [claimed](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/117119761850520698) earlier last week that, “subject to the finalization of documents,” the two nations had reached a deal, but trade negotiations between the two [broke down](https://time.com/article/2026/08/22/us-canada-trade-negotiations-breakdown-tariffs/) on Friday, and both sides have pointed the finger at the other. In a statement [shared](https://x.com/MarkJCarney/status/2091008744427598021?s=46) late on Friday, Carney said that “progress has not been enough to meet our objectives for Canadians” and so he “decided to suspend trade negotiations with the U.S.” He accused the U.S. of proposing “last-minute changes” that he called “unfair, uneconomic, and called into question the reliability of any deal." On Monday, Trump said that he plans to [raise automobile tariffs](https://time.com/article/2026/08/24/-we-don-t-need-canada-trump-escalates-trade-war-with-threat-of-50-auto-tariffs/) on Canada to 50% starting on Jan. 1, 2027\. His 50% tariffs on about $20 billion worth of goods imported into the U.S. from Canada went into effect over the weekend, and Carney said that Canada would respond with retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods that will take effect on Sept. 8. At a [press conference](https://www.facebook.com/Reuters/videos/carney-says-no-trade-deal-at-the-expense-of-sovereignty/1030590146452092/) on Monday, Carney said that Canada was still open to trade talks, but that any deal would have to “be one that respects Canada’s sovereignty.” “When the Americans go to the negotiation table first with the right attitude towards our industries and a true partnership, of course we’ll come to the negotiating table,” he said. “An attitude at the negotiation table that Canada is a subsidiary of the United States,” he continued, “that’s not something we’re going to accept.” Canada retaliates against Trump’s tariffs with Levies of up to 50% on U.S. goods ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/08/24/vance-canada-state-freudian-slip-us-trade-trump-carney-ford/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/08/24/vance-canada-state-freudian-slip-us-trade-trump-carney-ford/"},"headline":"J.D. 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