Trump is ‘a showman before he’s a statesman’: former PM Joe Clark on annexation threats

Former Prime Minister Joe Clark on what to expect from talks between Carney and Trump at the upcoming G7 summit in Alberta.

Amid the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and Canada, Canadians should bear in mind that U.S. President Donald Trump is “a showman before he’s a statesman,” former prime minister Joe Clark says.

The leaders of the world’s most advanced economies are descending on Kananaskis, Alta. for the G7 summit this week, with Trump expected to attend.

Ahead of the gathering in Alberta, CTV Question Period host Vassy Kapelos asked Clark what’s been going through his mind in recent months as Trump has levied sweeping tariffs and frequently threatened to annex Canada.

“He is a showman before he’s a statesman, and we have to bear that in mind,” Clark said, in an interview airing Sunday. “There’s some degree to that in everyone in public office. You can’t ignore your media when you’re conducting public policy, now.”

“But his inclination as a quite unique kind of showman is to make his own impact rather than find agreement,” Clark added. “That’s very difficult to deal with, but it’s not impossible.”

Trump launched his trade war in February, implementing a slate of tariffs on Canadian goods and threatened to use “economic force” to make Canada the 51st state.

“One of the questions I think all of us are asking regarding the United States is, who else is there around him who might be a restraining influence,” Clark said.

While sources have told CTV News there has been substantial progress on a bilateral pact between Canada and the U.S., they also say Trump’s own temperamental nature, plus recent domestic pressures — such as the protests in Los Angeles, Calif. and the president’s feud with billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk — are making any certainty around a timeline even more unpredictable.

Asked about his expectations for the summit and any potential bilateral confabs taking place between Trump and Prime Minister Mark Carney, Clark said the latter’s strength is finding the right time to make his case to the president.

He also said it’s “always essential” for the leaders to have time away from the cameras for private discussions.

“One of the unusual factors of this summit with President Trump is that probably much more of the effective work will be done, in effect, off camera and away from some of the formal proceedings,” Clark said. “And I know that the proceedings are not themselves broadcast live, but nonetheless, there is a performance aspect to his approach to public life that is now not as productive as a quieter approach might be.”

Clark served as prime minister from 1979 to 1980, and Secretary of State for External Affairs, which is now Foreign Affairs, from 1984 to 1991 under former prime minister Brian Mulroney.

You can watch former prime minister Joe Clark’s full interview on CTV Question Period Sunday at 11 a.m. ET