Mullin hits ‘governor’ Trudeau while defending tariffs against Canada

Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) on Tuesday referred to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “governor,” as the senator defended President Trump’s tariffs against the neighbor to the north.

In an interview on CNN’s “The Arena,” Mullin suggested the tariffs were necessary to stem the “flow of illegal activity coming across our northern, our southern border.”

“We’d love to have Governor Trudeau work with us on the northern border and help solve that issue,” Mullin added. “We would love to have Mexico work with us and solve that issue.”

CNN anchor Kasie Hunt pressed Mullin on his use of the title “governor,” noting that Trump has used that tactic to mock the Canadian leader and publicly muse about making Canada the 51st state.

“It was intentional, 100 percent, Kasie,” Mullin said, when asked if he meant to use that title. “It was 100 percent intentional.”

The interview comes as Trump’s 25 percent tariffs on Canada have taken effect, setting in motion retaliatory measures by the close U.S. ally.

In the interview, Mullin acknowledged the economic pain that the tariffs could bring on his constituents but said it’s necessary to keep the country safe.

“This isn’t about just imposing tariffs because we want to. It’s that they’re allowing illegal activities to flow from their countries into our country, and we’re asking them to help, and they’re not willing to help,” Mullin said. “And this is President Trump’s agenda. When he said he’s putting America first, this is part of it.”

“Now, does it hurt our homes? Does it hurt our finances? Does it hurt our communities? Yes, but we understand that we need to get America back on track, and we got to stop the criminal activity,” he added.