Canadians hit President Donald Trump with failing marks as details of his administration’s secret meetings with Alberta separatists emerged.
A survey by the Canadian nonprofit Angus Reid Institute, conducted from Jan. 23 to 27, found that two-thirds of Canadians gave the 79-year-old American leader a failing mark for his first year back in office.
Sixty-six percent of Canadians gave Trump’s first year an ‘F,’ while 15 percent gave him an ‘A’ or a ‘B’ and 16 percent gave him a ‘C’ or a ‘D.’
When asked to describe year one of Trump 2.0, Canadians used terms such as “corrupt” (36 percent), “chaotic” (24 percent), “incompetent” (24 percent), “disruptive” (16 percent), “reckless” (16 percent), and “terrible” (15 percent). A small portion chose words like “bold,” “strong,” “effective,” “transformational,” “hopeful,” or “great.”
The poll came out on Wednesday, just as the Financial Times reported that “very, very senior” officials in the State Department covertly met with the Alberta Prosperity Project, a fringe group of far-right separatists who want the oil-rich province to become independent.
Jeff Rath, the group’s legal counsel who attended the meetings in Washington, told the outlet that “the U.S. is extremely enthusiastic about a free and independent Alberta.”
A State Department spokesperson did not deny the meetings but said “no commitments were made.” A White House official similarly said, “No such support, or any other commitments, was conveyed.”
In stark contrast, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, 60, received glowing reviews after he delivered a forceful speech rebuking a “rupture in the world order” at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
“We know the old order is not coming back. We shouldn’t mourn it,” Carney said told powerful political and business leaders. “Nostalgia is not a strategy, but we believe that from the fracture, we can build something bigger, better, stronger, more just.”
Though Trump, 79, was in attendance, Carney never mentioned him by name. The Canadian prime minister took a swipe at “great powers” who have recently begun using “tariffs as leverage” and stood “firmly” with Greenland and Denmark.
The speech earned Carney his highest approval rating since he became prime minister last year, according to ARI. Sixty percent approved of his performance following the Davos speech, and 59 percent said they believed he was handling Trump well.
It also prompted Trump into disinviting Carney from joining his so-called “Board of Peace.”
“Please let this Letter serve to represent that the Board of Peace is withdrawing its invitation to you regarding Canada’s joining, what will be, the most prestigious Board of Leaders ever assembled, at any time,” he wrote in a Truth Social post.
The White House did not immediately return a request for comment on the ARI poll.
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