Carney warns of 'tough days ahead' as tariffs make U.S. recession 'likely'
Pierre Poilievre says Trump endorses Carney, Jagmeet Singh pledges to keep up tariff fight
Donald Trump's latest round of tariffs is only a few days old, but the havoc they're already exerting on the global economy points to upcoming "pressure" on Canada's employment levels, Liberal Leader Mark Carney is warning.
Wednesday's announcement of new tariffs on imports into the United States from dozens of countries — along with starting the 25 per cent levy on "all foreign-made" vehicles — brought "greater certainty," Carney said Saturday, about both the U.S. president's ambitions for tariffs and the repercussions for Canada.
"We can expect pressure on employment in this economy," he said during a campaign stop in Oakville, Ont., a community vulnerable to the new auto tariffs as Ford Motor Co. is one of the area's largest employers.
Carney said the government's recent changes to employment insurance eligibility, announced before the election, will provide some support.
Those measures include waiving the one-week waiting period for workers who lose their jobs because of the tariffs.
As well, Carney repeated his pledge that a re-elected Liberal government would respond to the tariffs by building a stronger economy less connected to the United States. But he also said those actions wouldn't entirely cushion the financial blow.
"There are some tough days ahead. I'm not going to sugarcoat it," he said.
"We've seen the first signs of that in the financial markets, dramatic moves in the financial markets, which is telling Americans, Americans that are listening, that there are future job cuts, higher inflation and likely an American recession ahead."
WATCH | Carney won't 'sugarcoat' it, economic headwinds on the way:
'Tough days ahead,' Carney says, hinting at 'likely' U.S. recession'I have seen this movie before'
Carney said the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union serves as a cautionary tale.
"It took some time for the impacts of Brexit to filter through to the U.K. economy, but I have seen this movie before," Carney said, referring to his work managing that country's economic response to Brexit as head of the Bank of England.
"I know exactly what is going to happen … the Americans are going to get weaker."
Other party leaders didn't specifically discuss the impact of a potential recession on Saturday, but instead continued to argue they're best suited to protect Canada's interests.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre recalled a recent Fox News interview in which Trump said he'd "rather deal with a liberal than a conservative" in the prime minister's office and that Poilievre is "stupidly, no friend of mine."
Poilievre has spun those remarks as a sign the president is backing the Liberals.
"I think a lot of people have to ask themselves: why does Donald Trump want the Liberals in power for a fourth term?" he told reporters Saturday in Osoyoos, B.C.
"The answer is clear: he wants Canada to be weak," Poilievre said.
WATCH | Poilievre says he's right choice for Canada as Trump 'doesn't support me':
Poilievre dismisses claims that his campaign is 'in sync' with TrumpIf elected, he's vowed to make Canada's economy more independent, as Conservatives would fast-track the building of pipelines, natural gas plants and other natural resource projects.
Meanwhile, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh told a news conference in St. John's that he's inspired by Canadians banding together in response to the U.S. tariffs and that voters "can count on New Democrats to continue that fight."
"Cutting things we need is not the way forward," Singh said, a dig at his Liberal and Conservative opponents who've promised to dial back spending if elected.
"The way we go forward is by lifting each other up, strengthening each other."
The Bloc Québécois didn't comment on the recession either, but leader Yves-François Blanchet said his Saturday election promise to make it harder for foreign companies to buy Quebec businesses demonstrates his commitment to keeping jobs in Quebec.
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Protesters tee off on Trump, Musk in global 'Hands Off' rallies
'He's tearing this country apart,' says Ohio demonstrator
Protesters rally against Trump in dozens of cities across U.S. and worldwideOpponents of U.S. President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk rallied across the U.S. and around the globe on Saturday to protest the administration's actions on government downsizing, the economy, human rights and other issues.
In the United States, more than 1,200 "Hands Off!" demonstrations were planned by more than 150 groups, including civil rights organizations, labour unions, 2SLGBTQ+ advocates, veterans and elections activists. The protest sites included the National Mall in Washington, D.C., state capitols and other locations in all 50 states.
Protesters assailed the Trump administration's moves to fire thousands of federal workers, close Social Security Administration field offices, effectively shutter entire agencies, deport immigrants, scale back protections for transgender people and cut federal funding for health programs.
Rallies were also held in countries around the world, including the U.K., Portugal, Germany and India.
Musk, a Trump adviser who owns Tesla, SpaceX and the social media platform X, has played a key role in government downsizing as head of the newly created Department of Government Efficiency. He says he is saving taxpayers billions of dollars.
Elon Musk's conspiracist grandfather and his Canadian rootsSpeaking at the Washington protest, Paul Osadebe, a lawyer for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and a labour union steward, criticized Trump, Musk and others in the administration for not valuing the work federal employees do in creating "a baseline of economic security and power for working people."
"Billionaires and oligarchs don't value anything other than profit and power, and they sure as hell don't value you or your life or your community," he said. "And we're seeing that they don't care who they have to destroy or who they have to hurt to get what they want."
In Massachusetts, thousands of people gathered on Boston Common holding signs including "Hands Off Our Democracy" and "Diversity Equity Inclusion Makes America Strong. Hands Off!" In Ohio, hundreds rallied in rainy conditions at the statehouse in Columbus.
Roger Broom, 66, a retiree from Delaware County, Ohio, said at the Columbus rally that he used to be a Reagan Republican but has been turned off by Trump.
"He's tearing this country apart," Broom said. "It's just an administration of grievances."
Hundreds of people also demonstrated in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., a few kilometres from Trump's golf course in Jupiter, where he spent the morning at the senior club championship. People lined both sides of PGA Drive, encouraging cars to honk and chanting slogans against Trump.
Archer Moran from Port St. Lucie, Fla., said, "They need to keep their hands off of our Social Security."
Protesters gather near the Trump National Golf Club in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., on Saturday. (Alex Brandon/The Associated Press)
"The list of what they need to keep their hands off of is too long," Moran said. "And it's amazing how soon these protests are happening since he's taken office."
The president plans to go golfing again Sunday, according to the White House.
Asked about the protests, the White House said in a statement: "President Trump's position is clear: he will always protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid for eligible beneficiaries. Meanwhile, the Democrats' stance is giving Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare benefits to illegal aliens, which will bankrupt these programs and crush American seniors."
Activists have staged nationwide demonstrations against Trump or Musk multiple times since Trump returned to office. But the opposition movement has yet to produce a mass mobilization like the Women's March in 2017, which brought thousands of women to Washington, D.C., after Trump's first inauguration, or the Black Lives Matter demonstrations that erupted in multiple cities after George Floyd's killing in 2020.
Lockdown declared at East Block on Parliament Hill
Ottawa, Parliament Hill police on scene for a 'barricaded man' in East Block Area
A lockdown remains in effect on Parliament Hill as Ottawa police say they have been speaking with a barricaded man in the East Block.
"There is a large police presence in the area. East Block has been evacuated," Ottawa Police Service (OPS) said in a social media post shortly before 5 p.m. ET on Saturday, which noted that their officers are being supported by the Parliamentary Protective Service (PPS)
"There are no known injuries and police continue to deal with an individual in this ongoing incident that began just before 3 p.m. [ET]," the police force added.
Members of the public are being asked to avoid the area and follow officers' directions. Road closures remain in place on Wellington Street, which runs in front of Parliament Hill, from Bank Street to Sussex Drive, OPS said.
Police have brought in a robot to deal with the situation, and a large police truck has been ushered through the security roadblock.
Earlier on Saturday afternoon, PPS declared a lockdown for 111 Wellington St., also known as East Block. The notice was sent to staffers who work on Parliament Hill.
They were told to seek shelter in the nearest room, close and lock all doors and hide.
"If you are not in the immediate area, stay away until further notice. Do not travel to locations under lockdown," the PPS said in their notice. "Wait for further instructions from first responders."
A government web page says East Block houses the offices of senators and their staff, but there is little activity on the Hill these days because Parliament is dissolved due to the ongoing federal election.
The same web page says the building once held the officers of Sir John A. Macdonald and Sir George-Etienne Cartier," and that it still contains "faithful recreations of the offices of its famous occupants from the 19th century."
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With files from The Canadian Press
Canadian detained for 11 days by U.S. immigration speaks out for others stuck in limbo
‘That place breaks you into a million pieces,’ Mooney said of her detention by U.S. immigration
Jasmine Mooney's smile went viral after the 35-year-old Canadian was taken into U.S. custody at the Mexican border in March, but her story is now whispered in fear.
On March 3, Mooney tried to get her work visa renewed, entering at an immigration office at the Mexico-San Diego border, against a U.S. lawyer's advice. Instead she ended up being denied, and then, all of a sudden, detained.
Mooney spent 11 days in custody — off and on in cement cells she says are dubbed "ice boxes" — with little more than a thin foil emergency blanket. Mooney says she faced numerous transfers, humiliating medical tests, degrading treatment and no answers — despite pleas to let her pay for her own flight home.
She at first refused food and couldn't sleep, but then forced herself to get up and help others.
"It breaks you. That place breaks you into a million pieces. It is so disgusting what goes on in there," Mooney told CBC News in an interview on Thursday.
Her case is one of a series of instances involving non-U.S. travellers that has travellers and legal experts concerned.
‘That place breaks you’: Canadian woman describes 11 days in ICE custodyMooney's story has become a sort of warning, a harbinger of a shifting attitude toward Canadians travelling or trying to work in the U.S.
Immigration lawyers are urging people who need visa renewals to opt to go to airports, where they can be processed on Canadian soil, with no risk of getting detained if they are deemed ineligible.
'Chilling effect'
Mooney's Blaine, Wash.-based immigration lawyer Len Saunders said her case is scaring Canadian travellers.
"It has a huge chilling effect on Canadians going to the United States," said Saunders.
He advised her not to try to reapply for her visa at a Mexican entry point, given changes he saw under the new Trump administration.
"She wasn't trying to do anything illegal. She thought she was doing the right thing," said Saunders.
"I've never seen a Canadian citizen who's applied for a work visa, either a brand new one or a renewal, being detained like this."
Mooney
says she left a lot of women behind when she was released and wants to
shine a light into Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention
centres and how people end up trapped there. (Submitted by Alexis Eagles)
Mooney was at one point held at a San Diego-area prison where a Chinese inmate offered up her phone time enabling Mooney to get her plea out to at least one reporter. At that point, she had no idea that her story had gone viral and so many people were fighting for her freedom. She was released within a few days and left feeling "lucky."
Mooney says she left a lot of women behind when she was released and wants to shine a light into Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centres and how people end up trapped there.
"I met a girl who had been in there eight months," she said.
She says the women helped her get out — and urged her to tell their stories. Mooney says there were about 140 women in her unit at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, one of the first places she was held, in the Ysidro Mountains foothills of Otay Mesa overlooking the U.S.-Mexico border.
She describes how most of the women she met had lived in the U.S. illegally and overstayed visas — detained with no warning when they reapplied.
In
this 2017 file photo, a vehicle drives into the Otay Mesa Detention
Center in San Diego. Mooney says there were about 140 women in her unit
when she was held there. (Elliot Spagat/The Associated Press)
"You meet all of the girls who had trekked from India, from Iran, from Africa, they're covered head to toe in bug bites and scars from their journey and they paid all of this money, gave up everything they owned to come to America and then end up in jail and they're all most likely getting shipped back to their countries," said Mooney.
'Scorched earth' approach to immigration
Mooney, who grew up in Yukon and had been living in B.C. until last year, is one in a series of recent U.S. immigration detention cases that have caught attention internationally.
In January, German tattoo artist Jessica Brösche was was held for more than a month after border agents assumed she'd work illegally. A 28-year-old British backpacker was held for 10 days after trying to enter Washington State from Canada. She'd been living with host families trading housework for board on a tourist visa. A couple returning from Tijuana ended up handcuffed: U.S. citizen Lennon Tyler was chained to a bench, her German fiance Lucas Sielaff held for 16 days for violating his 90 day tourist permit.
NPR reported the story of a Guatemalan immigrant named Sarahi who accidentally drove the wrong way across the Ambassador Bridge trying to go to Costco — and ended up held for five days in a windowless office near the bridge with her daughters, two U.S. citizens aged one and five.
"I don't think that the Americans are targeting Canadians. I think they're targeting anyone immigrating or visiting the United States. There's this heightened scrutiny," said Saunders. "It's almost a scorched earth whether you're coming in and applying for a work visa or coming in as a visitor."
He's urging anybody reapplying for visas to do it at an airport — where they are safe on Canadian soil and can't be detained.
However, he says he's not shocked that some Canadians are just opting to skip any U.S. travel
Mooney's immigration
lawyer Len Saunders said her case is scaring Canadian travellers. "It
has a huge chilling effect on Canadians going to the United States," he
said. (Submitted by Alexis Eagles)
Work visa trouble
Mooney first hit immigration trouble last spring. She'd applied for her work visa at the Blaine, Wash., border office and was denied. The officer had noticed a missing employer letterhead.
She tried again at the San Diego border in April of 2024. The visa was issued without a problem, so she returned to California and worked.
Mooney says she didn't have a problem again — despite multiple border crossings — until she headed back into the U.S. after a visit to family in November.
Upon her return, she says a border agent told her that her visa had been improperly processed. She was interrogated and that work visa was revoked, after border officials noted her product contained hemp.
After a few months in Canada, she was offered another job and says she was told by another lawyer that it was acceptable to try to reapply.
"The worst that I thought would happen is that I would get denied," she said.
She headed to the San Diego immigration office that first processed her visa on March 3. After hours there explaining her situation, she says the officer told her she'd have to reapply through a consulate. Then Mooney says the female officer added: "You didn't do anything wrong, you are not in trouble, you are not a criminal."
She was told they'd have to send her back to Canada. But as Mooney sat searching for flights home on her phone she says that a man appeared and told her to come with him.
She knew something was way off when they pulled the shoelaces from her sneakers.
"Later I found out that's so you don't hang yourself in jail," said Mooney.
A
spokesperson for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) says that
Mooney was processed in light of an executive order signed on Jan. 21. (Gregory Bull/The Associated Press)
CBC News reached out to U.S. officials for more details about her case.
A statement from Sandra Grisolia of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement explained that Mooney was processed in accordance with the "Securing Our Borders" Executive Order dated Jan. 21.
It states that all aliens in violation of U.S. immigration law may be subject to arrest, detention and, if found removable by final order, removal from the U.S., regardless of nationality.
Saunders says that Mooney plans to appeal her revoked visa and loves the U.S. She was pursuing a marketing career there selling a hemp-infused water product – after running bars and restaurants in Vancouver.
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With files from CBC News
Carney
said on Friday that his government would provide an initial
$150-million annual funding increase to CBC and Radio-Canada as part of a
new mandate for the public broadcaster. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)
Asked about Liberal CBC pledge, Poilievre says Carney spending will drive up debt
Full program: 'Cinq chefs, une élection' featuring main federal party leaders
All 5 federal leaders make their case in Radio-Canada interviews
Carney rates his spoken French as a '6/10'
Conservative
Leader Pierre Poilievre participates remotely via Oshawa, Ont., in the
Radio-Canada program Cinq chefs, une élection on Thursday, April 3,
2025. (Radio-Canada) 
Bloc
Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet smiles while being introduced
on the Radio-Canada program Cinq chefs, une élection on Thursday, April
3, 2025, in Montreal. (Radio-Canada) 
NDP
Leader Jagmeet Singh is interviewed on the Radio-Canada program Cinq
chefs, une élection on Thursday, April 3, 2025 in Montreal. (Radio-Canada) 
Green
Party Co-Leader Jonathan Pedneault appears on the Radio-Canada program
Cinq chefs, une élection on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Montreal. (Radio-Canada) 
The Canadian Press
Robert Carney on Indigenous schooling in N.W.T.
The
cover page from the 1963 Borean, which was posted to social media in
2022. A page with just the principal's message was posted again this
year. (Memories of Fort Smith NT/Facebook)
A
"Tour of Edmonton" article in the Aurora recounts a trip organized by
principal Robert Carney and Grandin College staff in spring 1965. (National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation)
The Fort Smith federal school, named the Joseph Burr Tyrrell school in 1963, is seen in 1961. (NWT Archives/Dr. Wyn Rhys-Jones collection/N-2013-003:0171)