Last week’s meeting between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump likely violated 225-year-old U.S. law, but experts say it is extremely unlikely that Trump will face any consequences. It is said to be low.
On Friday, Prime Minister Trudeau surprised Canadians with an unannounced visit to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in West Palm Beach, Florida. Prime Minister Trudeau, Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc, and Chief of Staff Katie Telford had dinner with President Trump and Cabinet nominees Howard Lutnick (Commerce Secretary), Mike Walz (National Security Advisor), and Doug – Discussed a series of controversial issues with Mr. Burgum’s trio. (interior).
Among the topics discussed were trade and President Trump’s threat to impose 25% tariffs on Canadian imports, border security, fentanyl, NATO, the Ukraine war, pipelines, and the upcoming G7 meeting. It was.
There is a lively debate online about whether the meeting violates U.S. law. last month, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba He said he was told by the Trump transition team that the Logan Act restricts meetings with world leaders before the inauguration in January, making it impossible for him to meet directly with the president-elect as he had sought. said.
The Logan Act, enacted by the United States in 1799, prohibits U.S. civilians from engaging in talks or negotiations with foreign governments without permission from the U.S. government. Since its enactment, there have been only two indictments and no convictions.
American politicians, including Mr. Trump, have sometimes used the Logan Act as a political weapon by accusing opponents of violating it. More recently, questions have surfaced about whether Trump broke the law when he entertained foreign leaders, including Hungarian Prime Minister Orbán and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in July.
The Logan Act only applies to U.S. citizens
White House national security communications adviser John Kirby spoke to reporters aboard Air Force One on Monday about Trudeau’s meeting with President Trump and whether Trudeau had also spoken to Biden. asked a question. Kirby said Biden has not spoken to Trudeau since his meeting with Trump and has not expressed any concerns about the meeting between Trump and Trudeau.
“Is it appropriate for a foreign leader to speak to the next president?” he told reporters. “Yes, of course I do.”
Julian Khoo, director of international programs at Hofstra University School of Law in New York, said Mr. Trudeau’s whereabouts are unknown, but Mr. Trump may have violated the Logan Act.
“As for Prime Minister Trudeau, he himself has no liability because the law only applies to U.S. citizens,” Koo told CBC News.
“The Logan Act also applies to President-elect Trump, so there is a potential problem with the Logan Act when it comes to the meeting itself.”
Although the law is still in place, Khoo noted that no one has been prosecuted for violating it in decades.
“The plain text of that law suggests that it could apply to President Trump,” he said. “But I think it’s very unlikely that President Trump or, frankly, he would be prosecuted under the Logan Act.”
political tools
Still, Koo said the Logan Act is a popular political tool.
“The term has great appeal as a political talking point, as a way to criticize real concerns about people who are not actually authorized under U.S. law to carry out foreign policy.”
“I think this is more of a political maneuver than a serious legal crisis.”
Fenn Hampson, professor of international affairs and chancellor’s professor at Carleton University, said Trump may have violated the Logan Act when he met with Prime Minister Trudeau, but it is unlikely he will face any consequences. .
“The Logan Act has only been invoked twice in its long history,” Hampson said in an email response. “The reluctance to invoke it is mainly due to [been] This is because it may lead to a violation of freedom of speech. This would not be a dispute in the classic sense, as some of the “disputes” between the US and Canada, such as the threat of tariffs, were created by President Trump himself through tweets. ”
Hampson also said he doubted who would initiate such a prosecution, suggesting it was “unlikely to go anywhere given the current complexion of the Supreme Court.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said that when Canada is in crisis or threatened, Canadians will come together regardless of partisan divide, but “that’s not something Pierre Poièvre can do.” “It’s becoming increasingly clear,” he added.
Law is unlikely to be enforced
Renan Levine, who teaches American politics at the University of Toronto, agrees that Trump has no reason to fear prosecution for violating the Logan Act.
“This could violate a law that is rarely enforced and certainly will not be enforced against President Trump,” Levine said.
He cited his decision to store presidential documents at Mar-a-Lago and his role in the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol, making them more likely to violate the Logan Act than other accusations against Trump. He said that sex is inferior.
Additionally, it would be difficult to argue that discussing issues like fentanyl trafficking is contrary to the U.S. government’s position or interests, Levine said.
But at the end of the day, he says, Logan’s Act is still on the bill and can still be enforced.
“You can argue why the Logan Act actually still exists, and perhaps it should be repealed,” he said. “But if they haven’t gotten rid of it, it’s a law just like any other law.”
The prime minister’s office did not respond to questions posed by CBC News about whether it was aware of the Logan Act when it organized the trip.
“The Prime Minister and U.S. President Donald Trump shared a productive dinner last Friday focused on cooperation and strengthening relations,” Jenna Gassabe wrote in an email response. “The United States, Canada’s closest friend and ally, is a valued partner of ours, and we are committed to working together for the benefit of Canadians and Americans.”
Trump’s transition team has not yet responded to questions from CBC News.
