Officials in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s office first got an indication that Chrystia Freeland was resigning from the Cabinet just two hours before she announced on social media, a senior government official told CTV News. told.
Freeland learned she was losing her finance portfolio during a Zoom call with the prime minister on Friday morning.
Officials said his team spent the rest of the day and weekend under the impression that Freeland would take up his new position as the government’s representative on Canada-U.S. relations and retain his title as deputy prime minister. He said he spent a lot of time. event.
Ms Freeland’s team and senior officials in the Prime Minister’s Office continued to exchange messages over the weekend, with the person telling CTV News that Mr Freeland’s team once again complained that she was upset. There was no indication that he was considering resigning or resigning. Messages from Freeland’s team also said they were “looking forward to doing well.”
Freeland himself sent a text message to senior members of Trudeau’s team Sunday night, reiterating that things would be fine.
On Monday morning, two hours before posting her resignation on social media, Ms Freeland sent another message to the same senior staffer suggesting she needed to speak to the Prime Minister. Government officials told CTV News this is the only indication that something is wrong.
“On Friday, you told me that you no longer wanted me to serve as Minister of Finance and offered me another position in your Cabinet,” Freeland wrote in the letter, adding, “After much consideration, I have concluded that the only honest and viable path is to: I am resigning from the Cabinet. ”
A source close to Freeland told CTV News earlier this week that Freeland and the prime minister disagree about how much fiscal space is needed to prepare Canada for the threat of Donald Trump’s tariffs. He said no.
President Trump threatened to impose a 25% tariff on all Canadian imports when he took office on January 20th.
Ultimately, the former minister does not consider the position offered to him by Prime Minister Trudeau to be a “viable” option, according to a person close to Mr. Freeland. This is because the position does not have the department or the “tools needed to succeed.”
