White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that President Donald Trump told Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney that the United States should “own at least half” of the Gordie Howe International Bridge.
Trump wrote on Truth Social Monday that he would block the opening of the project, a half-mile-long cable-stayed bridge connecting Detroit, Michigan, to Windsor, Ontario, until the U.S. is “fully compensated.”
Leavitt was asked for clarification on Trump’s new position during Tuesday’s White House press briefing, as the president had previously voiced support for the project back in 2017.
“I think the president was very clear and direct,” Leavitt told reporters before pointing back to Trump’s Monday statement. “But just to reiterate the fact that Canada will control what crosses the Gord Howie Howe bridge and owns the land on both sides is unacceptable to the president.”
“It’s also unacceptable that more of this bridge isn’t being built with more American-made materials, even more so than what President Barack Obama committed to with the Canadians at the time at the start of the project,” she said. “He also believes that the U.S. should own at least half of the bridge, have shared authority over what passes across it, and participate in the economic benefits generated by its use.”
Leavitt claimed that his demands represent another show of Trump “putting America’s interests first,” noting that he outlined his position to Carney directly during a Tuesday morning phone call.
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You can watch Tuesday’s briefing in full below.