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As the hours ticked closer to Christmas, Donald Trump’s team seemingly made it clear what the U.S. President-elect wants delivered to him this holiday season.

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Could Canada really become the 51st U.S. state? How Trump’s joke could become reality

Monday night, Donald Trump’s son Eric Trump posted a doctored image to X showing his father scrolling an Amazon cart containing Canada, Greenland and the Panama Canal.

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While the Danish territory and the crucial east-to-west channel are listed as “In Stock” and available for overnight delivery in the altered photo, Canada shows as “Only 1 left. Order now” and the delivery date is Dec. 29.

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It’s the latest in a series of trolling social media messages directed towards Canada and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that Donald Trump and his backers have offered since claiming office in November’s U.S. election.

After going public with a plan of 25 per cent tariffs on incoming Canadian goods on Day 1, Trudeau met with Trump in Florida where it was later reported that the incoming Republican president jokingly said Canada could become the 51st state.

In a post to his Truth Social platform days later, Trump referred to Trudeau as “Governor of the great state of Canada.”

“I look forward to seeing the Governor again soon so that we may continue our in depth talks on Tariffs and Trade, the results of which will be truly spectacular for all!”

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Liberal cabinet ministers downplayed the jab at the time.

About a week later Trump took the annexation joke public on Truth Social and questioned why the U.S. continues to “subsidize Canada to the tune of over $100,000,000 a year?” (Trump likely meant $100,000,000,000, or one hundred billion, a figure he has previously quoted.)

“Many Canadians want Canada to become the 51st State,” he continued. “They would save massively on taxes and military protection. I think it is a great idea.”

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He called it a state again last week when opining on the unexpected departure of Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, whose behaviour he described as “totally toxic and not at all conducive to making deals which are good for the very unhappy citizens of Canada.”

“She will not be missed,” he finished.

Canada has met Trump’s demand that it bolster border security and stem the flow of illegal drugs like fentanyl into the U.S., by committing $1.3 billion in spending over six years to address some of the issues.

On Sunday, Trump threatened to take control of the Panama Canal – which he opined was “foolishly” surrendered to the Central American country – so the U.S. and its companies can avoid the “exorbitant prices and rates of passage.”

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In a video response on social media, and without naming Trump, Panamanian president José Raúl Mulino rejected the idea and asserted sovereign control over the waterway.

Trump responded on Truth Social with “We’ll see about that!” and then posted an image of the canal with an American flag protruding

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Greenland has been on Trump’s wishlist since his first time in office. On Monday, when announcing PayPal co-founder Ken Howery as the new U.S. ambassador to Denmark, he reiterated a desire to claim the territory “for purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World.”

The Scandinavian country’s Prime Minister responded on Facebook stating: “We are not for sale and will never be for sale.”

– With files from The Associated Press

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