Jivani, who is Conservative, said he went on the trip to help Prime Minister Mark Carney negotiate a trade deal with the U.S.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis can be the beginning of a truly, non-partisan approach to working with the United States,\u201d he said in a video posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Mark Carney said Jivani was briefed by\u00a0Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc, but said the government has “extensive” and “constant” contacts with the U.S. administration. <\/p>\n
Jivani has been optimistic about meetings he\u2019s had, in posts on X. Among them, on Friday he said he had \u201cpositive conversations\u201d about the Canada-U.S.-Mexico-Agreement with GM, though it’s unclear what impact he will have on negotiations. While he has a relationship with the vice-president, he is an opposition MP and is not part of the Conservative shadow cabinet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
CBC News reached out to Jivani’s office for details about whom he has met with. In response, the MP’s chief of staff Joseph Gainey provided links to two of Jivani’s posts on X, as well as an interview published on Semafor<\/a>, an American news site, on Wednesday. That interview says Jivani had “unofficial talks” with Vance, his wife Usha Vance and Rubio.<\/p>\n In Jivani’s riding of Bowmanville\u2014Oshawa North, constituents were split on the trip. While some said it was a positive move that capitalizes on Jivani’s connections across the border, others called the trip a political stunt that will have little impact on trade negotiations. <\/p>\n Residents split on Jivani\u2019s motivations<\/p>\n Emerson Riedler says if more politicians are working to secure a deal with the U.S., that can only be positive. He said Jivani\u2019s friendship with the vice-president could provide a solid foundation for discussions aimed at improving Canada-U.S. relations.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t see why leveraging that relationship to potentially build a better trade deal is a bad thing,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Dean Link, who also lives in the riding, said it makes sense for Jivani to be involved in discussions across the border, since U.S. tariffs are hurting autoworkers he represents.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIf you are an MP in an area that\u2019s being affected by [tariffs], you should have some sort of involvement and be there to represent your constituents,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n But resident Rob Halpin called the trip \u201cpolitical theatre.\u201d He said he thinks Jivani is attempting to boost his profile, rather than helping his constituents.\u00a0<\/p>\n Jivani should be in Oshawa, pushing for policies that protect Canadian jobs and strengthen domestic manufacturing, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cOshawa needs an advocate, not a tourist,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Halpin said Jivani isn’t experienced enough to participate in trade negotiations.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s no real clear mandate explaining why he\u2019s there representing Canadians in Washington, and at a time when trade relations are especially fragile,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Matthew Scatterty has called Bowmanville\u2014Oshawa North home for more than 30 years, but now lives in Port Hope.\u00a0<\/p>\n He said he\u2019s skeptical anything meaningful will come from Jivani\u2019s talks, calling the trip a \u201cpolitical stunt.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The prime minister suggested media attention may have play a role in the trip, speaking to reporters on Wednesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n When one reporter asked him why Jivani is going on the trip, Carney gestured to the media present and said: \u201cI think it might have something to do with all of you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n But Riedler says even if Jivani\u2019s trip is a media stunt, he can\u2019t see a negative outcome.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cUltimately, every politician is doing what they can in order to further their own career,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cEven if we want to be really cynical with it and that\u2019s truly Jamil\u2019s motivation, we as a country are still better off for having these talks.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n WATCH | PM reacts to MP Jamil Jivani’s trip to Washington, D.C.: LeBlanc briefed Conservative MP Jamil Jivani on Washington visit, Carney says<\/p>\n Dominic LeBlanc, the minister in charge of Canada-U.S. trade, briefed Conservative MP Jamil Jivani who is heading to Washington this week, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday. Jivani, a longtime friend of U.S. Vice-President JD Vance, had previously said he didn’t hear back from Liberals after emailing key players ahead of his U.S. trip.For some, Jivani’s politics at issue\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Both Halpin and Scatterty said they had broader concerns about Jivani\u2019s politics and drew comparisons to MAGA.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Halpin pointed to Jivani\u2019s opposition to diversity, equity and inclusion policies, as well as his \u2018Restore the North\u2019 campus tours,<\/a> aimed at addressing what Jivani called policy gaps to help young men. The tours were a tribute to American conservative activist Charlie Kirk\u2019s campus events, recognized for promoting the MAGA message at universities. <\/p>\n “[Jivani is] looking at what was successful in the United States and trying to import that playbook here in Canada,\u201d Halpin said. \u201cIt\u2019s dangerous for Canadians.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n WATCH | Jivani announced the trip in a video on X on Tuesday:<\/p>\n For his part, Jivani has framed his trip as an effort to reduce tensions between Canada and the U.S.\u00a0On Wednesday, he posted a message on X he said was from President Donald Trump: “Tell the Canadians I love them.” <\/p>\n Link said anti-Americanism has become a problem in Canada. <\/p>\n \u201cAs much as we should be diversifying and finding other partners to sell more stuff to, there is nothing more straightforward and obvious than having as good a relationship as we can with our neighbour,\u201d Link said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Productive meetings today with the White House and State Department. The President asked me to pass along a message: \u201cTell the Canadians I love them.\u201d I’ll have much more to say later. More meetings with Senators, GM, and others this week.<\/p>\n \u2014jamiljivani<\/a><\/p>\n Link also questioned whether the federal government has been involving Conservatives and taking a \u201cTeam Canada\u201d approach to trade negotiations. Jivani said he had offered to work with the Liberals before heading on the trip, but that he was snubbed. <\/a><\/p>\n But Scatterty said Jivani\u2019s trip fell out of the bounds of his political role.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have people to do those jobs, and he\u2019s not those people,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"Screenshot](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1770483128_693_default.jpg\")
Matthew Scatterty has called Bowmanville\u2014Oshawa North home for over thirty years, but now lives in Port Hope. He called Jivani’s trip a ‘political stunt.’ (Zoom)<\/p>\n![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1770483129_911_default.jpg\")
U.S. Senator J.D. Vance, left, has been friends with Conservative MP Jamil Jivani, right, since they were both students at Yale Law School. Former U.S. president Donald Trump picked Vance to be running mate Monday. (Jamil Jivani\/Instagram)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1770483129_975_default.jpg\")
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