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OPINION
Jamil Jivani may just be putting on a masterclass of how to become un-electable in Canada right now, and he just tripled down on his pro-US, anti-Canadian rhetoric with a visit to Washington. After essentially calling Canadians pathetic and spouting a torrent of pro-American sentiments, Jamil Jivani has gone ahead and visited the US, much to the disagreement of his fearless leader, Pierre Poilievre. Poilievre made it extremely clear in his statement after Jivani returned to Canada. Poilievre stated that Jivani speaks only for himself, and it's Pierre Poilievre alone who speaks for the Conservative Party of Canada.
Jivani bends the knee
In case you missed it, Conservative MP Jamil Jivani has been encouraging Canadians to bend the knee to Donald Trump's fascist threats of annexation. First, Jivani gave an interview to far-right American outlet Breitbart, something he certainly didn't need to do. In the interview, Jivani said that Canadians needed to stop throwing a hissy fit over American tariffs. He claimed that Canadians are ‘shooting themselves in the foot' with their anti-American hissy fit. Calling Canada's response to Donald Trump's damaging tariffs insulting enough, but when you realize that Jivani is a longtime friend of US Vice President J.D. Vance, it goes from insulting to appalling.
After multiple Conservative politicians called out Jivani for his statement, Jamill decided to double down on his pro-US behaviour and took a trip to Washington D.C. to meet up with his buddy J.D., U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and automotive manufacturer General Motors. More than 1,000 Canadian auto workers were laid off at a General Motors plant in Jivani's riding of Oshawa, Ontario, the week prior. Jivani claims he went on the trip to help Prime Minister Mark Carney negotiate a trade deal with the U.S., but the claim is nonsensical. Carney rightly pointed out that Jivani is neither the Conservative Party's trade critic nor the Canadian government's Minister of International Trade. No foreign trade delegation would fail to include the Canadian Minister of International Trade, Maninder Sidhu, making Jivani's visit, at best, a tourism trip.
Poilievre strikes
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has made his displeasure with Jivani clear. Poilievre told the media that Jivani does not speak for the party, effectively neutering Jivani's verbal power in the caucus. It's never a good sign when your boss tells the world that your words hold no weight. Poilievre also validated Canadians in his statement. The opposition leader claimed that Canadians have every right to feel hurt and angry about the things the President has said about Canadians, and that Donald Trump's tariffs are wholly unjustifiable. Pierre Poilievre has worked hard to distance himself from the Trump-esque politics that turned him into a household name. After years of successfully fighting the ‘woke mind virus', Poilievre's politics came crashing down with Donald Trump's turn to what sometimes feels like fascism.
What's next for Jivani
By abandoning Canada during a moment of struggle, Jamil Jivani has effectively ostracized himself from his own Party. What's confusing is why. After dominating a snap election in Durham after the resignation of Erin O'Toole in 2024, Jivani underperformed in his first proper election in 2025. After the riding of Durham was expanded into Bowmanville-Oshawa for the 2025 Federal Election, Jivani narrowly beat his opponent despite polls projecting a clear win. Since his election, Jivani's constituents have been critical of his actions, and after his recent anti-Canadian actions, he's at risk of losing even more support. Some voters see his relationship with J.D. Vance as a bargaining chip; others see it as proof of his willingness to bend the knee to America.
Jivani's decision to position himself as an independent voice in the Canada-US trade war is a gamble, but if he's doing it for the right reasons, it could pay off. It's possible that Jamil Jivani could use his relationship with Vance and the US brass to benefit Canada. Jivani's riding of Bowmanville-Oshawa has been disproportionately affected by Donald Trump's tariffs, and it's not a stretch to claim that Jivani should be working overtime to combat the tariffs. That being said, choosing to belittle Canadians and pander to the US is a strategy that will have consequences back home. There will be constituents who feel betrayed by Jivani's buddying up to the US, and unless the MP can create actual results from this mess, Jivani's going to lose it all to the House.
There is no question that Jamil Jivani will be a central figure in the trade war between Canada and the US. What's unclear is how he will bridge the independent efforts he's making with Carney's Federal message. After Carney's internationally praised speech about Unity in Davos, and a slew of Conservative MPs defecting to the Liberal side, the message to Jivani is clear: get with the program or get out.
