Conservative MP Jamil Jivani, who represents the Ontario riding of Bowmanville-Oshawa North, said he’s going to Washington.Justin Tang/The Canadian Press
Conservative MP Jamil Jivani said on social media Wednesday that he had met with the U.S. State Department and the White House and has other meetings scheduled for later this week, one day after announcing that he would go to Washington to assist with bilateral trade talks.
Mr. Jivani, who is a long-time friend of U.S. Vice-President JD Vance, said in a video posted to X that he was going to the U.S. capital because he wanted to help Prime Minister Mark Carney negotiate a trade deal with the United States.
Mr. Carney said Wednesday that Mr. Jivani was briefed by Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc.
“Productive meetings today with the White House and State Department, Mr. Jivani said in a post on X Wednesday night. “The President asked me to pass along a message: ‘Tell the Canadians I love them.’
“I’ll have much more to say later.”
He added that he has more meetings this week, including with U.S. senators and General Motors.
Semafor, a U.S.-based online news publication, reported that Mr. Jivani held unofficial talks with Mr. Vance and second lady Usha Vance, as well as Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Mr. Jivani’s travel plans, announced just as his fellow Conservatives were preparing to celebrate former prime minister Stephen Harper’s official portrait unveiling, appeared to catch many MPs off guard. Mr. Jivani has no role on the Liberal government’s negotiating team and is not an opposition critic.
Mr. Jivani did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.
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In his Tuesday video, Mr. Jivani said he sees Canada-U.S. trade as a non-partisan issue.
He referenced the United-States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, also referred to as CUSMA, which is up for review later this year.
“CUSMA and trade with the United States is so important to the Canadian economy and to our future as an independent, self-reliant nation that Conservatives and Liberals don’t need to fight over this at all,” he said in the video. “In fact, we need to work together.”
Ahead of a caucus meeting, Mr. Carney told reporters that his government has extensive and constant contact with U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration. He also took a swipe at Mr. Jivani.
“Mr. LeBlanc gave a briefing to Mr. Jivani, who I don’t believe is the trade critic for the Opposition – certainly not the minister of international trade nor the prime minister,” Mr. Carney said.
Mr. Jivani represents the Ontario riding of Bowmanville-Oshawa North, which includes many auto workers affected by the U.S. trade war.
Industry Minister Mélanie Joly also weighed in on Mr. Jivani’s trip, telling reporters that she hopes he speaks about the closing of a General Motors plant.
“Ingersoll has been closed for now four months, and I haven’t heard him once saying that he was deploring what was going on, and basically GM closing Ingersoll and hundreds of people losing their jobs,” she said.
Mr. Jivani did mention the auto workers in his video, saying their “lives have been turned upside down because of the economic uncertainty, the tariffs, and the lack of a good trade relationship with our biggest trading partner.”
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre met with Mr. Carney Wednesday afternoon. On his way in, Mr. Poilievre said his party stands ready to work with the government on Canada-U.S. trade issues but also hit back at the Prime Minister.
“Mr. Carney had promised that he would get us a deal by last July,” he said.
“Conservatives are here to work with the Prime Minister and with the government to knock down these unjust tariffs and fight for our workers, fight for their jobs and fight for our economic independence.”
Mr. Poilievre was asked what advice he gave Mr. Jivani, and said he told all MPs that they need to fight for jobs in their communities.
In an X post about his meeting with Mr. Poilievre, Mr. Carney emphasized the need to pass Liberal legislation that would “strengthen bail and sentencing laws, build up a stronger economy, cut costs for the middle class, and protect Canadian workers.”
Katy Merrifield, a spokesperson for Mr. Poilievre, said it was a good meeting, and that he pushed for lower taxes and expressed disappointment at the size of the deficit.
“He also offered specific suggestions on how to bring back investment,” she said in a statement.
With reports from Stephanie Levitz and The Canadian Press
Editor’s note: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that a recently closed General Motors plant is located in Jamil Jivani’s riding. It is located in the Oxford riding. This article has also been updated to correct the spelling of Mr. Jivani’s surname.