The Trudeau government faces a perfect storm of political and economic upheaval following Chrystia Freeland’s abrupt resignation and mounting anxieties over the prospect of Donald Trump’s return to power.

With Trudeau’s popularity at record lows and calls for his resignation mounting, Canada’s leadership crisis could not come at a worse time. Freeland’s departure, opposition gains, and the specter of renewed U.S. protectionism and pressure on NATO spending threaten to leave Canada unprepared to defend its national interests in a volatile international environment.

Freeland’s resignation has sent shockwaves through Ottawa and underscored growing disarray within the Liberal government. As a key figure in Trudeau’s cabinet and Canada’s chief negotiator during Trump’s renegotiation of NAFTA into the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), Freeland played a central role in managing U.S.-Canada relations at a time of considerable tension. Her ability to navigate Trump’s unpredictable leadership, while securing a deal that protected Canada’s core trade interests, earned her broad praise in Canada. (She chose to skip a recent meeting with Trudeau and Trump at Mar-a-Lago; Trump called her "behavior...totally toxic".)

Her resignation now leaves a vacuum of experience and credibility at a time when Canada may again need steady hands to manage Washington’s demands.