Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre used his much-hyped appearance on Joe Rogan’s hugely popular podcast to urge U.S. President Donald Trump to stop with his “crazy” comments about making Canada the 51st state.

The exchange came after Rogan asked if Trump’s remarks sank the Conservative campaign in last spring’s election and helped the Liberals win another term in power.

Poilievre said Canadians were rightfully “very upset” with the president and would never want to be part of the U.S.

“It is a crazy thing to say. Canada is not for sale. We’re never going to be the 51st state. We love Americans as neighbours and friends, but we want to be uniquely and we want to be sovereign as Canadians,” he told Rogan in an interview that aired on Wednesday.

Poilievre’s Conservatives were comfortably leading in most polls in late 2024, but that changed dramatically once Trump claimed the U.S. was massively subsidizing Canada, and the country would make more sense as the 51st state.

The polls further tilted towards the Liberals after Justin Trudeau resigned as prime minister and Trump began imposing tariffs on Canadian goods.

Once Mark Carney succeeded Trudeau as Liberal leader and prime minister in March 2025, the Conservative lead had evaporated and the Liberals would end up winning a strong minority in the general election held the next month.

Poilievre didn’t directly blame Trump for helping the Liberals with his comments but said he wished the president would “knock that shit off so that we can get back to talking about the things that we can do as two separate countries… that are actually friends.”

Rogan, who is mostly seen as supportive of Trump, agreed with Poilievre’s assessment of the 51st state remarks, calling it a “crazy thing to say.”

The Conservative leader has spent most of the week in the U.S., meeting with lawmakers and members of the business community to call for tariff-free trade between the two countries.

He’s set to address the Foreign Policy Association in New York later this evening.

But Poilievre’s appearance on Rogan’s podcast will likely overshadow any other engagements on his tour.

Rogan’s podcast is seen as the most popular in the world and has a large following among young men.

It has been criticized for appealing to Trump’s MAGA base and for inviting on guests that questioned COVID-19 vaccines.

Still, some said Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris made a strategic misstep by failing to appear on Rogan’s podcast before the 2024 U.S. election.

Poilievre’s decision to appear on Rogan’s show was applauded by some in Conservative circles, who claimed it offer an opportunity to connect (or reconnect) with younger votes that would be receptive to his message. Critics suggested that his appearance showed that he was pandering to far-right Trump supporters.

Poilievre didn’t use the opportunity to attack his political opponents in Canada and told Rogan that he wouldn’t criticize Prime Minister Mark Carney on “foreign soil.”

Instead, the Conservative leader mostly focused on his message for the U.S. to remove tariffs and work collaboratively with its neighbour to the north.

“There’s so much we could be doing together as neighbours and partners, if we got rid of those tariffs,” he told Rogan.

“I think what are the biggest problems in America today? Affordability. Security. And we can help with both. We knock the tariffs down. Let’s look at affordability. We have the fourth biggest supply of oil anywhere on earth. You guys pay a huge price discount for our oil because… effectively, all our infrastructure to ship it is north-south. You’ve got $5 a gallon right now in lots of places in America. You’re buying, I want to produce more.”