President Trump once sent a note to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that was so odd, the Canadian ambassador had to contact the White House to make sure it was legitimate and not the work of a prankster, Axios reports.
In May 2017, Trump saw an issue of Bloomberg Businessweek with Trudeau's photo on the cover, underneath the headline "The Anti-Trump," four people with knowledge of the matter told Axios. He ripped the cover off, grabbed a silver Sharpie, and scribbled something along the lines of, "Looking good! Hope it's not true!" Thinking this was weird, White House staffers weren't sure if Trump should send the cover, but they relented, thinking it would be received positively. It was sent to the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C., where the ambassador, believing this was the work of anyone but the president of the United States, called the White House for confirmation, Axios reports.
That wasn't the only piece of mail Trudeau received from his unsolicited pen pal, and in one case, he responded. In December 2017, Trump falsely claimed the U.S. had a trade deficit with Canada, and sent Trudeau a document that tried to prove this, a person with knowledge of the matter told Axios. Trudeau mailed a letter back on his official stationery, wishing Trump a lovely holiday season, with a P.S., writing that Trump was "slightly off on the balance of trade with Canada. USTR says so!"
Trudeau enclosed a printout from the Office of the United States Trade Representative's website, and circled the part that read "U.S. goods and services trade surplus with Canada was $12.5 billion in 2016," Axios reports. Next to it, Trudeau couldn't help but draw a smiley face.