Trump says Canada welcomed millions ‘unchecked.’ The facts tell a different story

U.S. President Donald Trump has once again put Canada in his crosshairs, this time accusing the country of "destroying itself" by allowing "millions and millions" of people to enter "essentially unchecked and unvetted."

Trump made the remarks in a Truth Social post Wednesday morning, warning that the people entering Canada are causing problems that will soon be "too big to handle." He called it a "Liberal takeover that will end very badly" and pointed to "big unemployment" as evidence.

Trump did not specify what time period he was referring to when he cited "millions and millions," or which categories of newcomers he meant. The latest Canadian population and immigration data, however, shows that population growth and temporary-resident numbers have been falling.

Canada's unemployment rate, meanwhile, remains elevated compared with recent years, although it has declined from levels recorded earlier this year.

Aaron Ettinger, an associate professor of political science at Carleton University, whose research includes Canada-U.S. relations during the Trump presidency, said Trump's comments should be viewed in the broader context of his political rhetoric.

"The first thing it reminds me of is the Mark Twain line which is, 'First get your facts then you can distort them as you please,'" Ettinger told Yahoo News Canada in an interview.

"Trump just skips the facts part and goes straight to distortion."

Screengrab of Trump's Truth Social post. (Image courtesy: @realDonaldTrump/TruthSocial)

Trump claims Canada is letting in 'millions and millions' — What does the latest immigration data show?

Trump's "millions and millions" line lands differently when you look at Canada's latest population numbers.

Statistics Canada estimates Canada had 41.8 million people on July 1, 2026. That was an increase of 0.5 per cent over the previous year, the slowest annual population growth in more than a century.

The number of non-permanent residents has also been steadily falling, Statistics Canada data shows. Canada had about 2.78 million on July 1, down more than 154,000 from a year earlier and well below the peak of nearly 3 million recorded in October 2024.

StatsCan says changes in international migration have been the main driver of Canada's population growth since 2020, but that growth has slowed sharply in the past two years.

Ettinger said that shift is part of what makes Trump's latest message difficult to take seriously.

"There's nothing worth thinking about in his statements," he said. "It's all empty calories."

Ottawa has also been actively trying to bring down the number of temporary residents after a sharp increase in recent years.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada says it has introduced lower targets for international students and temporary workers, with a goal of getting temporary residents below 5 per cent of Canada's population by the end of 2027.

What about 'unchecked and unvetted'?

Trump's description in his Truth Social Post also runs up against the federal government's own account of how Canada's immigration system works.

In a government briefing shared in April, Ottawa said it is "committed to rebuilding Canadians' trust in the immigration system" and is continuously improving its security-screening program.

It also says every applicant is assessed by a trained immigration officer and must meet eligibility and admissibility requirements under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

"All foreign nationals are assessed before coming into Canada to determine their eligibility and admissibility," the government says.

IRCC officers assess permanent and temporary resident applications against departmental databases and risk indicators. They also work with the Canada Border Services Agency, CSIS and the RCMP to ensure applicants are not inadmissible on grounds including security, human or international rights violations and organized criminality.

And for some applicants, there is another layer. The government says some foreign nationals require further, in-depth review by the CBSA and CSIS through what it calls comprehensive security screening.

A Canada Border Services Agency officer speaks with a traveller at the Nexus office at the airport in Ottawa, Tuesday May 8, 2012. The NEXUS program allows pre-screened travellers expedited processing by Canadian and United States officials across the Canada-U.S. border at designated air, land and marine locations. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

So the Canadian system is not a simple waving of people through the door, as Trump made out in his latest social media tirade. At the same time, the Canadian government's pledge to rebuild public trust acknowledges that immigration screening is an area it continues to review and strengthen.

For Ettinger, though, Trump's description misses the mark.

"It's neither unchecked nor unvetted," he said. "It is 100 per cent dead wrong."

Is Canada facing 'big unemployment'?

Trump also linked immigration to what he called Canada's "Big unemployment."

Canada's unemployment rate was 6.4 per cent in August, unchanged from July, according to the latest Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey.

Employment fell by 42,000 jobs during the month, while the employment rate slipped to 60.8 per cent.

But the longer-term picture is mixed. The unemployment rate had fallen for three consecutive months before August, declining by a combined 0.5 percentage points, while employment remained up by 217,000 compared with August 2025.

The figures show weakness in parts of Canada's labour market, but Statistics Canada does not attribute the national unemployment rate solely to immigration. It also points to sector-specific changes and economic uncertainty affecting industries dependent on U.S. demand.

That distinction is important because Trump's post directly connects immigration with unemployment without providing evidence for the relationship.

Canadians have heard this before

There was a time, Ettinger reflected, when Canadians would examine every Trump statement for clues about what might happen next.

"Back then, 10 years ago, 5 years ago, we would hang on every word," he said. "We would read the tweets to see if we can discern his next movements."

That reaction has changed, he said, after years of watching Trump make sweeping statements that don't necessarily translate into government action.

"At this point, all of this has been priced into our evaluation of the guy which is the fact that he'll say anything at any time," Ettinger said.

"More often than not, there's no bearing on what ends up taking place."

His advice for Canadians hearing Trump's latest stream of sweeping statements?

"We should probably ignore it."