Good morning. In Washington, the compliments flew, the cameras flashed and an actual Canada-U.S. trade deal remained elusive — more on that below, along with the Jays’ loss to the Yankees and a new spin on the strong borders bill. But first:

• Former Bondfield president, St. Michael’s Hospital executive convicted of fraud related to redevelopment project
• Across Canada, the Oct. 7 anniversary is marked by mourning and protest
• Smith calls Eby’s pipeline criticism ‘un-Canadian and unconstitutional’

Prime Minister Mark Carney made his second trip down to the White House yesterday, and much was the same as the first go-round. He once again proclaimed Donald Trump to be a “transformational president,” then proceeded to say very little at all. As Trump extemporized about some of his favourite subjects – crime-ridden cities; “transgender everything”; the magnitude of his electoral win – Carney stayed familiarly immobile in his chair. He raised a slight eyebrow when Trump lambasted “low-IQ” Democrats. He might’ve winked at the mention of our U.S. travel boycott.

Still, a few things had changed since that visit in May. For starters, there’s 7,000 times more gold now in the Oval Office, from mantelpiece trophies to wall appliqués. And this time, the whole 51st-state business was played for comic relief. Carney tried to itemize the President’s various diplomatic victories, winding up to the most important peace effort of all – but before he could namecheck Gaza, Trump broke in, delighted, to exclaim: “The merger of Canada and the United States.” Then he slapped Carney on the back and insisted he was only kidding. No more need for the Prime Minister to land his soundbite about how Canada is not for sale.

Was there an actual, tangible trade deal? There was not an actual, tangible trade deal. When Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc addressed reporters yesterday afternoon, he said talks would continue on steel, aluminum and energy before moving to other matters. “We still have some work to do,” LeBlanc conceded, but emphasized that the meeting produced more concrete details than previous discussions. He said he felt a sense of momentum that wasn’t there at the start of the week.

Trump is inclined to agree: He repeatedly predicted in the Oval Office that the two countries would reach a mutually satisfying arrangement soon. He acknowledged that negotiations with Canada were more complicated than with other nations, because our proximity and competing business interests put us in “natural conflict” – but “there’s nothing wrong with it,” he added, and anyway, “we also have mutual love.” Sure, some U.S. tariffs would doubtless be left in place, and Trump might not re-up the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement after all. He promised it wasn’t cause for concern, since “Canada will walk away very happy” from whatever deal is struck.

Trump has ample reason to feel congenial about his northern neighbour: Carney dropped the digital services tax inherited from the previous Liberal government. He nixed most of the retaliatory tariffs that Ottawa imposed earlier this year. He turbocharged Canada’s defence spending and appears amenable to the President’s pet Golden Dome project. Little wonder that Trump heaped praise on Carney before the cameras yesterday, calling him a “world-class leader” and a “great prime minister who could represent me anytime.”

But one reporter did have a question about this lavish love-in: If Carney is such a great man, what’s holding up the trade agreement? “Because I want to be a great man, too,” Trump joked, and Carney practically exploded in laughter, clapping his hands and tipping back in his chair. Trump immediately ended the press conference. He’s a showman first, and no one was going to have a better closing line.

More from The Globe

Opinion: Carney gets a warm White House reception, for whatever it’s worth, Campbell Clark writes, while Shannon Proudfoot notes that the PM was using his elbows to massage an ego.

News: Here are four key moments from Carney’s visit with Trump in Washington.

Podcast: Doug Saunders joins The Decibel to discuss the benefits of stalling on a trade deal.

The Blue Jays made a bunch of defensive mistakes in New York last night, coughing up a five-run lead to the Yankees for a 9-6 loss. Read more about Game 3 here and tune in tonight at 7:08 pm ET to see if Toronto can finish off the series.