Washington File

Politicians,public in general and news people seem to think bse has been dealt with unfortunately up to this point the farmers of quality breeding stock have been left to suffer through ZERO access to most markets including the USA.

True free trade is without the interference of government on either side of the border on private transactions. Maybe things were different a decade ago, because I encounter more people who have a problem with that notion in the US than in Canada. I'm beginning to figure out why Lou Dobbs has the #2 highest rated show on CNN ...

Mr. Harper has the courage to criticize the Chinese human right record. Unfortunately, he went on to meet the prime minister of China in a small room (kitchen) away from anybody!!!
We as Canadians do not mix up between the American people and their government. We love our neighbours according to the commandment of God. We as Canadians criticize only the American government. Why should we as Canadian people forgive the American government taking one billion $ from our lumber industry people bullying? If Mr. Harper accepts that; let him pay from his party money. He has a lot of it, and do not make a favour on the shoulders of the lumber industry Canadians!!
By the way, Mr. Harper has not come clean telling the Canadian people who had financed his campaign for the Alliance leadership party!!!!

Sadly Mr. Wilson's success as ambassador is no better than his failure as Finance Minister.

Dear Mr. Darwish, No need to appologize for the "athlete" and "vase" example. It's true that American administrations and are prone to bullying. My point, is that the opposition parties in Canada are using a hypocritical stance with regard to the Bush administration! Allow me to give a very good, and very current example: The Liberals are currently LAMBASTING the conservatives because they are PUBLICLY making it know that the human rights record of China - especialy with regard to a Canadian citizen now held in China under very questionable circumstances, AT BEST - are unacceptable to the Conservative government. The Liberals say that the conservatives should be more "diplomatic" and less "public." I STRONGLY disagree with the Liberals! Especialy after the lesson learned from the Arar case! Which is: WHEN A CANADIAN IS IN THE HANDS OF OTHER TORTURING GOVERNMENT FORCES, THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA SHALL NOT REMAIN SILENT... EVER AGAIN!! Remember? One of my philosophies in life is: FAIR IS FAIR!
It is unfair for the liberals to expect the conservatives to be chummy with the Chinese administration and their horrific human rights record - and who currently hold a fellow Canadian in what are the same Arar-case-type conditions - while at the same time lambasting the conservatives for being on a first-name basis with the leader of the American administration! I am demanding consistancy of platform, of values, of philosophy! Say what you mean, and mean what you say!! Instead, what I (we) get is political opportinism which borders on the RACIST!
Think about it: The current Liberal stance is: Bush - American - Bad - therefore must openly critcize with constant vitriol.
Whereas: Hu - Chinese - bad - therefore must be silent in public. That's NOT fair.
Since the Liberals lambast Bush with sustained, public vitriol, then, in ALL fairness, they are REQUIRED to lambast Hu with sustained, public vitriol too!
FAIR IS FAIR! That's all I'm sayin'.

Mr. Wilson says that he can now count on one hand the trade problems with the US. Of course he can. He made trade disputes disappear by caving in on: softwood and devils lake. Yeah took some real diplomatic skill to say, "What Mr. President? Yes sir Mr. President! Right away Mr. President!"
Mr. Harper will no more standup to the Americans when push comes to shove on the artic issue. Its good politics in Canada, but when the US President calls Steve will bend over his desk and undo his pants.
At least with the Liberals they fought it for years (sadly they too would have caved. Its well known the deal the Conservatives took credit for to break the softwood impass was really a Liberal one. And the Liberals would have sold us out if they had won the election), where Stephen not 3 months in sold us out. Wasn't his last election slogan "Stand up for Canada". And he did it all for political expediency; to show Canadians he's working in a positive way with the Americans and to show the Americans he is willing to change the tone between Ottawa and Washington. With regards to the softwood issue. We were so close. Its like seeing the goal line a few feet ahead and then the team captain concedes the game. If our Stephen really was going to stand up for Canada, there was his chance and he blew it . Big time.
Oh by the way. I'd like to know what song Michael Wilson sings (aka Brian Mulrooney and Ronald Reagan) to his Amercian masters when they say, "Come on boy, give do us a number"?

Just a seconder for Geo Mano's astonishment at Henry's calling Michael Wilson a "successful finance minister". Somehow I think that creating the greatest debt and deficit in Canadian history might count an eensy bit against such a grand accolade. So that a more accurate description might be, umm... *lousy* finance minister. Yes, that's it.

As for the softwood lumber deal, rarely have we been treated to such triumphal rhetoric over a deal with an alleged ally that permits them to break a treaty that everyone recognizes *we* will be held to. The Liberals bent over backwards for the Americans; the Conservatives bent over forwards for them.

I would just like to quickly point out that our relationship with our one and only neighbour, while extremely important, is usually a one-way relationship. The fact that an American commander would say that we didn't have an adequate security plan for Afghanistan is pure comedy, given their lack of security in Iraq, and also given the fact that NATO sure could use more American help in Afghanistan. Canadians aren't as anti-American as many say, we simply want a fair relationship...in trade, in security, in sovereignty.

About the timber deal, what happened to the one billion difference between our rights according to all the relevant courts and NAFTA, and what we received according to the conservatives deal??? Have our industry to loose one billion dollar in favour of our big neighbour’s government, the elephant??
I understand we are living near each others and we have to love each other, which we do, but when it comes that their government is bullying us; we will not love their government and will continue loving the American peoples.
If your athlete neighbour came one day to your house and said: Hi Johnny, I love your vase how much it is? When he told him it worth 3000 $; He took it and left! What shall you do? He is your neighbour! Will you forgive him? I hate to give this example; but it is the truth.
Let Mr. Wilson tell us about the ice breakers which Mr. Harper promised to purchaser in order to defend our northern shores!! Was it election promises? I am sure he could not face the ELEPHANT!!!!

Dear h, Have any American congresspersons or high-ups in any of the US federal agencies that deal with Canada, voiced to Ambassador Wilson their concerns with regard to the now routine anti-American (NOT JUST ANTI-BUSH!)vitriol emanating from ALL the Canadian political parties in opposition in Canada. The best example of this, I think, would be when the former prime minister of Canada, Jean Cretien, at the end of the Liberal leadership convention, used as a political put-down, the fact that prime minister, Stephan Harper is on a fist-name basis with the president of America - which just so happens to be our one, and only neighbor (OK, France has two very small, island colonies in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, but I think you know what I mean!), and our one and only neighbor which just so happens to be the world's one, and only super-power, and just so happens to be by far and away our #1 trading partner, and our NATO ally. It seems to me that for our prime minister to NOT be on a first-name basis with the US President would be, well, ridiculous, don't you think?Let me put it this way: Would you stop addressing your neighbors by their first names if you saw the sign of the opponent of your political party's candidate in their front lawn? Really? I so much doubt it! We are, after all, adults! In a democracy, no less! We are NEIGHBORS!, for goodness sakes!
Has the sustained, anti-American spouting from ALL the Canadian political parties in opposition been noticed by any ANYONE in the political scene in Washington, and is it of ANY concern to them at all? Or, are they pretty much ignorant of what's going on up here? Or, is it not a problem for them? Do they condider it par for the course? Do they laugh at it, knowing full well that it will ALL end the INSTANT the anti-American-spouting-Canadian-oppostion-political-party becomes the party in power. Just like the party in opposition in America always rags on China untill they get the White House!?

jeff...ambassador wilkins has frequently complained publicly about canadians bashing the bush administration ..
h

Whatever 'deal' we got with softwood lumber is still Canada accepting less than its full legal due under NAFTA. Americans ignore their treaty obligations and we "cut a deal." I know, I know, realpolitik, and the superpower gets to write its own rules, but I was proud of Chretien for calling the Americans out for this late in his tenure. I wonder how it would play in the US press for a Canadian ambassador to point out that treaties ratified by 2/3 of the US senate become "law of the land" meaning it was actually a violation of US law proper to violate NAFTA, and not just a question of a soverign state breaking its word to another.

With that in mind, I am not in any inclination to make any deal regarding arctic soverignty, and is one my few areas of complete agreement with Stephen Harper (a new port, more ice breakers etc). Hell, I would support us mining the passage if we have to.

That said, the Liberals were aware of the soverignty problem up north and had stepped up military exercises in the north as early as 1998.

I cant imagine anybody in their right mind to consider Wilson a succesfull businessman. He fathered the greatest budget deficit of all times with accompaning high interest rates and consequently a recession. It is only for his lobbying capacity of finance officials he got a "job" with a bank. On the softwood lumber negociations he left a billion on the table.

I'm not certain about this, but I suspect the Anericans recognise our sovereignity over the Arctic waters, but maintain that they constitute an "international strait" which is not a completely insane point of view. This is certainly a complex subject, relying on the intricacies of international law, the precedents of history, comparison with analogous situations elsewhere, &c. It is certainly something which would benefit from an in-depth analysis by a trusted source. Any free time coming up for you?

Cheers,
dba

I always enjoy your commentary, Mr. Champ. It seems to me that most of the fuss about BSE was generated by R-Calf, and when the US courts failed to support their BSE-fuelled protectionism, the whole BSE thing just died. As for softwood lumber, there may be a case for cutting forests devastated by the pine beetle, but I have always wondered about the true environmental costs of levelling forests for high-quality but cut-rate wood for the US market. I saw your interview with Mr. Wilson on CBC and I must say that he is a terribly wooden person, but perhaps more lively when not wearing the Mr. Ambassador hat. Mr. Delaney has a point when he implied that anybody "working" for the Harperites is so controlled as to be puppets, and I find myself pining for the days when no one paid lip-service to the so-called democratic deficit (accountability and transparency), and when we actually enjoyed the disarray of Ministers and MPs voicing their opinions, not acting as bobble-head wallpaper nodders behind our Glorious Leader. As for members of Congress noticing Canada in Afghanistan, this is of no import, because they are so thick-headed that they have just gotten around to noticing that they were puppets for the Bush administration.

If Michael Wilson thinks that the Softwood Lumber dispute and Salmon problem is over, he had better go back to Harper to find out what to say the next time. We know that no one speaks without getting approval from Harper for what he says but Michael had better talk to those in the know, and not in denial, about softwood lumber and salmon.

note to walt....in fairness, the sentence about softwood lumber, salmon and devil's lake is mine....and you are right trade disputes never ever fully go away, there are always parties who feel aggrieved or who are aggrieved..
but the overall trade picture between canada and the united states currently is less disputive than it has been in my memory....h