Welcome to Canada President Obama
Today is a day I have been waiting for a long time. For a few days leading up to Super Tuesday, I had the pleasure of driving out to Chicago to call Democrats in the various primaries encouraging them to come out and vote for Barack Obama who at the time was in a tough nomination race with Hillary Clinton. On the second last day of the trip, I had the opportunity to see Mr. Obama speak at the Regency Hyatt on the night of Super Tuesday. Following the speech, he came around and shook hands with his supporters in the first few rows in front of the podium where he spoke. I shook his hand and said “Canada loves you too”. He gave me a thumbs up.
Since that time, Barack Obama has become President of the United States. The election excited America and the world. Supporters of Barack Obama believe in the change he talks about and have a hope that he can lead us through these extraordinary times. I am very much pro-American and had accepted that it was impossible for Prime Minister Stephen Harper to move forward enhancing our relationship with the United States while the unpopular George Bush was in power. Today instead of protesters, hundreds of thousands of fans will make the trip to Ottawa to welcome President Obama to Canada. The visit will be short, but crucial both to Canadian interests in general; and Stephen Harper’s political fortunes.
There has been a lot of speculation about how Stephen Harper and Barack Obama will get along. I have every confidence they will hit it off in a manner that reflects the strong ties between our two nations. America is our largest trading partner. NAFTA is the world’s largest free trade agreement. A billion dollars in trade crosses the Canada/US border every day. I saw this first hand when I went to school in Windsor and lived close to the Ambassador Bridge there. We are allies in NATO, NORAD and make a contribution to NASA. We share a culture and many of us have friends and family South of the border. Our military has fought along side the United States through many historical battles. Today we are fighting shoulder to shoulder with the US army in Afghanistan. During the last US election, hundreds of Canadians crossed the border to assist Obama in swing border states such as Ohio and Michigan. Unlike George Bush, Barack Obama visits Canada with an approval rating higher than any Canadian political leader and with the Canadian public firmly approving the job he has done thus far as President. It will be a historic visit even if it is going to be quite brief. Stephen Harper has an interest in building strong relations with the new President because of his popularity here. Barack Obama is going to want to make his first foreign trip a success.
The top agenda item for today’s meeting will largely be to build a relationship between the Canadian and American leaders. Other issues that will surely be discussed include the economy, trade/NAFTA, the auto industry, the war in Afghanistan, a North American energy/environment strategy, borders and security and possibly Omar Khadr. I do not expect any major announcements or breakthroughs on any of these issues, but this will be a good time to reset the American-Canadian agenda under a new administration. Bob Rae and Michael Ignatieff will also meet Obama for 15 minutes at the Ottawa airport.
After a long campaign, today is the day that many have been waiting for. It will be interesting to see the outcome of this visit as it will pave the way for future summits down the road. It is time for a new era in Canada-America relations.
