Only a mainline media could portray the United States as having made an "unprecedented foray into Canada's election campaign."
That was the Reuters lead on a story warning Canadian politicians not to bash Washington in their bid to win the January 23 election.
an "unprecedented foray into Canada's election campaign"?
What about Democrat darling Michael Moore on Canadian soil, telling Canadians thatvoting Conservative would ruin their country and the release of Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11--both events taking place just days before the last Canadian federal election?
Now that's something never media described as a foray into a Canadian election campaign.
In a hard-hitting speech delivered in election pitched Ottawa, U.S. ambassador David Wilkins decried what he called relentless and incessant criticism of his country, which he speculated might begin to sow doubt about the strength of the Canada-U.S. relationship.
"Canada never has to tear the United States down to build itself up," Wilkins said.
"It may be smart election politics to thump your chest and constantly criticize your friend and your No. 1 trading partner. But it's a slippery slope and all of us should hope it doesn't have a long-term impact on our relationship."
Canadian carping against the U.S. is becoming commonplace in the political realm. This time it was Prime Minister Paul Martin, who took advantage of the Montreal climate conference to call on the United States to heed a "global conscience" and join efforts to combat global warming.
But only a little more than two months ago, it was Frank McKenna, Canada's ambassador to Washington, who charged in a Toronto speech --with Wilkins seated in the audience--that the system of government in the United States is "dysfunctional".
McKenna, another Liberal handpicked for the job by Martin, characterized the U.S. Congress as "like having 535 Carolyn Parrishes in one place," reminding all of the stridently anti-america Mississauga Liberal MP who trampled a George W. Bush doll on television.
Martin, "Mr. Dithers" for his waffling style on other matters, was hanging tough on his "global conscience" remarks yesterday, and refusing to back down.
"That our friends do not like what we say–well, c'est la vie. I'm going to defend Canada and I'm right on softwood lumber and I'm right on climate change and I won't let anybody tell me that I should not defend my country," he said.
What he feels he has to defend Canada against is anybody's guess.
Even with Martin's long time mentor, UN poster boy Maurice Strong leading the charge on global warming, Canada has a proportionally worse record than the United States on controlling greenhouse gas emissions,
When Martin showed up at the Montreal climate change conference to take his cheap shot at the U.S., he was likely filling the slot left by Strong, one of the flawed Kyoto Protocol's key architects.
Strong has been missing in action in his favourite country, China, which he is helping to become the world's next superpower.
and you can safely bet that Strong will remain missing in action until after Jan. 23, 2006.
Canada Free Press founding editor Most recent by Judi McLeod is an award-winning journalist with 30 years experience in the print media. Her work has appeared on Newsmax.com, Drudge Report, Foxnews.com, Glenn Beck. Judi can be reached at: judi@canadafreepress.com
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