For Your Information
Who Said What About Prime Minister's
Trip to Washington

A February 10 Globe and Mail report said, "Prime Minister Justin Trudeau intends to forge a personal connection with Donald Trump playing to the U.S. President's central campaign themes of job creation and a secure America when the two leaders sit down at the White House on Monday." A "senior official" told the newspaper that Trudeau will not "criticize the President's executive order temporarily banning Syrian refugees and immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries."

"They are very much into job creation," the senior official said. "They want to talk about how we are going to create jobs in the U.S., but the reality is the way to help create jobs in the U.S. is to have us work together rather than working at cross purposes."

Trudeau said at an event in Yellowknife on February 9, "We're going to talk about all sorts of things we align on, like jobs and economic growth, opportunities for the middle class -- the fact that millions of good jobs on both sides of our border depend on the smooth flow of goods and services across that border. But I am sure issues of security will also come up and I look forward to having very productive and constructive discussions."

Minister of Transportation Marc Garneau, also chair of the cabinet committee on Canada-U.S. relations told media that the visit will be "a high-level meeting where we talk about the things we share in common. As time goes on, we'll get down into more specific areas in the different files that are important to the two countries."

"The prime minister has said he will convey our values to the president of the United States and that's fair. And President Trump will do likewise. We will talk about what we have in common, but on occasion we will also make the point that we have a different way of looking at certain things," Garneau said. He said that both Trudeau and Trump have a priority to "create jobs" but that "We are negotiators just like the other side. They expect that from us and we expect that from them." The main message will be that "We've got a good arrangement going, and let's keep it going," Garneau explained.

Minister of Finance William Morneau said on February 9 that the Trudeau and Trump governments share the same aims. "I'm focused on creating a better outcome for Canadians and Americans," he told media. Covering up that the governments of both countries serve the oligopolies, not the people, Morneau added: "What the U.S. administration is trying to achieve -- good-paying jobs for Americans -- is consistent with what we're trying to achieve. We've got a much more positive starting point that we can work from."

On February 6, Canadian Minister of Defence Harjit Sajjan met with the new U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis at the Pentagon. Sajjan's official statement following the meeting read, "The close defence relationship between our two nations provides both countries with greater security in North America and contributes to peace and stability in the world in increasingly complex and uncertain times."

Sajjan pointed out that 2018 will mark the 60th anniversary of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), and said that he was "pleased to highlight the importance of this unique partnership and its success in protecting North America." Sajan and the U.S. Defense Secretary "also discussed multilateral issues, including our pledges to lead battle groups in support of NATO's enhanced forward presence in Eastern Europe, our commitments to the United Nations and the Summit of Defence Ministers that Canada will host later this year. We discussed our training missions in both Ukraine and Iraq and the work being done by the Global Coalition to degrade and defeat Daesh. I also took the opportunity to discuss Canada's Defence Policy Review," Sajjan said.

Mattis told media that the reason his first phone call to a foreign counterpart was to Canada's Minister of Defence was due to the close military relationship between the two countries, which he said he experienced personally in Afghanistan. He did not say that this close relationship included the Canadian forces being directed by the U.S. Defence Secretary to turn over prisoners to the U.S. torture machine behind the back of Canada's Prime Minister at the time, Jean Chrétien. Revealing how the crucial issues of war and peace are not permitted to be subjects of deliberation within the polity, Sajjan, in response to media questions about how the Trump administration will handle international crises, merely said, "We will always work together with our closest ally in dealing with challenges ... We've done it in the past, and we will continue to do it now."

In response to questions about Trump and others advocating torture, Sajjan simply repeated worn-out false ideological beliefs. "When it comes to our military and Canadian values, we follow international law and Canadian law. Canada will never use torture or be party to that. ... I've worked with the U.S. military, and they too have the same structure and values as us," Sajjan had the effrontery to say. Unchallenged by a democratic media with the interest to seek truth from facts, Trudeau and his Ministers repeat such FIBs with impunity.

On February 7 and 8 Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs Chrystia Freeland attended meetings in Washington, DC with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Paul Ryan, the Chair of the Senate Committee on Armed Services, Senator John McCain and Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Senator Bob Corker. Global Affairs Canada says the meetings covered "a broad range of topics, including mutually beneficial security and economic ties between Canada and the U.S."

According to Global Affairs, Freeland's meeting with the U.S. Secretary of State "underlined the importance of the economic relationship between their countries, which supports millions of middle-class jobs on both sides of the border. They also spoke about the balanced and mutually beneficial trading relationship between Canada and the United States, as well as about softwood lumber." Discussions also "addressed security cooperation, continued support for NATO, the global fight against Daesh, the future of Syria and the situation in eastern Ukraine, among other international issues."

Paul Ryan said he and Freeland "had a productive conversation about how we can enhance these ties, including by strengthening NATO and improving dairy market access."

Commenting on the upcoming visit, NDP MP Nathan Cullen said Trudeau "has to speak truth to power." Instead of upholding a single principle which might recommend him to Canadians, he pushed pragmatic nonsense. "Simply lying down and hoping that he doesn't notice us is not the strategy to use with Mr. Trump. We've seen people try to placate him in the past -- other Republicans, Democrats -- it doesn't work," Cullen said. Conservative MP Gerry Ritz, whose fame resides in destroying the Canadian Wheat Board under Harper, took the opportunity to disagree. Trudeau should not go "overboard. ... At the end of the day, that's our major trading partner. We have to work with them on a day-by-day, hour-by-hour business," Ritz said.

A Toronto Star commentary by Chantal Hébert adds her two bits to the fray: "Notwithstanding some hyped-up headlines, Canada's international partners are not looking for the leader of a middle power such as Trudeau to lead an international counteroffensive against Trump. They would be just as happy -- if not more -- to see their Canadian counterpart emerge as a moderating influence on the president," says Hébert.

An article in iPolitics by Stephen Maher says that Trudeau cannot denounce Trump's executive order banning citizens of seven Middle Eastern and North African countries from entering the U.S., "But neither can he take the approach of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who during his news conference with Trump on Friday [February 10] completely dodged the question, blandly referring to it as a domestic matter." All these journalists like to hear themselves spout nonsense. Stephen Maher inappropriately uses the word "bland" to describe calling this ban as a "domestic matter," but he does not offer any principled position either.

Andrew Coyne of the National Post also adds his two cents, saying, "I'd prefer that my prime minister spoke up for what is right, even at some cost to Canada's economic interests -- just as one would hope he would with respect to China, or Russia, or any world power. That doesn't require that he be needlessly provocative. ... To defend our interests, as much as our values, we will have to start setting boundaries early -- picking our battles, yes, but firmly and patiently asserting our rights. And if we are to do so effectively, we will need to do so in concert with other countries."

It was left to Bruce Heyman, former U.S. ambassador to Canada, to give perspective to what is going on. "I wouldn't worry about the dangers. I think it's an opportunity. Once there's this understanding that we protect North America together, through NORAD and NATO ... this is readily apparent: that the Canadian relationship is one of the -- if not the most -- important relationship the U.S. has in the world."

Conrad Black told CTV News that he thinks Trudeau should express openness to doubling Canadian defence spending to two per cent of GDP, in line with what the U.S. asks of NATO members. "If Justin can say something to the effect that we'll move in that direction over the next couple of years, that will be a real plus point. And incidentally, they are both very charming, personable people. They'll get on like smoke, I think," Black said.

Adam Radwanski of the Globe and Mail said that the "best-case scenario, from Ottawa's perspective, has to be as uneventful a Monday as possible."

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