Canadian Crossing

Has there ever been a Canadian in a U.S. presidential cabinet?

I thought earlier this week we just might get a Canadian in the cabinet of President-elect Barack Obama. Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm, Canadian by birth, was rumored to be a serious contender for the Secretary of Labor position.

Michigan is a big union state, the auto workers being one large example. And Granholm, who is term-limited and can't run for re-election in 2010, might certainly be looking for a new job. Ultimately, the job will go to Rep. Hilda Solis (D-CA).

Then I wondered whether there had ever been someone Canadian-born in a presidential cabinet. Turns out, there was one.

Franklin Knight Lane served as the Secretary of the Interior under Woodrow Wilson from 1913-1920. Lane was born in DeSable, Prince Edward Island, and moved to California when he was 6 or 7 (depending on the source you find).

You have to be natural-born to be president or vice president, but your birthplace doesn't affect a Cabinet post. Though because the presidential succession does involve Cabinet members, those who are not natural-born are skipped over. Those Cabinet members are also not ones who sit out during the State of the Union. Traditionally, one Cabinet member sits out the State of the Union in case something tragic occurs so that person can become president.

It's not entirely common to have foreign-born members in the Cabinet, though Elaine Chao (Taiwan, Labor) and Carlos Gutierrez (Cuba, Commerce) are current Cabinet members. Madeline Albright (State, Czechoslovakia) served in Bill Clinton's Cabinet.

Canada's path a lot smoother to helping auto companies

The governments of Canada and Ontario will also help out the auto companies. Combined, General Motors will get $3 billion (Canadian) while Chrysler is set to get $1 billion. This comes after the U.S. government agreed to help the two companies.

There are restrictions on executive compensation and must also report "material transactions in excess of $125 million or more."

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper says the aid package is "not a blank check" and the money is supposed to be used to renew the industry.

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty says the province contributed 1/3 of the total commitment.  conference.

The drama that came in the U.S. government, particularly from southern U.S. GOP Senators who have foreign car plants in their states, was missing from the Canadian process. There was concern over bailing out private companies in Canada, and the Conservative government didn't seem particularly keen.

But no one actually thought Canada would say no in the way that the Republican U.S. Senators defeated a separate package. The U.S. ultimately took the funds from the original $700 billion (U.S.) bailout for banks and financial institutions.

Also, the pay rate for the Canadian workers wasn't an issue, unlike the pay rate for U.S. workers.

Learning more about new Liberal Party leader Michael Igantieff

Who is Michael Ignatieff and why is he the new Liberal Party leader? Someone had to replace Stephane Dion, and the Liberals sped up their search, given the prorogue of Parliament.

The finalists for the spring battle were Ignatieff, Bob Rae, and Dominic LeBlanc. But once LeBlanc threw his support behind Ignatieff, the battle, for now, was won.

But Ignatieff is a controversial figure, often by Liberals. He was in favor of the Iraq War in 2003 (where Canadians did not send troops), though he changed his mind in 2007.

Igantieff has spent very little time in Canada before coming back in 2005. Except for a two-year history professor stint at the University of British Columbia, Ignatieff lived outside of Canada from the late 1960s until he returned for the 2005 election. By contrast, the United States requires a president to have lived fourteen years a resident within the United States.

He angers a lot of people for his arrogance, but he has shown leadership skills. The question is whether Canadian voters will find him less revolting than PM Stephen Harper.

The other major question is whether Igantieff will keep the coalition that had threatened to defeat Harper in a no-confidence vote. These and other questions may be answered between now and January 26, when Parliament returns to session.

Wikipedia entry for Michael Ignatieff

CTV article on Who is Michael Igantieff

The Daily Show take on PM Harper's request to prorogue Parliament

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Provinces in Peril - Indecision Oh-Eh?

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, along with the Colbert Report, likes to take on Canadian politics when the mood strikes. Needless to say, they couldn't pass up the antics from last week.

The above video is the crux of the Daily Show take on PM Harper's request to prorogue Parliament.

The Daily Show and the Colbert Report air Monday-Thursday nights on the Comedy Channel and CTV in Canada.

Miami wins first NFL game in Canada

On the field, the Miami Dolphins downed the "home" Buffalo Bills 16-3 at Toronto's Rogers Centre. But off the field and in the stands, it was a first. Yes, there have been pre-season games in Canada, with 4 of the last 5 of them in Toronto.

But this was the first regular-season matchup on Canadian soil. The NFL has ventured into Mexico and England for regular-season matches, but this was the first north of the border. Unlike the other matchups, this is part of the Buffalo Bills 8-game plan to play in Rogers Centre (formerly known as SkyDome): 5 regular-season games and 3 pre-season games.

The crowd wasn't a sellout (did draw 52,134), mostly because the tickets were priced too high to recoup the money spent on getting the games to Canada. And there were some issues with not being able to do much tailgating. There isn't much room around the Rogers Centre downtown to set that up. But otherwise, the NFL was on display. 

Bills games have generally drawn Canadians to come down for football. But we are still waiting to see how many Bills fans came from Buffalo. There has been speculation of relocating the Bills, despite their excellent fan base. And Toronto is the only realistic city in Canada to host the NFL. Make no mistake, the NFL is popular in Canada. Canadians get games piped in on CTV and Rogers SportsNet coast-to-coast, but also pick up local CBS and FOX stations from the States. So those in Vancouver can see the Seattle Seahawks, Windsor watches the Detroit Lions, and Toronto gets the Buffalo Bills. TSN carries the Sunday Night and Monday Night packages.

The fans, used to seeing much more scoring in CFL games, only saw one touchdown (Miami) and only 3 points combined in the second half. One funny note: former Argonauts running back Ricky Williams made his return to the Rogers Centre. Williams had 11 carries for 40 yards, including a 22-yard run.

They played this year's game after the CFL season ended. Next year, they could play during the CFL season. The only issue is that Rogers Centre is also home to MLB's Toronto Blue Jays.

* NFL exhibition game results from Canada

A (brief) summary over the current insanity of Canada's government

Governor General Michaëlle Jean suspended Parliament until January 26. Why?

Boy, a lot has happened since the last federal election on October 14. The economy has a bit to do with this, but also the handling of all these issues by Prime Minister Stephen Harper. To reach the point where the Liberals (without a permanent leader), the New Democratic Party, and the separatist Bloc Quebecois have agreed to a no confidence vote, you must have screwed up big time.

The suspension means Harper has a chance to improve the situation. The analogy I've drawn is that Harper ran to tell the teacher (Jean) and she did something. But Harper has to go back on the playground at some point.

For a more detailed analysis, check out this essay I had to do for my day job. Enjoy!!