The House: How irreparable are relations between Canada and the U.S.?
A U.S. governor fears recent blows to the relationship between Canada and the U.S. could leave scars that will take a long time to heal.
Vermont Governor Phil Scott is preparing to host a meeting with his New England colleagues and the five premiers from eastern Canada on Sunday.
With tensions building about the state of the ongoing NAFTA negotiations and the U.S. administration's failure to back Canada in its dispute with Saudi Arabia, Scott said the two countries are on shaky ground.
"We just need to treat each other with respect and civility," he told The House.
"I do believe it's missing on a national basis, an international basis."
NAFTA talks are expected to resume in the coming weeks after the pause button was hit. There are still difficult chapters of the agreement to close, include content rules for vehicles and the U.S. proposition of a sunset clause that would see the deal expire after a set period of time.
The rhetoric from President Donald Trump has mimicked a rollercoaster, at times calling Canada a great friend and other times criticizing its "weak" leadership.
There has historically been a great deal of trust between the two nations, Scott said, but "it takes very little time to dismember that."
He and other governors have taken that message to the White House, though it doesn't appear to have swayed President Donald Trump from sticking to his tactics.
"I believe that we're stronger together," Scott said.
"I haven't been shy about that."
Advice to Canada on Saudi Arabia: stand firm
Canada should stick to their position as the diplomatic dispute with Saudi Arabia picks up momentum, according to a Middle East expert who has advised the Pentagon.
"I would stand firm," Bruce Riedel, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, told The House.
"I don't think Canada is to be blamed for this."
Recent tweets from Canada condemning Saudi Arabia for jailing an activist infuriated the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia expelled the Canada's ambassador, put a freeze on "all new trade and investment transactions" between the two countries, suspended all Saudi Arabian Airlines flights to and from Toronto and ordered Saudi students home.
Later in the week, a Saudi minister added that oil shipments wouldn't be affected, as the kingdom has a "firm and long-standing policy" that petroleum supplies are not influenced by political considerations.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signalled that his government will continue to use Twitter and social media as a means of conducting foreign relations.
No countries have leapt to Canada's defence in the spat, while several countries have spoken out in support of the kingdom.
Riedel called the response from the international community "outrageous," but concluded it wasn't surprising.
Saudi Arabia has taken similar action in the past against Germany and Sweden after similar comments from their foreign ministers.
"I think Saudi Arabia is trying to use Canada to make an example," Ridel added.
He urged Canadian leaders not to change their tactics, but instead to reach out to their allies — like the EU and U.S. — for support.
"You might want to remind them that there will be times in the future when the United States wants Canada's help."
AFN's bid for more economic inclusion could include pipelines
When it comes to the future of the Trans Mountain pipeline, the Assembly of First Nations' national chief says it's time for the government to include Canada's Indigenous population as they push more natural resources to international markets.
The organization, which represents chiefs from more than 600 First Nations, recently announced they would take part in the British Columbia government's court challenge against the pipeline expansion project.
When asked about the motivation to participate, National Chief Perry Bellegarde said they felt the need to protect their own interests as provincial and federal government feud over who has authority over the flow of oil through B.C.
The provincial government is asking for a ruling on whether they have the jurisdiction to regulate companies that ship bitumen and whether restrictions can be placed on those companies.
After a dispute that lasted months, culminating with an ultimatum from the company, Ottawa announced in May that the federal government would be buying the pipeline from Kinder Morgan for $4.5 billion.
From cases in court to meetings in cabinet, Bellegarde said it's time for First Nations to get involved to assert the right to self-determination.
"Wherever our rights are going to be talked about ... we need to be there to make sure that our rights and titles are respected and honoured and implemented," he told The House.
"Include us sooner than later and you're going to find that economic reconciliation, that economic balance."
He wouldn't say whether he was in favour of the pipeline expansion, based on its economic value.
But boosting the economic profile of First Nations in Canada is only part of the work Bellegarde is undertaking as he begins his second term as national chief.
Tackling housing, water quality and the high rate of Indigenous children in foster care are also top his agenda as he pushes a theme of moving beyond the Indian Act — the 150-year-old law which the federal government used to grant status and manage reserve lands and communal monies.
"When we have the same quality of life as everyone else in Canada, then it's done," Bellegarde said.
Wooing by brewing
From pop culture to patios to controversial government policies, alcohol — beer, especially — is a big part of Canada's identity. But what sort of influence does it have on our politics?
Ontario's experiment with controlling beer prices may be raising eyebrows across the country right now, but alcoholic beverages have always played an outsized role in Canadian public life.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford's buck-a-beer push — to lower the minimum price of a bottle or can of beer to $1 from $1.25 by Labour Day weekend — is just the sort of populist measure many expected from the province's newly-elected Progressive Conservative government. Ford's government is offering incentives — such as prime shelf space at LCBO outlets and free advertising — to brewing companies that manage to reach that target.
Not everyone is raising a glass to the idea. Several brewing companies across the province have expressed their dismay, saying there's no way to produce a quality product for only a dollar.
Booze has a long history of use in Canada as a political tool.
Back in the 1850s, John Carling and his brother took over the family brewery in London, Ont. Fearing a temperance movement would cripple his business, Carling decided to run for public office.
"On election day, he rolls out the liquid assets and puts a barrel of beer right beside the polling station," said Matthew Bellamy, a history professor at Carleton University. Carling subsequently won a seat in the pre-Confederation Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada.
But not all attempts to sway voters with booze went down smoothly. At the tail end of Prohibition and at the height of the Great Depression, Ontario Premier George Henry ran on a policy that would allow people to drink full-strength beer. Henry lost, but the man who beat him — Mitchell Hepburn — snagged the idea and implemented it.
Bellamy said that while politicians like Henry, Carling and Hepburn have tried to exploit the political power of alcohol, it has never really caught on as an electoral tactic here.
"Politicians didn't want to be associated with beer that much," Bellamy said. "The liquor question has divided us for most of our history."