This was published in the Globe and Mail, the principal newspaper of Canada. The original is for subscribers only, with a paywall.
You can access it at https://globe2go.pressreader.com/article/281724095209527
This is the smart phone version of the newspaper.
Note the writer’s credentials
A Letter from Canada to Donald Trump.....
"Your plan to create ‘the United States of Canada’ is brilliant." By John Manley
[Deputy Canadian Prime Minister and Minister of Finance in PM Jean Chrétien’s government].
Dear Donald Trump,
My mentor and former boss, prime minister Jean Chrétien, has dismissed your suggestion that Canada and the U.S. merge.
Do
not despair. My point of view differs somewhat from his (sorry, Boss). I
think we may be able to make this work if Canadians fully understand
your proposal.
Imagine
what the “United States of Canada” could be. We would marry American
ingenuity and entrepreneurship to Canada’s natural resources, underdog
toughness and culture of self-effacing politeness to create a powerful,
world-dominating country.
Pointers for starters...
☆ We would be the largest land mass in the world.
☆ We would be self-reliant in every respect (food, energy, minerals, water).
☆ We would attract the world’s most talented people.
☆ We would truly be “the best country in the world,” to use Mr. Chrétien’s words.
☆ We would dominate international hockey competitions.
Your idea is truly brilliant.
As you know from your corporate experience, for any successful merger, the devil is in the details, but I have some suggestions.
(1).
Canada could never simply be the 51st state. You see Canada consists of
10 states (we call them “provinces”) and three territories.
Each of our provinces exists for historical reasons and citizens feel a deep loyalty to their province.
So we would need to be the 51st to 60th states. With two senators for each state, of course.
Therefore,
our 20 senators will no doubt bring fresh ideas to the institution that
will help make the United States of Canada truly great!
(2).
Some issues that cause division and frustration in your country are
considered settled by political parties of all stripes in Canada, so I
suggest adopting Canadian consensus in the interest of making this deal
work.
☆
For example, there is no argument in Canada over women’s reproductive
rights. There! That hot-button issue is resolved for you! (You can thank
me later.)
☆
All Canadian politicians support our single-payer health care system
because no one is refused treatment for their inability to pay and no
one goes broke because they suffer a catastrophic illness.
In
effect, all of our citizens have lifetime critical illness insurance
provided by the government. And while it’s expensive, our system costs
considerably less than yours, with 100 per cent of the population
covered!
Your citizens will love it, I promise.
☆
I would also observe that Canadians have long preferred to live with
many fewer firearms than are tolerated in the United States. The result
is a drastically lower rate of deaths and injuries caused by gun
violence in Canada. Our gun laws would make the country safer than it
is, and safer is definitely greater!
☆ We have some other innovations that you may wish to consider.
Our
Canada Pension Plan, equivalent to your Social Security, is fully
funded and actuarially sound. This requires higher contributions but it
pays off with solvency.
I believe your Social Security runs out of money in the near future. (That’s not great, is it?)
☆ Lower personal income taxes paid in the U.S. are a great attraction.
☆
But our programs to support both seniors and young families to reduce
the worst cases of poverty among them help make society more cohesive
and fair. That’s one of the reasons our taxes have been higher.
☆
Oh, and we must consider how we fund government expenses. We’re
struggling to bring our deficit back down, but it wasn’t that long ago
(2015) that our budget was effectively balanced.
In
fact, for more than a decade prior to the global financial crisis,
Canada ran surplus budgets. In addition to spending discipline, our
national value-added tax, the GST, was key. You definitely want to adopt
that! In fact, you will love it! (Canadians don’t love it, but their
governments do. And it beats borrowing money from the Chinese.)
There are many smaller details that I am sure we can work out.
☆
You will enjoy the simplicity of the metric system for weights and
measures, for example. Oh, but we’re not crazy, you can keep yards for
football! And you will love that sport even more when you play it on a
bigger field with only three downs.
I am so excited about this, Mr. Trump. You are truly a visionary leader to have come up with this idea.
I can already see the 60 little maple leaves on the flag with 13 stripes!
I
am ready to throw myself into this great project of making the United
States of Canada great again! (Oh, that’s too long. Let’s just call our
new country “Canada.”)
Respectfully, as I dislodge my tongue from my cheek,
John Manley
About the Author:
John
Paul Manley PC OC (born January 5, 1950) is a Canadian lawyer,
businessman, and politician who served as the eighth deputy prime
minister of Canada from 2002 to 2003. He served as Liberal Member of
Parliament for Ottawa South from 1988 to 2004. From January 2010 to
October 2018 he was president and CEO of the Business Council of Canada.
He is currently the chairman of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
(CIBC) and serves on the advisory board of the Leaders' Debates
Commission.