How much evidence do we need to know, once and for all, that Canada has already agreed to joining Missile Defense. As an American friend of mine pointed out this issue is pure Canadiana. There is little or no debate going on in the US as to Canada involvement in the program. It goes ahead with or without Canada. The only way it becomes news is if PM Martin comes out forcefully against it and closes the door on it permanently. In which case the news networks might...might take the opportunity to beat up on President Bush as a unilateralist. More likely it sinks down the same news hole that has sucked up all the good news from Afghanistan and Iraq (I know there is bad news, I just asking for balance).
Here is what John Ivison opines in todays National Post:
The reasons why Martin would prefer his party believe the matter is unresolved are not hard to speculate upon. Senior Liberals have already told him that any decision should be delayed until the party’s rank and file can pronounce on the issue at its March policy convention. It has been suggested that he could even be punished in a leadership review were he to support the shield before Liberals have had their say. The Prime Minister had seemed to be edging toward support for the shield in the fall but his comparatively aggressive stance last month, when he said he did not think the system would work and that Canada would not put any money into its construction or allow rockets to be based here, suggests the government is acutely aware that it is in danger of alienating core supporters.
If only the core Liberal supporter could be alienated...
