Can the incoming Canadian Ambassador to the United States be this badly briefed or did he just let the cat out of the bag?
...McKenna, the former New Brunswick premier, said Canada is already effectively on board and he's not sure what else the U.S. wants.
The answer came almost immediately from an American official: "Outright political support."
Could it be that all the Americans want front Canada is an admission that we are already on board?
Asked directly by reporters if Canada is already part of the program, McKenna responded: "We are."
"We're part of it now and the question is what more do we need?"
McKenna backed his argument by citing last summer's deal that allows Norad, the joint Canada-U.S. air defence command, to monitor for incoming missiles - a critical element of the missile shield program's operation.
"There's no doubt, in looking back, that the Norad amendment has given, has created part - in fact a great deal - of what the United States means in terms of being able to get the input for defensive weaponry," said McKenna.
As for Bush demanding Canada sign on: "What does 'sign on' mean?" asked McKenna.
Yup. That's it. All President Bush wants is for an admission. Since it is not going to be forthcoming it will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Update: CTV has the video of Frank McKenna's comments here. It is good to seeMP Jack Layton back in the House of Commons as well.
Update II: CBC has some video up as well. Minister Graham does make a good point that President Bush wouldn't be pressing so hard if we were already on board. What's with the double speak though. It is not like Frank McKenna would not know what is going on.
