President Bush's "reaching out" visit to Canada is getting a chilly reception from our neighbors in the Great White North. Protesters holding signs simply stating "please leave" bring back memories of the Chretien cabinet minister who called Bush "a moron."
It wasn't always this way. Before the current sad state of affairs, then candidate Bush received the endorsement of a Canadian prime minister. Unfortunately for Bush, this prime minister, like so much of what passes for truth in the Bush administration, was simply made up.
So let's turn back the clock to March 2000, when George W. Bush received the ringing endorsement of Canadian Prime Minister Jean Poutine:
"Prime Minister Jean Poutine said he wouldn't endorse any candidate in this election, now he says he believes George W. Bush is the man to lead the free world into the 21st century."
Bush warmly accepted his endorsement:
"He understands I want to make sure our relationship with our most important neighbour to the north of us is strong and we'll work closely together."
There were a few problems, of course. The prime minister of Canada was Jean Chretien, not Jean Poutine. "Poutine" is a popular regional food of Quebec, a dish of french fries, gravy and cheese curds. Bush, simply too ignorant regarding our neighbor to the north, fell hook, line and sinker for a prank by This Hour Has 22 Minutes star Rick Mercer.
Who could forget this episode? The American media, for one. But not, it appears, the Canadian people.