Governors Endorse Freer Trade

(National Post-Canwest News Service)

Meet with premiers; Gathering hailed as ‘huge step forward’

Canadian politicians have long complained about the challenges of getting their voices heard in U.S. halls of power. But for seven Canadian premiers, there’s no longer any reason to complain.

Armed with arguments and statistics in favour of free trade, and employing a bit of Canuck charm, Canada’s provincial leaders got an enthusiastic welcome this weekend from U.S. state governors who generally endorsed calls for stronger cross-border ties and commerce.

By the end of the premiers’ first-ever meeting on Saturday with the National Governors Association, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell was singing a gravelly voiced rendition of O Canada. Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour proclaimed the Canada-U.S. relationship as “breathtaking” and unique to the world. Read more here.