Ottawa Wary of More U.S. Protectionism

(Jeremy Torobin — Globe & Mail)

Industry Minister Tony Clement says government is concerned Obama’s new jobs bill may bring about measures similar to Buy American legislation

The Canadian government is concerned the new jobs bill that President Barack Obama has asked Congress for may be used by U.S. lawmakers to push through more protectionist measures similar to the hated Buy American legislation.

“Whenever anything goes to Congress there is always the threat of new protectionist measures,” Industry Minister Tony Clement told reporters in Ottawa. “We’re going to have to continue to work, because we know that Congress is a place where things can pop up at the last moment and be tacked onto pieces of legislation.”

While the minister offered no concrete update on Canadian efforts to be granted an exemption from the Buy American provisions in last year’s stimulus bill, he said negotiations are ongoing and said he is “quite hopeful” they’ll yield a positive result. Read more here.