Reader Graeme sullies the discussion of the Obama NAFTA kerfuffle by presenting an actual informed opinion:
I’m Canadian, and was an intern in our country’s embassy in DC last summer. From what diplomats there told me, your politicians are ALWAYS telling us these things. Usually it was something to the effect that when they talked about border security, they were really just talking about Mexicans, but didn’t want to sound racist, or that whatever plans they had for trade, they had no plans to restrict trade from Canada, because it’s not controversial.
Sometimes these conversations are started by Canadian officials, after scary speeches by politicians about shutting down the borders or something. Since most of our trade is with you, we’re pretty vulnerable to any disruptions and heading off the potential for trouble is the main role of Canada’s diplomats in America. Ditto for border traffic restrictions, because most of our trade with you is dependent on land border crossings.
US protectionism is our number one fear and foreign policy priority, so they’re quick to investigate any scary noises.
So, Obama’s not alone, though I suppose that’s not exactly a comforting revelation, if it was a revelation. Those most prone to this are those from States that border Canada (eg. Illinois and New York), but most will do it, from what I’ve been told.
This is basically what I expected was going on; it’s not that the Obama campaign’s statements were unusual, they were just exceedingly inconvenient to have revealed in this way, since they contradict the senator’s public posturing. And the denials aren’t unusual either. No, I think we can safely say there is no change whatsoever between standard operating procedure and what the Obama campaign did here.
The Distant Ocean 
It must be a measure of my cynicism that I had to read the final paragraph three times to figure out what you were getting at.
(yes, yes….of course there’s no change. That’s what I was trying to say, Obama’s no different, there’s no change….waiiiit. Change….isn’t that a slogan or something.
….Oh.)
That’s kind of how it went.
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Or a measure of the speed with which I wrote the comment…it could have been a bit clearer. I cheated and improved it somewhat. Thanks for sharing your experience, by the way.
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I wonder what other meetings our two leading Dems are having. Is Hillary secretly meeting with the health-insurance industry, to reassure them that all this talk of “reform” is strictly for the rubes, and their profits are safe with her? Hardly seems necessary, does it? That because our corporate elites are in on the joke, and don’t need “reassurances.” I still wonder why the Canadians do. Maybe a phone call to the head of Kaiser-Permanente would help clear things up for them.
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