Thursday, October 16, 2008

A Letter to Barack Obama

Today I sent this letter to the Obama campaign. If you are a US based reader of this blog please do what you can to spread it around. I'm not kidding here.


Dear Senator Obama,

I write to you as a native born citizen of Canada and as the son of a native born US father.

I know I'm a little premature here as you have 19 more days to go before November 4th but I wanted to get this off to you now to let it percolate for a while before other matters take over. I also know you're very busy and I wouldn't write if I didn't believe what I have to say could be important to you down the road.

Our Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, recently called a snap election in direct contravention of the spirit of his own fixed election date law. A law that he himself touted as a way to stop the PM of the day calling snap elections of convenience.

Harper has now been returned to office. Once more with a minority government although a slightly stronger one.

I probably don't need to remind you that the government of Stephen Harper attempted to intervene in US politics during your historic primary struggle with Hillary Clinton.

What you may not know about our Prime Minister is that he is very close to many of your political opponents and that the attempted interference is perfectly in character.

Since the day he first took office in 2006 he has mirrored many of the actions of the Bush administration, at least as far as he is able up here in our Parliamentary system. One of the first things he did was decree that there would be no more photographs or film of the coffins of dead Canadian soldiers returning from Afghanistan. He immediately began demonizing anyone who didn't agree with him, even going so far as to use the word traitor.

He has been touted and praised as a Canadian hero to the American conservative movement which he has called "…a light and an inspiration to people in this country and across the world."
(Taken from a speech he made before the Council for National Policy in 1997. A preserved copy of the speech can be found here. It has been removed from the CNP website.) He has deep and long lasting ties to the AEI, CEI and many of the signatories of PNAC. He has brought Frank Luntz to Canada to run seminars on how to drive wedges.

He is not and will not be your friend. He and members of his government should be considered as potential threats to your Presidency, should you go on to become President.

Were I in your shoes, which blessedly I am not, I would be very wary about what information I shared with the Canadian government of Stephen Harper especially if that information might have domestic American political ramifications. Any or all of it could be turned over to your political opponents in the US.


I would also suggest quietly requesting a change of Canada's ambassador in Washington, DC. Perhaps even going so far as to also request a change in the ambassador's senior staff. And then I would very carefully examine the history and credentials of anyone whose name is put forward by the Harper government.

Congratulations on what appears to be your pending victory. I will celebrate as though you were my own.

Keep well, keep safe and may God bless you and yours.

No comments: