Canadians come to Clinton's defense

Posted By P.J. Aroon Tuesday, April 6, 2010 - 2:52 PM

After Canadians sounded off against Secretary Clinton this weekend, some have now come to her defense. Under the headline, "Hillary Clinton's 'fighting words' a plea to talk," the Toronto Star's deputy editorial page editor writes:

What was she thinking? And who does she think she is?

Forget the fulminations: at least Hillary Clinton knows her own mind. Canada, by contrast, doesn't quite know what to think about Afghanistan anymore. And doesn't want to talk about it.

… 

Clinton's real motive was to go over the heads of [Prime Minister Stephen] Harper and [Foreign Minister Lawrence] Cannon to the Canadian people -- and get us talking about Afghanistan again. These weren't fighting words, nor even a finger-wagging lecture. This was a plea for straight talk between friends -- and among Canadians.

Another Canadian criticizes an April 2 political cartoon in Montreal's Gazette that accuses Clinton of being "pushy." The letter writer points out: "I hardly think a male politician would be demonized for being 'pushy' when he aggressively pursues an agenda he believes in."

Clinton is a gutsy tough-talker; she says what needs to be said.

ROGERIO BARBOSA/AFP/Getty Images

SHARE: MoreCOMMENTS (2)
EXPLORE:NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, HILLARY, MEDIA

Canadians sound off against Clinton

Posted By P.J. Aroon Monday, April 5, 2010 - 4:18 PM

Canadians sounded off against Clinton this weekend after she irked them about three issues during her visit last week: 1) urging Canada to include abortion in its global-health plan to improve maternal mortality, 2) appealing on TV for Canadian troops to stay in Afghanistan after their planned 2011 withdrawal date, and 3) criticizing Canada's failure to invite indigenous groups and some Scandinavian countries to a meeting about the future of the Arctic.

The Toronto Star, for example, ran a series of angry letters to the editor under the headline "Hillary reprises 'Ugly American' at G8 summit," and a letter in the National Post accused Clinton of hypocrisy on the issue of government funding of abortion overseas.

Well, Clinton at least appears to enjoy Canada's maple-syrup toffee, which she savored with Britain's Foreign Secretary David Miliband on March 30 in  Gatineau, Quebec, as shown below. (In the photo above, Clinton and Miliband are thoughtful listeners during a March 30 news conference of G-8 foreign ministers at the Château Cartier.)

TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images

Top to bottom: ROGERIO BARBOSA/AFP/Getty Images, TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images

SHARE: MoreCOMMENTS (1)
EXPLORE:CANADA, HILLARY

Clinton irks Canadians, not once, not twice, but three times

Posted By P.J. Aroon Wednesday, March 31, 2010 - 4:02 PM

The United States and Canada may be good friends, but that didn't keep Secretary Clinton from getting tough and ruffling feathers there during her two-day visit this week. Three things have irked many Canadians:

•Clinton's criticism that Canada didn't invite indigenous groups and some Scandinavian countries to a meeting on the future of the Arctic.

•Clinton's public appeal on Canadian TV for Canada to stay in Afghanistan past its planned 2011 withdrawal date.

•Clinton's urging that Canada's initiative on global maternal health include contraceptives and abortion, the latter of which Prime Minister Stephen Harper (seen above) wants to leave out.

It takes a lot of guts to stand up for your beliefs and be critical of a friend.

Pool/Getty Images

SHARE: MoreCOMMENTS (0)
EXPLORE:AFGHANISTAN, CANADA, HEALTH, HILLARY, PUBLIC HEALTH, WOMEN

Clinton drinks maple syrup

Posted By P.J. Aroon Tuesday, March 30, 2010 - 10:22 PM

Secretary Clinton appears to engage in a maple-syrup-related activity with other foreign ministers during a G-8 foreign ministers gathering in Gatineau, Canada, today.

U.S. State Department/Flickr

SHARE: MoreCOMMENTS (0)
EXPLORE:CANADA, FUN STUFF, HILLARY, PHOTOGRAPHS

Clinton on Haiti: 'We have a plan'

Posted By P.J. Aroon Tuesday, January 26, 2010 - 3:47 PM

Here are a couple of quick links about how Secretary Clinton's meeting about Haiti earthquake relief went yesterday in Montreal:

•"Clinton Says Plan for Haiti Exists" (Washington Times). A couple of excerpts:

The Obama administration wants to use a plan for rebuilding Haiti it had before this month's earthquake, rather than "start from scratch," Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Monday as top diplomats from around the world gathered to map out the country's recovery.

and

"So we have a plan," she said. "It was a legitimate plan, it was done in conjunction with other international donors, with the United Nations. And I don't want to start from scratch, but we have to recognize the changed challenges we are now confronting."

•"Haiti: 10 Years and $10 Billion in Aid?" (Toronto Star). An excerpt:

Clinton called it "novel" to do a needs assessment first, followed by planning, then the pledging of cash.

"It might seem different from what you're used to," Clinton said, "where people come together and make all kinds of promises, many of which never get realized because the follow-up work is never done."

 

ROGERIO BARBOSA/AFP/Getty Images

SHARE: MoreCOMMENTS (0)
EXPLORE:LATIN AMERICA, CANADA, DISASTERS, FOREIGN AID, HILLARY

Clinton in Canada for Haiti Meeting

Posted By P.J. Aroon Monday, January 25, 2010 - 10:24 PM

Secretary Clinton is in Montreal today for a preliminary meeting about earthquake relief in Haiti. The meeting is expected to lead to a larger donors conference in the next 30 to 60 days. Clinton's remarks about the meeting and relief efforts in Haiti, made while she was en route to Canda earlier today, are here. (Above, Clinton on Jan. 20 gives an update on the Haiti situation and announces she's going to Montreal for a meeting on providing relief.)

Here at FP, five experts weigh in on how best to help devastated Port-au-Prince. And, photos on our site show the devastation.

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

SHARE: MoreCOMMENTS (0)
EXPLORE:LATIN AMERICA, NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, DISASTERS, HILLARY

Hillary Clinton headed to Niagara Falls

Posted By P.J. Aroon Friday, June 12, 2009 - 8:35 PM

Niagara Falls, Oct. 8, 2006 

Secretary Clinton will be spending Saturday at beautiful Niagara Falls. During her visit to Canada, her first as secretary of state, she will attend a ceremony to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Canada-U.S. Boundary Waters Treaty.

More importantly, though, she'll be discussing trade protectionism. Many Canadians are concerned that the Buy American restrictions in the U.S. stimulus law are hurting their businesses.

Photo: DON EMMERT/AFP/Getty Images

SHARE: MoreCOMMENTS (1)
EXPLORE:NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, HILLARY, TRADE

Madam Secretary is an obsessive blog about all things Hillary Clinton. From her policies to her pantsuits, Madam Secretary delivers up-to-the-minute news, analysis, and gossip about America's top diplomat.