O, Canada
To: Ms. Beth Richardson
Consul General of Canada
701 Fourth Ave. S.
Suite 900
Minneapolis, MN 55415
Dear Consul General Richardson:
The current administration has been attacking Canada, but we are writing to thank you for being our great neighbor. Canadians are our loyal allies, great business partners, frequently in-laws, and all-around good people to have next door. Our great poet Robert Frost once wrote that “good fences make good neighbors.” We don’t need fences, and our shared and undefended border is 5,525 miles long, touching 13 U.S. states and eight Canadian provinces and territories. According to Canadian government statistics, over 30 million vehicles cross this border every year. It is not uncommon to find people in St. Paul who have driven from Winnipeg to watch a Jets-Wild hockey game; the reverse is also true in Winnipeg. The Winnipeg Jets, by the way, are owned by a company owned in turn by David Thomson, the board chair of Thomson Reuters, Inc., a major employer in Minnesota.
Our business connections and all that cross-border travel are much greater than hockey.
According to government statistics in 2023, total trade between the two countries was nearly $800 billion; 75 percent of Canadians’ exports go to the U.S. Canada is the largest foreign supplier of energy to the United States and provides over 50 percent of U.S. crude oil imports (particularly to Upper Midwest states like Minnesota) and nearly all U.S. natural gas imports. We export billions of dollars of our agricultural products to Canada, including dairy products, vegetables, and poultry. Canada-U.S. trade is a pillar of the U.S. economy, with some 34 U.S. states selling more goods to Canada than to any other foreign country. Analysis of trade statistics by Toronto-Dominion Bank shows that the U.S. is a net exporter to Canada of manufacturing goods (particularly motor vehicles and parts), and to the extent that there is a “trade deficit” with Canada, it is not in manufacturing but instead is the result of U.S. reliance on Canadian energy sources. Ontario, for example, is a major exporter of electric power to Minnesota. Thank you.
Analyzing the impact of our integrated North American automobile manufacturing sector, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative found in 2023 that this trade supported 9.7 million U.S. jobs.
The Wall Street Journal editorial board is not noted for left-wing or even liberal opinions, but after reviewing the great benefits that America gets from its business with Canada (and Mexico), it recently summed up the wisdom of tariffs as “the dumbest trade war in history.”
Most of us who read this column have had direct business dealings with Canadians, and those dealings sometimes stand in stark contrast to other arrangements. In response to the riddle “Why did the Canadian cross the road?” the answer is “to get to the middle.” Speaking from 25 years of personal experience, Canadian businesspeople get to the middle in a fair, ethical, and friendly fashion. One could not ask for better partners. Thank you again.
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In a troubled world, one needs loyal neighbors, and that is certainly Canada. After Pearl Harbor, Canada declared war on Japan before the United States did. Airline passengers stranded on 9/11 were invited to land at Gander International Airport in Canada, which hosted over 6,700 stranded passengers, many of whom were Americans. Canada has been our loyal military ally, from Canadian troops assaulting Juno Beach during D-Day to joint defense through the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and the Five Eyes alliance. Canada has been with us every step of the way (with the justifiable exception of the Vietnam War). Neighbors you can rely on—thank you.
Like so many people reading this column, Canadians make great in-laws. Thank you again. Some of our readers are old enough to have followed serials on radio and television, and one of the most popular was Sergeant Preston of the North with his wonder dog, Yukon King! University of Minnesota students of a certain age used to hang out at their favorite watering hole on the West Bank—Sgt. Preston’s. These are small examples of our shared cultural touchpoints. There are many others: hockey, for example, and plaid lumberjack shirts (remember Rudy Boschwitz?). We all indeed live in the same neighborhood, and you contribute to that. Thank you.
One final thought. St. Paulites used to ruefully admit that Minneapolis had one thing St. Paul lacked: a beautiful city across the river. Hopefully, we will not be forced to admit the U.S. has something that Canada lacks: a loyal neighbor across the border.
Sincerely yours,
Vance K. Opperman
Standing on guard for thee
