I think we can all agree that on measure, Harper’s prorogation of Parliament was vicious, cynical and anti-democratic. But maybe those who resolve to think more positively this year can find some comfort in what lousy laws fell off the order paper (and the private member’s bill that did not). In the first category are bills C-23 (the Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement), C-46 and C-47 (lawful access aka RCMP Internet snooping), and C-60 (Shiprider). Surviving prorogation is Liberal MP John McKay’s Bill C-300, An Act respecting Corporate Accountability for the Activities of Mining, Oil or Gas in Developing Countries, or “the best chance we have as Canadians to assure that Canadian extractive companies follow human rights and environmental best practices when they operate overseas,” according to MiningWatch Canada.

Tom d’Aquino, former head of the CCCE, shakes hands with Mexican President Calderón at the Montebello SPP leaders summit, August 20, 2007

Tom d’Aquino leaves his post as president of the Canadian Council of Chief Executives this year, replaced by former Liberal cabinet minister, and faithful continentalist, John Manley. In case you were wondering ‘What’s Next?’ for d’Aquino, the SPP architect (and co-author) is moving on, sort of. Here’s a letter he sent to friends this week about his future as an entrepreneur, lawyer (with Gowlings), corporate director and educator. Yes, d’Aquino will be teaching future civil servants at Carleton University’s Norman Patterson School of International Affairs (where he’s considered a bit of a prophet) and University of Western Ontario’s Richard Ivey School of Business.

Obama’s Trade Representative Ron Kirk informed U.S. Congress yesterday that the President “intends to enter into negotiations of a regional, Asia-Pacific trade agreement, known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement with the objective of shaping a high-standard, broad-based regional pact.” The first round of negotiations will happen in March. Considering Prime Minister Harper’s habit of changing travel plans to be with Obama (like he did in Copenhagen), and proroguing aside, we should expect Canada to be at the TPP table alongside founding members New Zealand, Chile, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam, as well as Australia, Peru, Vietnam, and potentially Japan, Korea and Mexico.

Public Safety Minister Peter Van Loan and U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano signing the "Shiprider" agreement in May 2009

On November 27, Public Safety Minister Peter Van Loan and Justice Minister Rob Nicholson tabled legislation that would transform designated U.S. police and security agents into peace officers equal to the RCMP “in every part of Canada” during joint maritime border operations. As if holding the RCMP accountable for its officers’ actions isn’t hard enough, nothing in the new legislation should make Canadians feel comfortable that any complaints against U.S. agents operating on Canadian territory will be dealt with swiftly or fairly.

Maude Barlow, national chairperson of the Council of Canadians, debates Tasha Kheiriddin, policy analyst with the Fraser Institute, on Canada’s “Buy American” proposal to the Obama administration. At this point, even manufacturers in Canada admit there is little chance of getting any access to U.S. federal stimulus projects. But the Harper government is pressing ahead with its proposal that could permanently bind Canada’s cities and provinces to international trade rules restricting how they spend public money and banning “Buy Local” or “Buy Canadian” policies here at home.

The Discover Canada new immigrant guide from CIC making ripples in the news today for its German-style dog whistle politics — pretending to get tough on female genital mutilation while sending a subsonic message to Canada’s anti-immigrant conservatives — also tries to educate hopeful new citizens about the virtues of free trade. Even if you believe that the World Trade Organization and free trade with the United States are almost entirely responsible for Canada’s prosperity, it’s hard to see how the level of detail in the following passage would help anyone understand news coverage of trade issues, as Rudyard Griffiths of the Dominion Institute (a co-writer of Discover Canada) suggested the document would do on CBC News today.

TRADE AND ECONOMIC GROWTH
Postwar Canada enjoyed record prosperity and material progress. The world’s restrictive trading policies in the Depression era were opened up by such treaties as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), now the World Trade Organization (WTO). In 1951, for the first time, a majority of Canadians were able to afford adequate food, shelter, and clothing. Between 1945 and 1970, as Canada drew closer to the United States and other trading partners, the country enjoyed one of the strongest economies among industrialized nations. Today, Canadians enjoy one of the world’s highest standards of living - maintained by the hard work of Canadians and by trade with other nations, in particular the United States.

Where’s the Welfare State in all of this?

According to Discover Canada, “As social values changed in the postwar economic boom, Canada became a more flexible and open society.” Canada’s boom just happened, without explanation, and before we knew it Canadian society (and its economy) became more flexible and “open”!

Another question: where’s the anti-globalization movement? Oh yeah, at the margins with the terrorists.

Over 200,000 people took to the streets of Mexico City yesterday in anger over President Calderon’s midnight occupation, on October 10, of the various sites of Central Light and Power (Luz y Fuerza del Centro), central Mexico’s state-run electricity company. Calderon used 6,000 police officers and militarized federal police to carry out the illegal and unconstitutional takeover, which resulted in over 40,000 workers losing their jobs.

A couple of weeks ago, commenting on a U.S. counter-offer to Canada’s still guarded procurement offer to the Obama administration, International Trade Minister Stockwell Day said the Americans accept the premise of a Buy American exemption for Canadian companies, but it was “a matter of what we do and how broadly we can get this put in place now” (italics mine). A new report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives decodes that statement, and finds that we, meaning the Harper government and provinces, are prepared to give away almost everything for almost nothing in return.

We thought we’d seen the end of the North American Competitiveness Council, but at least in Canada corporate advice on trilateral issues will still be sought by our Prime Minister, according to an interview with Tom d’Aquino for the Metropolitan Corporate Counsel. (Thanks to Jerome Corsi at World Net Daily for finding this one.) President Obama, on the other hand, will insist that the NACC, and future trilateral economic discussions more generally, add environmentalists and labour representatives to the mix — even as his sometimes erratic Trade Representative promises to take the NAFTA relationship down many of the same paths as the defunct Security and Prosperity Partnership.

The Harper government wants to give police and other security officers in Canada the right to snoop around your computer without getting a warrant. It’s totally unnecessary, designed more to convince U.S. and other international buddies that we’re serious about security in this country. But don’t take my word for it. Here’s Canada’s federal privacy commissioner in a letter to the Standing Commission on Public Safety this week:

“Though isolated anecdotes abound, and extreme incidents are generally referred to, no systematic case has yet been made that demonstrates a need to circumvent the current legal regime for judicial authorization to obtain personal information. Before all else, law enforcement and national security authorities need to explain how the current provisions on judicial warrants do not meet their needs.”