Canadian political turmoil over, Harper secure, U.S. ambassador says

The outgoing U.S. ambassador to Canada, David Wilkins, says this country's political turmoil has probably ended and Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper will remain in office for the near future at least.

In an interview with the Associated Press this week before he leaves his post on Jan. 20, Wilkins said the United States took no position on the political infighting in Ottawa, and it was important for U.S. presidents and Canadian prime ministers to have a close relationship, no matter what their political affiliations.

However, he said Gov. Gen. Michaëlle Jean probably did the right thing by agreeing to prorogue Parliament earlier this month rather than permitting an opposition-scheduled vote of no-confidence that would almost certainly have defeated Harper.

"You could certainly make an argument that had she done differently … and gone to the opposition, that would have been less democratic, because that's the same party and group that had just been defeated in an election," Wilkins said, "Her decision was consistent with what the voters had said eight weeks earlier."

Last Updated: Wednesday, December 24, 2008 | 10:14 AM ET
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/12/24/wilkins-byebye.html

Sounds very familiar.

What a wonderful endorsement.

Another POS gone when Obama takes the oath of office and I CAN'T wait!