j.m@talk
03-11-2005, 05:06 PM
OTTAWA (Reuters) - A Canadian member of Parliament charged with improving ties with the United States apologized on Thursday for saying "let's embarrass the hell out of the Americans in front of other countries."
The gaffe by Marlene Jennings came exactly two weeks after Canada's Liberal government irritated Washington by refusing to join the U.S. missile defense system.
Jennings -- the parliamentary secretary for Canada-U.S. relations -- reports directly to Prime Minister Paul Martin, who came to power in December 2003 saying he wanted better relations with Washington.
"I would apologize to the members in this House that my comments were a little bit exaggerated. I apologize," she told the House of Commons elected chamber of Parliament.
Jennings, who is herself half-American, accused the United States on Tuesday of refusing to adhere to trade treaties it had signed with Canada. One way to strike back, she suggested, was to shame Washington internationally.
"Let's embarrass the hell out of the Americans in front of other countries that they are attempting to negotiate with on new binational trade agreements ... let's just do it on the public scene," she told a parliamentary committee.
The opposition Conservative party, which says the Liberals have a history of needlessly antagonizing Washington, demanded that Martin fire Jennings for making her remarks at a time when the United States is blocking imports of live Canadian cattle.
"The Liberals have once again shown their anti-American bias ... This strategy is like poking someone in the eye and then asking them for a favor," Conservative legislator Diane Finley told Parliament.
Last November Martin kicked MP Carolyn Parrish out of the Liberal caucus after she stomped on a George Bush doll on a satirical TV show.
http://today.reuters.com/images/reuters.gif
The gaffe by Marlene Jennings came exactly two weeks after Canada's Liberal government irritated Washington by refusing to join the U.S. missile defense system.
Jennings -- the parliamentary secretary for Canada-U.S. relations -- reports directly to Prime Minister Paul Martin, who came to power in December 2003 saying he wanted better relations with Washington.
"I would apologize to the members in this House that my comments were a little bit exaggerated. I apologize," she told the House of Commons elected chamber of Parliament.
Jennings, who is herself half-American, accused the United States on Tuesday of refusing to adhere to trade treaties it had signed with Canada. One way to strike back, she suggested, was to shame Washington internationally.
"Let's embarrass the hell out of the Americans in front of other countries that they are attempting to negotiate with on new binational trade agreements ... let's just do it on the public scene," she told a parliamentary committee.
The opposition Conservative party, which says the Liberals have a history of needlessly antagonizing Washington, demanded that Martin fire Jennings for making her remarks at a time when the United States is blocking imports of live Canadian cattle.
"The Liberals have once again shown their anti-American bias ... This strategy is like poking someone in the eye and then asking them for a favor," Conservative legislator Diane Finley told Parliament.
Last November Martin kicked MP Carolyn Parrish out of the Liberal caucus after she stomped on a George Bush doll on a satirical TV show.
http://today.reuters.com/images/reuters.gif