The incoming Donald Trump administration and Republicans in Congress still see Canada as a friend and ally, but will continue to press Ottawa on addressing border security and defence spending, a prominent conservative advisor says.
Georganne Burke, who has worked in both U.S. and Canadian politics and supported Trump’s return to the White House, says those two issues in particular will be major sticking points in the Canada-U.S. relationship unless the Liberal government shows it’s willing to act in the ways Trump wants.
“The government has to get serious and understand that (Trump and Republicans) are not asking for anything crazy,” she told Mercedes Stephenson in an interview that aired Sunday on The West Block. “They’re simply saying, ‘Can you guys do what’s needed on the border and can you meet your defence requirements?’
“If I were advising our current government, I would say, ‘Take those things seriously, because if you don’t, there will be …