Thursday, August 09, 2007

"The President of Canada"

Barack Obama refers to the "president of Canada," the kind of misstep that would cost a Republican candidate for president dearly. 

Oh well, it's not as if a politician from Illinois would have reason to know anything about Canada. On second thought, here's this just in ...  

* 304,500 Illinois jobs are supported by Canada–U.S. trade

* Canadians made more than 383,000 visits to Illinois, spending $141 million
Illinois residents made 477,500 visits to Canada, spending $255 million
22% growth in Illinois-Canada trade

* Canada remained Illinois' main trading partner, receiving more goods than the state's next five foreign markets combined.

* Bilateral trade at $33.4 billion in 2005 grew by 22% over 2004. This expanding trade relationship was led by Illinois imports of $22 billion, half of which was in energy alone. Illinois' exports to Canada totaled $11 billion, led by the transportation and machinery sectors.

Or maybe the excuse is that Obama is only unbriefed and unready on the easy questions in foreign affairs? 

08/09 04:00 PM