Doer clears final hurdle

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Manitoba’s former premier, Gary Doer, with the Capitol Building in the background, cleared his final hurdle as Canadian ambassador to the U.S. on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON -- Canadian Ambassador Gary Doer passed his final hurdle of diplomatic initiation Wednesday when he presented his credentials to President Barack Obama at the White House.

Doer, 61, has already been in Washington for more than two weeks and his credentials were accepted by the State Department Oct. 23. But the official acceptance of his credentials by the president was the big photo-op moment that finally sealed the diplomatic deal.

"It is with great pleasure I accept your letter of credence which establishes you as ambassador," Obama said in his official reply.

Doer received a written copy of Obama's remarks to keep.

"It was a very great honour," said Doer of the meeting.

Until Oct. 18, Doer was the premier of Manitoba, a position he held for 10 years.

His wife, Ginny Devine, and his daughters, Emily, 19, and Kate, 15, were with him to meet Obama. They were picked up at the Canadian Embassy by a White House protocol officer and driven in Lincoln Town Car limousines to the meeting. The car Doer rode in was decorated with a U.S. and Canadian flag.

The meeting was brief -- about five minutes in total in the Oval Office -- however, Doer managed to chat with the president about family and also raise once more Canada's concerns about the Buy American provisions of the U.S. economic stimulus package. The provisions prevent Canadian companies from competing for contracts to provide materials or manpower for any projects funded under the package. Canada fears this is a detrimental trade barrier that could harm companies that do business in both countries and affect Canadian jobs.

"He seems to have heard this issue of Buy America from our prime minister over and over and over again," said Doer. "But within the protocol, it was again useful to mention it."

Doer said it was a short conversation but a useful one. He added the problem will not be resolved just by pestering Obama but by also working with workers in the United States who are affected by it, and getting them to help lobby their local Congress representatives to give Canada an exemption from Buy American.

He said Obama was more interested in talking about their kids than trade.

"He was more interested in my daughters as a president and father of two other daughters," said Doer. "(My daughters) were ambassadors today too."

So much so, that when they were chatting about Canada and Obama's visits there, Doer's older daughter, Emily, threw out an invite to come to Manitoba.

"My daughters thought their daughters should visit the polar bears in Churchill," said Doer.

Doer -- who insisted it was Emily's idea not his own -- has developed a reputation for bringing U.S. politicians to Churchill. In recent years he has taken both former U.S. ambassador to Canada David Wilkins and then New Mexico Gov. Janet Napolitano, to the northern Manitoba town.

Napolitano is now Obama's secretary of homeland security and her previous friendship with Doer has been cited as a plus for him in his dealings with the U.S. government on border issues.

Obama's daughters are Sasha, 8, and Malia, 11.

Doer's daughters were both excited about meeting the president and left with a couple of mementos including White House cocktail napkins and some treasured boxes of Obama-endorsed M&Ms. The candies -- reportedly one of Obama's favourite snacks -- include the White House official seal and Obama's signature on the box.

mia.rabson@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition November 5, 2009 A4