I have never been so proud to be a Canadian and to be so proud of my Prime Minister. PM Mark Carney nailed it when he told the nation August 22 why he instructed our representatives to leave the trade talks with the U.S. and return to Ottawa. He did so when the Trump Administration introduced late, unacceptable demands that threatened to compromise our sovereignty by weakening our cultural values as well as threatening our key industries. Equally inflammable was the introduction of French language issues by the Trump administration. It also wants to restrict our nation from making independent trade deals. That will never happen. I am extremely proud of the 21 international trade deals Carney has done in the past year and look forward to many more for the benefit of all hardworking Canadians. A trade deal is simply that. It does not give the U.S. Administration access to our languages, economy or sovereignty.

This is in no way meant as a criticism of the American people many of whom, I understand, are just as frustrated with the state of affairs. To be honest, I yearn for the time when there were no tariffs, no friction, and Canadians and Americans happily and casually crossed each others borders for a simple day of shopping, visiting friends, or an evening out. Where did all that go? It's so sad that some Americans, visiting Canada, feel they need to apologize. No need. This is not your fault.

This will pass. CUSMA - the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement - still exists and remains in effect. Even though the United States declined to accept a 16-year extension on the Agreement, their decision does not cancel the deal. This review needs to get done, sooner rather than later, but only with an acceptable agreement for both sides.