Rough Riding in Ottawa

During his 21 months as Washington's Ambassador to Ottawa, William Porter, 61, earned the respect of many Canadians as a concerned professional envoy. He traveled frequently through the country, mixed easily with its citizens, gave thoughtful and discreet talks about issues that jointly affect Canada and the U.S. But last week, as Porter left Ottawa to take up a new post as Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau angrily told a cheering House of Commons that Porter had gone beyond "the acceptable bounds within which an ambassador should stay." In a singular diplomatic snub, ministers of Trudeau's Liberal government refused to attend a farewell party given by Porter at his residence.

The government's displeasure reflected, in part, a growing mood of anti-American nationalism in Canada. Porter became the target of this feeling because, with the prior approval of the State Department, he had spoken a few truths about tensions in Canadian-U.S. relations. At about the same time the White House was announcing the nomination of Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Enders to succeed him, Porter threw a small cocktail party for a dozen Canadian and American reporters. At the party, he observed that Congressmen in U.S. Border states were unhappy about the price of imported Canadian oil. At $14.99 a bbl., Canadian crude is running nearly $1.50 above average world market prices. Porter also pointed out that American investors had become leary of putting more money into Canada because of worries about rising nationalism. As an example, he cited the decision of the Saskatchewan provincial government to take over the potash industry, much of which is owned by subsidiaries of American firms. In response to reporters' questions, he also noted that relations had not been helped by a new tax bill that, once enacted, would force both TIME and the Reader's Digest to stop publishing separate Canadian editions. The bill would require that both magazines have an 80% difference in editorial content from their parent U.S. editions (TIME, Dec. 15).

As a result of these and other frictions, Porter saw an American backlash developing--"the rise of adrenaline in the press and in Congress particularly. It worries me, because it is in the interest of both our countries to ease differences and difficulties." The ambassador suggested that Prime Minister Trudeau and President Gerald Ford, who enjoy cordial personal relations, might meet to help "clear the air."

Not a Colony. Such is the prickly mood in Ottawa that the government spied insult where none, clearly, was intended. Responding to questions in Parliament, Trudeau said that he was "surprised that an experienced diplomat like Mr. Porter would not find other channels for expressing [his] views." After Trudeau brought down the House by declaring "we are not a colony of the U.S.," New Democratic Party Leader Ed Broadbent proposed that the Prime Minister advise Washington that Porter's "kind of behavior is totally unacceptable to Canada."

Trudeau ignored the fact that Ottawa's ambassadors to Washington have periodically talked about the difficulties between the two neighbors in much the way that Porter did. By and large, Canadian editorial opinion endorsed Porter's candor. Describing Trudeau's remarks as "stunning brutality," the Toronto Globe & Mail editorialized: "Mr. Porter has made no attempt to tell Canada what to do. He merely told reporters of American concerns, most of which he had taken up with the Canadian government. Which is precisely what he was sent to Ottawa to do." Added the Ottawa Journal: "For his warning, Mr. Porter deserves thanks, not Mr. Trudeau's petty pique."

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so viewer discretion is required.