The Effects of 9/11 on Canadian-U.S. Trade PDF Print E-mail
News - Foreign Affairs

For total U.S. exports to Canada, there are significant declines in trade volumes in at least the second half of 2001 and in 2002. There are smaller effects in 2003. For total U.S. imports from Canada, significant negative effects are found in the 4th quarter of 2001 and in 2002, 2003, 2004, and again in 2008. In general, there is greater evidence of disruption of trade flowing from Canada to the United States than from the United States to Canada. (See article from The Brookings Institution)

How typical of trade relations with America. Asking America for FAIR trade is like asking a liar to be honest with you just this once.

Christopher Sands, Senior Fellow with the Hudson Institute writing for The Brookings Institution wants to improve our trade and has recommendations.

  • Create and engage a state-level Homeland Security Network;
  • Ensure that performance evaluations of Customs and Border Protection Port Directors and other local representatives of the federal government include assessments of their efforts to develop relationships with local governments and stakeholder groups;  
  • Emulate the 30-point U.S.-Canada Smart Border Action Plan on a local level;
  • Empower local federal officials in ways that ensure greater lateral communication and resource-sharing without recourse to Washington;
  • Congress should authorize funds for a Border Security Pilot Project Challenge Fund to test new ideas;

They are changing focus and pushing the next level of integration with lower level public officials. Given the trade agreements already in place they obviously do not need additional legislation. Now they will tell these public officials that their performance assesments are based on their ability to further integration efforts "locally" (i.e. unseen and unnoticed nationally) and give them a measure of autonomy from Washington and some money to play with.

  • Publicly adopt a two-speed approach to the Canadian and Mexican borders;

Canada is to be integrated first. Canada has the natural resources that America wants.

  • Reform but do not abandon the Security and Prosperity Partnership;

They will continue the SPP which means ongoing annual meetings at the state leader level. Renaming the SPP or spinning the issue would fall under the "Reform" heading. The agenda remains the same.  

  • Form a U.S.-Canada or North American Joint Infrastructure Planning Commission.

Integration of large transportation and energy projects will continue under this new Joint Infrastructure Planning Commission.