Outreach to Congress is co-ordinated through Canada’s embassy in Washington, D.C.—located just blocks from Capitol Hill—which has a dedicated Congressional affairs team. That effort includes the Prime Minister’s Office , cabinet ministers and offices, as well as non-governmental stakeholders.
Blais said often Canada is not top of mind in the U.S., so there is a need to brief Congressional members on unintended consequences of American policies on the Canada-U.S. relationship.Washington, D.C.-based trade consultant Eric Miller, president of Rideau Potomac Strategy Group, echoed the need to speak with all in Congress.
Unlike recent outreach efforts, there are no longer dedicated advisers who work exclusively on the Canada-U.S. file inside the PMO, meaning American outreach is returning to the more typical efforts that were seen prior to the Trump administration. Greg MacEachern, a senior vice-president at Proof Strategies, said despite no one exclusively holding Canada-U.S. responsibility, it still remains an active file for the PMO, noting that Telford and Clow have strong ties in the U.S.
“Beyond that, the Canada-U.S. relationship and its opportunities and challenges remain pretty continuous no matter who the administration is of the day. There are still the same changes to work together. There are still the same concerns, for example about U.S. protectionism, or U.S. policies, or approach to Canada’s agenda. So, I expect those will continue,” she said.
“In times when it is quiet is the times that you should be building,” he said. “There needs to be a serious rethink about how we approach relations with the U.S., because ultimately, the only people in the U.S. that are 100 per cent on Canada’s side all the time is the embassy.”