Home · Economy & Business · Trade Agreements · Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement
Topic spans: 1985 - 1997
Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement
It was the most controversial agreement of its kind in Canadian history. Prime Minister Brian Mulroney's vision of free trade with the U.S. read like a Harlequin romance: Canada played the neglected lover, U.S., the negligent partner. Empty promises and veiled threats were all part of the negotiating dance between the world's greatest trading partners. The 1988 Free Trade Agreement was as dry as a stack of legal textbooks and as emotional as battling American cultural domination. It's an issue that still causes heated debate.
12 television clips
2 radio clips
Calling it quits
Broadcast Date: Sept. 23, 1987
"I am suspending negotiations." With those words Canada's chief negotiator Simon Reisman officially breaks off the talks. Without giving clear details of what went wrong, Reisman tells CBC reporter Mike Duffy that his decision was due to the fact that the U.S. was not responding to "elements fundamental to Canada's position." Reisman insists the free trade agreement is dead. But some say the move is a ploy.Critics say it's a bargaining tactic to send a last minute signal to the Americans that Canada means business. A tired-looking Reisman, showing all of his 68 years, vehemently denies the accusation. The American negotiating team is caught off guard and tell reporters that they'll continue to work towards an agreement.
Calling it quits
• Simon Reisman had been working as a consultant in the private sector when Prime Minister Brian Mulroney hired him to head the most important trade negotiations in Canada's history. It was rumoured that Reisman's rate was $1,000 per day.• Peter Murphy had been the U.S. ambassador to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in Geneva. During his post Murphy suffered a serious brain hemorrhage which required him to take a long leave of absence. The FTA negotiation was his first assignment back.
Calling it quits
Medium: Television
Program: The National
Broadcast Date: Sept. 23, 1987
Guest(s): Roger Bolton, Daniel Moynihan, Simon Reisman
Reporter: Mike Duffy
Duration: 2:48
Last updated:
Feb. 3, 2003
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14 clips in this topic . page
Television
10:13
June 7, 1929
Politician and lawyer John Turner in 1967 on the game of politics.
Television
2:21
May 25, 1931
Herb Gray, the notoriously long-serving and stable politician, treats a reporter to his tastes in music in 1990.
Calling it quits.
The CBC Digital Archives Website.
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Last updated: Feb. 3, 2003.
[Page consulted on Feb. 12, 2012.]