Rationalist
Hail Voltaire
WASHINGTON - Canada's finance minister shook hands with a congratulatory John McCain, sat down with other Republican lawmakers to urge debt reduction and extolled the virtues of majority government to a business audience on Wednesday in a visit to the U.S. capital.
Jim Flaherty, in the first jaunt by a Conservative cabinet minister to D.C. since last week's election, warned American legislators that they must bring their country's $14 trillion national debt under control to ward off any future global economic crises.
"I specifically wanted to focus on this visit on budget issues because it's so important for us," Flaherty said before heading to Capitol Hill to meet with lawmakers, including Republican Paul Ryan, the budget committee chairman in the House of Representatives whose deep cost-cutting proposals have been met with alarm by Americans.
"We have a plan to get back to balanced budget in Canada. We intend to implement that plan now that the extraordinary time of the recession has passed," Flaherty said.
"We want to have economic growth. We want our biggest partner to have a similar plan — to control deficits and debt going forward."
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/breakingnews/121650974.html
Jim Flaherty, in the first jaunt by a Conservative cabinet minister to D.C. since last week's election, warned American legislators that they must bring their country's $14 trillion national debt under control to ward off any future global economic crises.
"I specifically wanted to focus on this visit on budget issues because it's so important for us," Flaherty said before heading to Capitol Hill to meet with lawmakers, including Republican Paul Ryan, the budget committee chairman in the House of Representatives whose deep cost-cutting proposals have been met with alarm by Americans.
"We have a plan to get back to balanced budget in Canada. We intend to implement that plan now that the extraordinary time of the recession has passed," Flaherty said.
"We want to have economic growth. We want our biggest partner to have a similar plan — to control deficits and debt going forward."
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/breakingnews/121650974.html
