On failures of leadership

The CP reports that with the federal government apparently doing as little as possible to deal with the U.S.' impending passport requirement, Canadian premiers and U.S. governors are once again having to try to bring public attention to the issue:

Premiers from Eastern Canada and governors from New England are urging the United States Congress to delay new border security measures, including mandatory passport use for anyone entering the U.S.

State and provincial officials - worried creating a "hassle factor" for people crossing the border will devastate tourism and trade - passed a resolution at a meeting in Newport, R.I...

The new measures are scheduled to take effect at the end of this year for all air and sea travel, and at the end of 2007 for all land border crossings.

Now, it's somewhat understandable for the Cons not to want to resume their earlier flip-flopping on the possibility of an ID card as the solution. But with the U.S. statutory deadline in place, there's a desperate need for action on the issue before it's too late to make our case. And at the same time, there's also a readily-available opportunity to coordinate Canada's message with that of Americans who share our interests.

Unfortunately, as has already happened on softwood lumber, the Cons don't seem the least bit interested in assembling Canada's allies to try to push for anything better than a worst-case outcome. And come January 1, 2008, both sides of the border stand to pay the price for the Cons' continued ineffectiveness.