Halfway There

When many Canadians read about the crib death of the global economy that sprang to life after the Cold War, they are relieved that Barack Obama is president of the United States. They feel better about this country’s prospects, if only because of the important changes he is making next door. At home, we can’t even democratize the Senate. This state of paralysis seems increasingly intolerable; political change may be hard in Canada, but only yesterday it was impossible in America.

For Canadians, the most painful aspect of John Ibbitson’s latest book, Open and Shut: Why America Has Barack Obama and Canada Has Stephen Harper is his enthusiasm, not for Obama, but for a country that would attract to national politics such an exceptional talent in the first place. By highlighting America’s reformist tradition, Ibbitson shames us to do better. For that alone this book is worthwhile. Too often, simply not acting like Americans in public policy, electioneering and...