Just as it seemed the 51st state talk from south of the border had cooled off, Courtenay-Comox MLA Brennan Day says he received a letter from a Maine State Senator suggesting Western provinces join the U.S.
“Honestly, I couldn’t believe it’s legitimate, but we reached out to his office. It is a legitimate memo,” said MLA Day in an interview with 1130 NewsRadio.
“I’m not entirely sure why it was sent or who it was sent to, but I assume other elected officials across the country got it as well.”
Day says that the letter, penned by Republican Senator Joseph E. Martin from Maine, is concerning as it oversteps his position as a state-level senator.
“It’s concerning what he has to say in regard to Canadian sovereignty,” Day said.
“He is a state-level senator, so he has way overstepped his boundaries here, speaking for the country. And I certainly know most Americans I know don’t share his feelings.”
UBC Political Science Professor Stewart Prest says the letter, laying out conditions for provinces joining the U.S, is just another example of throwing American weight around.
“No one is asking to join the United States with special Canadian conditions; it’s just making up a piece of a conversation that doesn’t exist,” he explained.
Day says that the letter “reads like a recruitment brochure for a political ideology, not a sincere offer to neighbours.”
With files from Ben Bouguerra.