While America awaits passage of a bill in the Democratic controled Senate, Canada might well pay attention to its specifics, or at least one of them. The one I have in mind deals with the use of only US steel when new construction starts to take place. Many might say to themselves, 'So what has this to do with me?' A lot as it turns out. Canada exports large quantities of steel to the US. Any cut-back in exports means job losses and not only in steel manufacturing. The other thing to consider is that this might just be the leading edge of yet more protectionists policies planned by the new administration.

President Obama has stated his goal of making the US more energy efficient and in doing so would provide funding for more green energy projects. This means that the amount of oil we export south-of-the-border could also be affected. More jobs lost and less money for Ottawa's coffers.

There are those who look to the WTO agreements and NAFTA as a possible way of protecting ourselves, yet it is possible that those agreements could either be negated by the new administration or changed in such a way as to leave Canada without a leg to stand on.

I earnestly hope, though it is a blind hope, that our government is paying attention and that they are moving to quickly find other markets for our goods and services. If they aren't doing so, then the future outlook for our country and its economy could be dire indeed.