common danger, and the time came when we had to put up or shut up. and we put up, and we're there. >> watch the vietnam war, 50 years later, this weekend on american history tv. on c-span3. >> next, a look at the state of u.s./canada relations. we'll hear from the u.s. ambassador to canada and the canadian ambassador to the u.s. on the relationship between the two countries. this is 25 minutes. [inaudible conversations] >> well, it does fall to me to be that guy that interrupts your dinner. which is never a good thing. so you know this is the canadian-american business council and people automatically clink your glasses. that is excellent. excellent. now, i do like to introduce on your sunday morning, but tonight i get to intrude on your dinner, and it's worth it, i hope, because we've got a really

extraordinary moment. these dinners have been going on for decades. but tonight for the first time two people who are really at the center of maybe the most important issue for our economy, of course, the trade between canada and the united states and the renegotiation of the nafta agreement, some might say the weight of the world, certainly our world's on their shoulders in many, many ways. obviously, security issues -- and we've talked a bit about the resilience of our friends in new york -- but for the first time on stage together, please give a very warm ottawa welcome, and we can be very warm in the capital of canada, to the brand new ambassador to canada, the honorable kelly craft. and the now-seasoned ambassador, her counterpart, the honorable david macnaughton, and they're joined by ms. christina erling. we can get warmer. we could even get warmer. that's right, we can get warmer.

[applause] ♪ ♪ [applause] >> well, thank you very much for that great introduction, evan, that was wonderful. ambassador mac gnawingtop, ambassador craft, thank you so much for joining us today. there's a lot of things going on between u.s. and canada relations at this point, but what a great opportunity to have you here and to talk about the status of the relationship and the importance of being such good friends across the borders. ambassador craft, you've been here for a hot minute. [laughter] you just came in last week. and when i was asked to sort of

moderate this conversation, of course, i went on google which is the cabc member there, little plug for them, the find out what i could about great ambassadors, and i stumbled across this fantastic video that the u.s. embassy in ottawa pulled together. and i think we can play that here tonight. kyle, would you roll the video for us, please? ♪ ♪ >> i'm kelly craft, and i'm the u.s. ambassador to canada. it is such a privilege and an honor to serve my country, especially to serve in a country that is our neighbor, our friend, our ally. i grew up in glasgow, kentucky, very small town in south central kentucky. my father was a veterinarian. we grew up on a farm which is where we had our large animal clinic. my first bike was a pony when i

was 4. my brother and i would graduate from our ponies to our small horse, and we would ride all over glasgow. grew up with lots of animals, cattle, horses, bison, ducks, pigs, chickens, and i grew up for the longest time thinking dogs had three legs and cats had one eye because my father brought everything in from the animal clinic. when i was in middle school, my grandparents took me on a cross-country road trip in a win bag go. we went to -- winny bay go. that image stayed with me for my entire life, my first introduction to canada. now a new years later, i will get the chance to know so much more about the beautiful places, people and culture of canada. one thing you're going to learn about me is i love sports. joe and i love the toronto raptors. we have several players from kentucky who have played for the raptors, the latest being patrick patterson. we had jamal murray and now we

have shay alexander, a young freshman, so we are anxious to get to know shay and to cheer him on especially from canada. my passion is engaging with and supporting our youth. i love to see how young adults develop off the court to make certain that they are giving back and that they are also helping others in a way that they can use their talent off the court to contribute to society and to help to others -- to help others. that's the biggest delight to me. that's the win-win. ♪ ♪ >> first thing i'm going to do when i get to ottawa? lace up my running shoes and go for a run. i just can't wait to experience the canadian outdoors and to meet as many people as i possibly can. it's such a beautiful country, and i'm eager to travel it. getting to know the people, hitting the ground running when i'm there.

joe and i could never dream of a higher privilege than to serve our country, the united states of america, as ambassador to canada. working together to insure economic prosperity, opportunity and security for our families and our children. >> ladies and gentlemen, it's my privilege to introduce to you the united states ambassador to canada, ambassador kelly craft. [applause] >> we need to do one for you. [laughter] great video. i really need to up my running game now after watching that video. [laughter] ambassador macnaughton, you've been on the job for almost two years, which gives you the title of seasoned diplomat. [laughter] one of the first times we met,

actually with, was at the western governors' meeting in montana this past summer. first of all, whitefish, montana, that's probably one of the most beautiful states in the united -- oh, gosh. could have spent many, many more days there exploring glacier national park and everything. but besides talking about our mutual love of canada and the u.s., you mentioned -- you talked about your four daughters. and i thought to myself, gosh, four daughters. i mean, what -- that right there is the experiences a person needs to sort of manage the relationship between two countries right there. [laughter] but the western governors' meeting, i was impressed by how many canadian officials were actually at the meeting talking to the governors and the mayors. we had -- [inaudible] your government has really been working hard to cultivate relationships with the states. prime minister trudeau came down to the national governors' association meeting in rhode

island. you've been really working hard to sort of build these relationships outside d.c. and outside of the beltway. how's that working so far? >> well, before i get into that, i just want to welcome ambassador craft. kelly has been, we've been in touch frequently over the last several months, and i know i consider my job to be an honor and a privilege, and i know you do. we've got some important work to do, and i'm delighted that i've got a friend, an ally that we can try the work out things that are going to be best for both our countries. so welcome, and i look forward to working with you. i should also say, i was thinking when evan was talking about his grandmother being an american, and is i was thinking about my poppy here, and my grandfather was actually an american. he grew up in california, and the reason he became a canadian

was in the first world war he was one of 35,000 americans who crossed the border before the united states entered the war to fight with canadians in europe. and so he went overseas with the canadian troops and met some woman and ended up marrying her -- [laughter] because i could never figure out why anyone would move from california to ottawa, but anyway -- [laughter] >> same winters. >> yeah, same winters. no, look, our, our outreach has been going really well. i find that, you know, first of all, there's already many, many existing relationships between premiers and governors and business people on both sides of the border. so it hasn't been too much of a struggle to find common ground. and what you find with the governors -- and i know this is true with governor bevin and

others -- is that they really are close to their businesses. they know what creates jobs. they know that canada's a big customer. and i think the premiers are the same way. i think they have got a very close relationship with their business community and their communities in general, and they understand how much we are interdependent. and so i think it's been a great thing for the federal government to both reach out to, not just to watch, but, you know, to use our entire network of consulates throughout the united states to work cooperatively with the business community and the provinces and to just, you know, tap into what is already, is already a great relationship. i just think that, you know, we've kind of taken it too much for granted. somebody asked me the other day is there anything you'd do differently than what you're doing at the present moment, and i said, no, i'd just start it three years earlier. [laughter] >> ambassador craft, so we know

you've just started your job just a short week ago, but we know that you've also been coming up the past few months and getting to know ottawa and getting to know canada. what are you doing to cultivate relationships as an ambassador and to sort of build your network and bring officials together? how is that going along for you, and -- this we go. >> first of all, i want to thank the canadian-american business council for hosting this event this evening. >> thank you. we're happy to have you. >> thank you. [applause] it's a pleasure to be up on stage with my new friend, ambassador mac macnaughton. and most importantly, before i talk about relationships i want to introduce the person i love the most in a relationship, which is my husband. who is here somewhere. there he is. [applause] he's the best first husband any ambassador could ever dream of, so thank you. and, you know, talking about relationships, my first welcome was really ambassador mac

newington. macnaughton. so i owe this to you for this warm relationship, and what a way to open the door to invite me in. he had me to his home in washington, d.c. immediately for a very informal gathering and introduced me to the prime minister and his wife sophie and jerry and katie and minister freeland and just really kind of set the tone for the way that i felt when we arrived six days ago. [laughter] so we, you know, it was just so nice and inviting that you opened up to us in a very informal way before i had presented my credentials. and then the day i presented my credentials, it was just amazing to be able to see the people that i had seen before and then went along and met with minister freeland shortly thereafter. and just to have that already familiarity, i have to thank you so much for being so kind to us. >> i was delighted to have you. >> yeah.

and, you know, i feel as if being from kentucky, you know, bourbon and automobiles are kind of our gift to canada -- >> and we thank you for that. [laughter] >> there you go. and, you know, we received the whiskey and the aluminum back which makes for great fun and a big party, right? and hopefully, a few basketball players along the way. i think it's vital and important to know that in kentucky there is no border. we, i know the border is thin, but for us we've not known a border, because without canada can, you know, we wouldn't be in such a wonderful situation that we're in economically. and a lot of the governors -- and i feel this way about all of the states, although more than half the states canada is the number one trade partner -- and i think that we need to really reach out and remember that this is more than a trade situation. this is cultural, this is commercial, this is personal. and, or you know, while the numbers are huge -- 1.7 billion and 700 billion in

investments -- we need to talk about real stories and real people and this people-to-people connection. because at the end of the day, you guys are our best friends. and we need to nurture that relationship -- [applause] and, you know, it just takes nurturing. and i think, you know, we need to focus on the positive and really bring together the best in both of us. and that, to me, is what i want. and i don't want to look back, like you said, i don't want to say what should i have done. i want to be really proud of what we're going to do together to promote without a border. >> that's fantastic. thank you so much. [applause] ambassador macnaughton, you've had a busy year with the change in government in the united states and with the nafta negotiations. how do you feel is the bilateral

relationship today, and maybe you can address this as well, how do you feel over the past few years, moving forward how this relationship has fare over the past few months? >> well, you know, the last -- i think it was last summer we had a cabinet retreat in sebry, and we didn't know what the result of the election was going to be, and so we were talking, you know, what we needed to think about, what we needed to do. came to the consensus that the most important thing was to focus in on the things that we had in common, the things that we agreed on, not let little differences or big differences get in the way of the relationship. and also with the new administration coming in, regardless of which party it was, we needed to start off by developing really good, solid personal relationships when there wasn't a crisis so that when, when some difficult times came up, you actually knew the

people you were sitting across the table from. and so from the outset, like the day after the election, the prime minister called the president, said, you know, congratulations, and you're going to have lots of problems around the world. canada's not going to be one of them. we're going to be your friend. we'll always be there for you. and i think that -- and then from then on, you know, all the ministers got to know their counterparts. there are really good relationships that have developed. and, you know, we don't always agree on things, but the reality is that, you know, when with you can, when you get -- you have so much in common, you can get through the difficult times. i mean, i always say, used to say in my previous life when you were talking about dealing with government was, you know, get to know people in the government on a non-crisis basis so when there's a crisis, you know who they are. think about talking to them in language that they understand

not just about your agenda, but about their agenda. and thirdly, find third parties who are going to endorse what you're trying to do. and that's why developing the personal relationships, thinking about talking to the new administration about things we had in common and finding third parties like governors who would endorse what we were trying to achieve, i think, has been a really important in building the relationship. and i've got to to tell you, it always starts at the top. and the prime minister and the president, i've been there on several meetings between the two of them, they actually do get along really well. that's not to say they agree on everything, but they have a degree of mutual respect that i think will stand the test of time when we get into some difficult times. because, look, there are some issues that are going to be tough to deal with. we've already had some of them, we're going to have more of them. but, you know, 95% of this relationship works extraordinarily well, and i think the personalling relationships -- personal relationships are really important. >> ambassador craft, you sort of

reflected on that as well. >> yeah. i just want to say that your prime minister has absolutely been a rock star, especially in the state of kentucky with governor bevin. i hear that a lot from our governor, how pleased he is that he has given them individual attention. and i think that's what's really important when we're trying to build this foundation, especially with a new administration. and i, too, agree with you that president trump and prime minister trudeau have a wonderful respect for one another and a great working relationship. and i happen to know they do speak frequently, and i think that's very important. even in times when you maybe do not agree that you still keep that dialogue open because in times that you really are in need, you do have that line, and you're not having to start all over. you know, i really want to make certain that just from a state and province standpoint that we engage everyone on the state level and a province level and my team at the embassy has been

amazing, already setting forth that platform. and, you know, i just really want to compliment you because it's amazing what you have done to reach out to people that maybe are not in total agreement, but you've got this open dialogue. and i think really, at the end of the day, if you don't have that in a time of crisis you can't pick up the phone. you don't have that ground, you know, that grounding. so compliments to you. >> it sounds line we just solved the lumber deal here issue. [laughter] am i right? sorry. [laughter] >> still his friend. >> no,s this is -- your remarks tonight and this conversation, you know, as a member of the canadian-american business council and all the people in this room, i think, these are very comforting words the hear. it puts us at ease to know that you're at the helm of running diplomacy between the two

countries. i think this is fantastic to hear. ambassador craft, we're so happy to have you. and, ambassador macnaughton, i mean, again, seasoned, veteran diplomat here we've got to lead canada. >> you know, i do want to say one other thing though, and that is that while clearly in the media and also in our conversations because of the importance of the trading relationship, it dominates the discussion. but one of the things that i've come to realize is the number of things that we do together. and not just, you know, to our mutual benefit, but to the benefit of the world. and whether that be in dealing with venezuela or north korea or iran or, you know, the ukraine or all over the world, you know, where canadians are taking leadership in latvia for nato troops, i mean, the -- and the security relationship between the fbi and the rcmp, our

military in terms of drug interdiction in the caribbean and also, you know, the criminal, you know, people when they're trying to illegally move people into our countries. the degree of cooperation that goes on day in and day out is really quite remarkable, and it's unprecedented anywhere in the world. there are no two countries that share that kind of not just information, but trust. and when you talk to -- we had an event at the embassy which was called partners in defense, and we had the, you know, our chief defense staff and the chairman of the joint chiefs of defense of the united states, and every one of those soldiers you talk to, they talk about serving together in afghanistan or working together, you know, to meet a common threat. and when you think about what we face around the world right now, it is tremendously comforting

that we have the kind of relationship we do. because it's going to be increasingly important. we've seen it, you know, not just in new york, but in other places in the last little while. and that threat is going to continue, but i am confident that we have such a good relationship that our citizens are more safe than any other citizens in the world because we cooperate together. >> it's a true partnership. >> it is. >> can i compliment minister freeland, because i think she has taken this focus during times when we're not on the same page with nafta, she has taken the focus of being positive whether it be venezuela, latvia, ukraine, and compliments to her, because that's an example we all should follow. >> yeah. [applause] >> well, before we wrap, i just, i think we really need to address the 800-pound gorilla in the room, the stanley cup. [laughter] i'm taking wagers and bets on

where the cup will end up. i know the season just started. i know some people don't want to talk about the maple leafs. [laughter] where's it going to end up at the end of the year? we'd get to our canadian and u.s. cards revoked if we didn't talk about this at a setting like this. >> i'm just now learning hockey. [laughter] i'm going to tell you -- >> [inaudible] >> a good start. i absolutely could not venture into that area, although, you know, being an american i certainly want the cup at home. [laughter] so, you know, if i have any pull with that -- >> well, when i arrived in washington, what happened was that there were no canadian teams in the stanley cup playoffs. and somebody -- that was last year. and so somebody asked me -- or not, year before. so somebody asked me who do you like in hockey, and i said, well, we don't play professional

hockey in toronto -- [laughter] [applause] but, but that's changed, and is so -- [laughter] i will go out on a limb and say that at some point before the next 50 years the toronto maple leafs will win. [laughter] [applause] >> ambassadors, thank you so much for your time. what a great conversation. and, again, thank you so much for all of our guests here. everybody, please give a warm -- [applause] [inaudible conversations] >> today the house ways and means committee begins the process of making changes to the gop tax reform bill before sending it to the full house. watch live coverage today at

noon eastern right here on c-span2. >> during tuesday's "washington journal," we're live in baton rouge, louisiana, as part of the c-span bus capitals tour. starting at 9:30 a.m. eastern. >> c-span, where history unfolds daily. in 1979, c-span was created as a public service by america's cable television companies and is brought to you today by your cable or satellite provider. >> later today the house ways and means committee meets to mark up the house republican tax reform bill. that's live here on c-span2. republican lawmakers say there will be changes to certain personal income tax deductions so people can take home more of

their income. for more on what the tax reform bill means for americans, gary cohn, president trump's top economic adviser, talked about the proposed changes to the tax code. .. >> because g