The appointment of powerhouse federal Tory Michael Wilson as Canada’s new Ambassador to the United States was announced on this date in 2006 by Prime Minister Stephen J. Harper. The latter had only been in office a few days when Wilson was sent to D.C. on behalf of Canada.
“Strong Canada-US relations are a priority for my government,” Prime Minister Harper said. “Mr. Wilson's in-depth knowledge and experience in the financial sector and in government will make him a strong advocate for Canada in negotiations with our most important bilateral partner."
Wilson, of course, had previously served in the cabinets of Prime Minister Joe Clark and Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, most notably as Minister of Finance.
Arthur Milnes is an accomplished public historian and award-winning journalist. He was research assistant on The Rt. Hon. Brian Mulroney’s best-selling Memoirs and also served as a speechwriter to then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper and as a Fellow of the Queen’s Centre for the Study of Democracy under the leadership of Tom Axworthy. A resident of Kingston, Ontario, Milnes serves as the in-house historian at the 175 year-old Frontenac Club Hotel.