Best ambassador ever

A columnist in Monday's Ottawa newspaper ranked David Wilkins as the best U.S. ambassador to Canada ever.

One of David's characteristic that drew praise from the columnist was that he was a good listener, and he didn't act as if he had all of the answers to the problems facing the U.S. and Canada.

David has always managed to get along with people, even those with different political affiliations and outlooks than his. David was the first Republican House member to be elected chairman of a legislative committee since Reconstruction, and he did it when Democrats were in the majority. As Speaker David presided over the compromise that removed the confederate flag from the legislative chambers and from the dome of the Statehouse even though there were many members of his party who opposed the moves.

In addition to David's posting in Canada, South Carolina has had a number of ambassadors in recent years, John West to Saudi Arabia, Phil Lader to the the Court of St. James and Weston Adams to Malawi. The tenure of each has been characterized by an ability to be persuasive and effective without being overbearing.

When Phil Lader was ambassador to Great Britain he walked from one end of England to the other. David would have to serve several terms to be able to walk across Canada. This place is big.

David and I met outside the embassy Monday morning since it was a holiday and the embassy was closed. David invited me back for a tour of the place, and I'd like to take him up on the offer.

I had parked the bike a block or so away from the embassy so David and his Royal Canadian Mounted Police security staff walked down for a look. Since David is a politician and I'm a former lobbyist, we had our picture taken together.

While we were visiting at the bike one of David's sons, James came strolling down the street with his wife, Marnie Record. I persuaded them to pose with David and the bike. James works at Furman University in Greenville, S.C., and his focus is on making the campus more environmentally sustainable.

Our visit was short as David and his wife, Susan, had some errands to run, and in the afternoon they were taking some visiting relatives on a tour boat. On top of that, they were getting ready for a visit from the governor of California. Arnold's visit is creating quite a stir in the embassy and official Ottawa.

David and the security staff hopped in their official vehicle, a minivan, and I wandered off to look at the Byway market that has been a feature of the capital district since the 1800s. After a pub lunch of fish and chips, I headed out of town on the wind. Actually it was in a significant crosswind, but you get the idea.