# Should a Yankee be elected to Canada's Parliament? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [March 6, 2025, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185 "2025-03-06T00:26:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/21 "2025-03-06T02:08:07Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Should any Yankee be in the House of Commons when we’re fighting a trade war with the Yankees? What about a Russian-born MP when Canada is spending billions to arm Ukrainians to fight Russia? I think the answer is no problem, and no need to repudiate Russian citizenship. There may be family reasons to keep it. I wouldn’t put it past Trump to deny entry to those who repudiate U.S. citizenship. That’s a reason to keep it. As for Andrew Scheer, I’d think you have more isssue-focused reasons to oppose him. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/22 "2025-03-06T02:10:02Z")
> [@rippingtons\_fan](#): > > Trump is the enemy, pure and simple. He certainly is not pure. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/23 "2025-03-06T03:14:57Z")
American Opinion, so feel free to take that into account, I won’t blame you. It’s multiple factors. First, are they an actual threat in terms of actions and/or attitudes to converting Canada into an American protectorate? [aside, it is absolutely a Trade War, and arguably an informal Cold War at this point IMHO] Second, has the person in question formally repudiated their American citizenship or in the process of doing so? I don’t think that’s normally something that _should_ be asked, though many countries do so and that’s their right as a sovereign nation, but I _personally_ think it’s fair to request for someone joining a body of government. Third, and the trickiest, is it _important_ to respect the will and rights of the people who _elected_ the person in question? Balance the answers to all three questions (and others that I’m sure I’d think of given enough time) and try to find the best answer. Granted, in light of Trump’s statements (which I both take very seriously, but don’t 100% expect he means literally) if I were Canadian, I’d err on the side of caution, and at a minimum require the second point. And I’d very carefully evaluate the first, based on their entire history on past issues, both in government and outside of it. But I don’t think it’s a good idea to completely disregard the third, leaving out noticeable and/or verifiable outside funding and support, which is ANOTHER big issue to look at. So, in short, in “normal” times, it should be an absolute exception, but not outright banned IMHO. In the current political climate, if I were a member of their political party I’d _strongly_ suggest that NOW is not the time to be running, but to be _heard_ in strong support of the nation (of Canada to be clear!). ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/24 "2025-03-06T03:37:18Z")
It’s worth pointing out the renouncing American citizenship is a time-consuming, bureaucratic process. I have contemplated it often, especially recently, but their presumption is that you are renouncing your citizenship because you’re a tax cheat looking for a legal way to defraud the IRS of their rightful share, and the process is quite punitive. I’m no fan of Scheer, but when he was elected and America was a friendly nation, there was no real reason for him to renounce. I do think he should consider it now. ---
**Author:** ![Ponderoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponderoid/32/19221_2.png) [@Ponderoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponderoid)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/25 "2025-03-06T04:33:22Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > I have to assume he’s much smarter and more knowledgeable about state affairs than our POTUS That’s a very low bar, even with the qualifiers. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/26 "2025-03-06T04:44:43Z")
Who would you want me to name? Marjorie Taylor Greene? Lauren Boebert? Tommy Tuberville? I have 268 more possibilities to name. Should I go down the list until I hit an acceptable bar? Seriously, the OP is giving me frightening flashbacks of a century of American behavior in which a parade of nationalities who or whose parents had been born in another country was suspect even if they had become citizens. A behavior that continues in our government today. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 8:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/27 "2025-03-06T08:59:43Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > It’s worth pointing out the renouncing American citizenship is a time-consuming, bureaucratic process. I have contemplated it often, especially recently, but their presumption is that you are renouncing your citizenship because you’re a tax cheat looking for a legal way to defraud the IRS of their rightful share, and the process is quite punitive. I can confirm and second this. My wife and I live permanently overseas and have repeatedly contemplated renouncing our American citizenship, once we’ve secured our European passports. You must have a reason beyond “I don’t want to pay taxes” – if they think that’s your primary motivation, they’ll simply refuse to allow your renunciation. Assuming they accept your rationale (“sincerely held political differences,” etc.), there’s a four-figure fee to start with, and they also look at your net worth and calculate an “exit tax” which basically front-loads your hypothetical tax burden for the next few years before you leave. It really, really sucks. So it’s no wonder the “Yankee” hasn’t wanted to tangle with the beast before now. ---
**Author:** ![FinsToTheLeft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finstotheleft/32/2930_2.png) [@FinsToTheLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinsToTheLeft)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/28 "2025-03-06T11:05:02Z")
Mark Carney is likely to win the Liberal leadership race and thus automatically become our next Prime Minister for at least 37 days, is a triple Canadian/British/Irish citizen. He intends to renounce the other two. ---
**Author:** ![MacDoc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/macdoc/32/18696_2.png) [@MacDoc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacDoc)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/29 "2025-03-06T11:28:33Z")
There is no reason for him to abandon the other citizenships other than optics. He will be the PM until either he calls a snap election which he seems to favour or one of this budget bills gets defeated. There are several paths of the Liberals to continue to govern until October. The Cons do not hold enough seats to defeat the gov directly. 🍿 ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/30 "2025-03-06T12:42:08Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > and they also look at your net worth and calculate an “exit tax” which basically front-loads your hypothetical tax burden for the next few years before you leave For reference, I did some research and estimation so I could provide a more concrete statement on this. Based on our current household balance sheet, if my wife and I were to renounce our citizenship, we would be charged something between $290k and $340k. _Each._ Which, again, goes a long way toward explaining why that Canadian legislator hasn’t yet tried to tear up his US passport. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/31 "2025-03-06T16:25:41Z")
> [@MacDoc](#): > > There is no reason for him to abandon the other citizenships other than optics. I read somewhere (CBC?) that he is doing so because of his own beliefs, but would be fine if another PM did not do so. The point was about PMs with multiple citizenships, not specifically American ones. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/32 "2025-03-06T16:34:02Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Let me re-phrase it: should a person who owes allegiance to the United States of America sit in the House of Commons during a trade war with the United States? Will he vote to support Canada, or the United States? I’m been in the US all my life, but I don’t think I “owe allegiance to the United States.” Certainly not currently. If I were in your parliament you’d have a strong voice in favor of Canada’s interests and self defense. Regarding the current MP in question, what’s are his views on the current madness from DC? ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/33 "2025-03-06T17:23:28Z")
Scheer has never lived in the USA so far as I know. His citizenship is legal happenstance. This is literally just piling on him because of where his mother was born. If this thread had been started over someone whose mother was born in China or Iran - and we have MPs of whom both those things can be said - it’d be rightly called Trumpist bullshit. We may be in conflict with them, but that’s because we are not them. Let’s not act like them. ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/34 "2025-03-06T20:47:34Z")
I agree. Scheer’s citizenship isn’t an issue for me. His wishy-washy-ness about it when he was conservative leader was off-putting, though. Have the courage to say you don’t intend to renounce it if you don’t intend to. Also, I strongly dislike him on various other grounds, but that’s not particularly germane to this discussion. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/35 "2025-03-06T21:07:00Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Let me re-phrase it: should a person who owes allegiance to the United States of America sit in the House of Commons during a trade war with the United States? Will he vote to support Canada, or the United States? You guys should probably round up anyone with at least one ~~American~~ Damnyank grandparent and put them in interment camps. You know, just to be safe. Can’t trust anyone with potential _dual loyalties_, you know. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/36 "2025-03-06T21:11:28Z")
At the risk of dropping _un chat_ amongst _les pigeons_, how divided are the loyalties of Quebeckers between Quebec as such and Canada as a whole? Ditto for e.g. Newfoundlanders. If one wants to find _potential_ traitors to your cause, they are everywhere in every guise. And always have been. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/37 "2025-03-06T22:20:11Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Let me re-phrase it: should a person who owes allegiance to the United States of America sit in the House of Commons during a trade war with the United States? Will he vote to support Canada, or the United States? Let me just say that as a US born, naturalized Canadian I would 100% support Canada. ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2025, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185/38 "2025-03-07T04:16:12Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Should any Yankee be in the House of Commons … ? Australia, through the agency of our High Court, went through this process a couple of years ago. The standard now is that any prospective member for Federal Parliament must 1. be an Australian citizen and 2. have renounced all other allegiances before they nominate to stand as a candidate for the upcoming election. This includes taking “reasonable steps” to formally renounce citizenship under the law of their home country(s), else to be deemed as still subjects of a foreign power. I wouldn’t recognise Mr Scheer in a photo op but think his stated positions on the issue would be problematic even if he was born and bred Canadian and won’t be a sound policy platform for extending his parliamentary career. If there were not applicable grounds to expel him in the current term, I would expect there are procedural motions in the House of Commons standing orders which can provide e.g. the gag " ‘I move that the member be no longer heard’. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-yankee-be-elected-to-canadas-parliament/1015185.md?page=1)