Freeland, speaking to reporters in Washington after meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, said she was broadly optimistic about the strength of Canada’s economic recovery from COVID-19.

The rebound in demand for goods as restrictions are lifted has exposed supply chain shortages, with firms scrambling for workers, ships and even fuel to power factories, threatening the fledgling bounceback.

“The issue of both supply chain congestion and supply chain shortages, was discussed … it’s definitely a concern on the minds of finance ministers around the world,” Freeland said.

“We are definitely mindful of the supply chain issues in the Canadian economy. We are monitoring the supply chain and Canadian ports, very, very closely.”

Freeland said the process of restarting the economy after the shutdowns was inevitably going to be uneven.

— Reporting for Reuters by David Ljunggren and Julie Gordon.

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Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s first budget, released April 19, included significant spending to help producers transition to a greener economy and cited agriculture as a foundational pillar of Canada’s future.

“CFA will be working closely with the federal government to ensure that these words are followed with impactful actions that truly leverage the potential in our sector,” said CFA president Mary Robinson in a statement.

Six investments in particular were highlighted by CFA as items in line with the pre-budget recommendations made by Canada’s largest general farm group.

A $1 billion commitment to rapidly roll out broadband projects, and additional money to assist farmers combat COVID-19 and climate change were included on that list, and in budget 2021.

CFA said it would have liked to see “targeted investments addressing the sector’s continued labour needs and leverage domestic market opportunities” but welcomed $1.9 billion in spending over four years to improve Canada’s trade corridors.

“Agriculture has the ability to become a natural climate solution with the continued adoption of technologies and techniques that improve carbon sequestration and capture” with the proper investments and infrastructure, Robinson said.

Bob Lowe, president of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, said the group sees the budget as “a starting place for economic recovery discussions. With enabling supports and strategic investments, the agri-food sector has the potential to come out of the pandemic stronger than ever and help Canada in its fight against climate change.”

The CCA said the beef cattle sector is already leading sustainability initiatives through its 2030 goals and “look(s) forward to being a partner of the government as policies and programs are developed.”

Farmers and ranchers to be part of these discussions, the CCA said, “to ensure there are not unintended consequences for the environment, such as grassland loss.

“We note the budget included land conservation efforts and it is important that grasslands, that are such a vital part of the working landscape, are included in these policies, particularly as other government policies may lead to the unintended consequence of further grassland conversion.”

Farmers For Climate Solutions offered up one of the most comprehensive pre-budget submissions to the federal government, and is claiming a win in budget 2021. Like the CFA, several of its pre-budget recommendations were directly addressed by Freeland.

A $200 million in new funding over two years to help producers reduce emissions through nitrogen management, cover cropping and rotational grazing scored high marks with the organization. So too did the $60 million set aside to protect wetlands and trees over the next two years.

As its name suggests, Farmers For Climate Solutions has focused its lobbying efforts on green investments for the sector as Canada aims to achieve its Paris Agreement targets by 2030.

Ian McCreary, a Saskatchewan grain and livestock farmer who helped develop the organization’s budget recommendations, said Canada’s customers want sustainably grown food.

“This investment will support farmers across the country to scale-up practices that are proven to reduce our sector’s emissions,” he said, “Climate change poses the single largest threat to our sector, and this investment is an imperative for our ongoing success.”

‘Points’

Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau gave credit to the producers who continue to work to reduce emissions on their farms.

“More and more, farmers are the first ones to witness climate change,” she said, adding they are also the first ones that have to deal with changing weather.

“We have to make a much more significant shift.”

Leading up to the budget, the Liberals telegraphed several intentions and welcomed consultations.

While some groups were happy to see the government pay attention to consultations, not all stakeholders were congratulating the federal government for the 2021 budget.

The Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association (WCWG), for one, said it saw little that will benefit grain farmers in the budget and accused the government of failing to consult with the industry before announcing plans to limit nitrogen fertilizer use.

Its previously released climate plan noted direct emissions from synthetic nitrogen fertilizer applications had increased 60 per cent since 2005 and are projected to continue rising.

That plan committed to setting a “national emission reduction target of 30 per cent below 2020 levels from fertilizers and work with fertilizer manufacturers, farmers, provinces and territories, to develop an approach to meet it.”

A $50 million commitment to help retrofit grain dryers to be more environmentally friendly, as part of a $165.7 million investment, was also included in the budget.

“It is staggering to think that the federal government wants grain farmers to adopt commercially available clean technology by moving off diesel and assist with the purchase of more efficient grain dryers – this is an odd proposal and suggests that the farmers don’t already adopt the newest innovations that have proven benefits… which couldn’t be further from the truth,” Margaret Hansen, Saskatchewan’s director for the WCWG, said in a statement.

Despite Hansen’s assertion all farmers are already adopting commercially available clean technology, the federal government plans to help cover the cost of retrofitting about 1,400 grain dryers to be more environmentally friendly.

Asked about a lack of consultation, Bibeau pointed out she regularly ranks among the most lobbied federal politicians.

“I feel that’s all my life,” she said. “I spend my life on Zoom (with stakeholders).”

She said actions taken in this budget, and action items proposed ahead of it, were measured by their contributions to reaching Canada’s climate goals.

“The proposals that were bringing the best results in terms of reducing emissions would gain more points when it came to the final decision,” she said.

Grain Farmers of Ontario, meanwhile, said it “applauds” the government’s budget pledge to return a portion of the proceeds from carbon pricing directly to farmers.

GFO chair Brendan Byrne said the budget “recognizes that many farmers rely on natural gas and propane in their operations and that there are no ready substitutes.”

GFO was among several farm groups calling on Ottawa to exempt fuels used for grain drying from the pollution pricing system. Byrne said the group will “continue to call on the government to similarly rebate funds collected to date, and to ensure that rebates are delivered in a way that is equitable and administratively simple.”

The Canadian Horticulture Council (CHC) said it was “disappointed” in agriculture funding seen in the budget, “as it fails to adequately recognize our sector’s important role in a post-pandemic economic recovery.”

Jan VanderHout, CHC’s president and a vegetable grower in Ontario, said in a statement “we had hoped to receive more support from the federal budget.”

Horticulture producers had called for the creation of a financial protection mechanism for fruit and vegetable growers, pitching it as a no-cost solution for government that would save farm businesses.

“As Canadians continue to deal with the economic impacts of COVID-19, ensuring a stable and secure supply of fresh food remains critical,” said Rebecca Lee, CHC’s executive director.

“A greater consideration for cost certainty, through financial protection and stable business risk management programming, would go a long way to equipping our fruit and vegetable growers with the tools to survive and thrive.”

— D.C. Fraser reports for Glacier FarmMedia from Ottawa.

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Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Jan. 25 launched pre-budget consultations and since then, her schedule has involved several meetings with stakeholders.

“We want to hear ideas from Canadians, from all walks of life, on how to restore strong growth, forge a more resilient middle class, and build back better. This is your budget; tell us what matters most to you,” she said at the time.

A hard date hasn’t yet been set for the next budget, but Freeland’s consultation period is scheduled to close on Feb. 19. An online questionnaire for the public is available until that date.

In August, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture released its wish list for the 2021 budget. In these budget consultations, the organization plans to continue to refer back to that document, which offers three broad recommendations, each highlighted by specific measures that can be taken.

To kickstart the economic recovery, the CFA recommends the government restore the AgriStability program’s payment trigger to 85 per cent and eliminate the cap to reference margins.

Ottawa is prepared to remove the reference margin limit and boost the program’s compensation rate, but releasing extra dollars to farmers qualifying for payments is being held up by Prairie provinces reluctant to sign onto the deal. The provinces are responsible for covering 40 per cent of the government tab on AgriStability payouts.

CFA is also putting a particular focus is put on the processing sector. Citing a $77 million investment from the federal government to help food processors combat COVID-19, the organization says additional support is needed.

“To secure these critical food infrastructure links in advance of a second wave and the peak harvest season for many Canadian commodities, CFA recommends the next federal budget increase financial support to the food processing sector,” the document says.

“In addition to this support for existing food processors, CFA also recommends that the next federal budget invest in programming to support the development of more food processing facilities across Canada.”

CFA is also asking Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) “to reallocate underutilized AgriMarketing program dollars to implement a Buy Canadian campaign for Canadian retail channels, and engage exporters to identify and address key export opportunities.”

The 2020-21 spending estimates from the federal government show $20.3 million was transferred to partners through AgriMarketing programs, while talk of an Ottawa-led “Buy Canadian” campaign has floated around since at least 2019.

That year, the Liberals committed $25 million over five years to “develop a national approach to better connect Canadians with and instill pride in Canada’s food system and its agriculture, food and seafood products.”

In January 2020, AAFC put out a tender seeking a marketing firm to launch a “social marketing campaign to better connect Canadians with, and instil pride in, Canada’s food system and its agriculture, food and seafood products.”

The tender said an annual media buy budget between an estimated $1.5 million and $4 million would be available.

By June, Bibeau was saying the promotional campaign would “have to wait a bit longer” before being launched. At the time, concerns were being raised within her department over the timing of that program, and on which commodities it would focus.

On Jan. 15, the federal government awarded a $113,000 contract to Markham, Ont.-based digital ad agency Feast Interactive for the Buy Canadian campaign, but a timeline for its launch remains unclear.

CFA’s budget wish list also includes a call for better leveraging of agriculture’s environmental contributions. It asks the government to create programs allowing “producers to generate credits for agricultural activities under both the federal Greenhouse Gas Offset System and Clean Fuel Standard.”

Building resilience into Canada’s food system through a $3 million investment is another ask of CFA. They propose the dollars be used to reduce job vacancies “through career promotion, improve skills training opportunities for workers, support human resource management training/certification, and support commercialization of labour-saving technologies.”

The CFA is also requesting the federal government reinforce a $50 million fund targeted at reducing food waste.

— D.C. Fraser reports for Glacier FarmMedia from Ottawa.

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Federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced Monday that “as early as” Oct. 26, CEBA will be available to businesses which until now have been operating out of a “non-business banking account.”

To now be eligible, a business that was operating as a business as of March 1 this year and meets the other current CEBA criteria must “successfully” open a business account at a Canadian financial institution taking part in the program. The deadline to apply is Dec. 31 this year.

CEBA provides zero-interest loans of up to $40,000 to small business and non-profits that have had “diminished revenues” due to the COVID-19 pandemic but still face “ongoing non-deferrable costs” such as rent, utilities, insurance, taxes and wages.

Repaying the balance of a CEBA loan on or before Dec. 31, 2022 results in loan forgiveness of 25 per cent, up to $10,000.

Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau, in a separate statement Monday, said the latest expansion “has been an important ask from farmers and will help ensure the financial strength of the thousands of small agricultural businesses across the country.”

She also reiterated the government’s Oct. 9 announcement of other pending “major expansions” to CEBA, which would raise its loan limit to $60,000 and double the non-repayable forgivable portion to $20,000, saying those expanded amounts will be “available soon.”

Since CEBA’s launch in April, the federal government boosted the payroll eligibility range for CEBA from between $50,000 and $1 million to between $20,000 and $1.5 million.

The government in May also expanded program eligibility to “owner-operated” small businesses that don’t have payrolls; sole proprietors receiving business income directly; and family-owned corporations that pay out dividends rather than payroll.

As of Thursday last week, the government said, over 774,000 CEBA loans have so far been approved, worth almost $31 billion in all.

Not including the number of farmers made eligible by the change announced Monday, Bibeau said over 85,000 farm businesses will have access to interest-free loans through CEBA, worth up to $5.1 billion.

Thus, she said, “there is the potential of providing up to $1.7 billion directly to farmers through the forgivable portion of their interest-free loans.”

Farm groups including the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association hailed the government’s move on Monday. Grain Growers of Canada chair Jeff Nielsen said on Twitter the announcement “could be good news for those farmers who are sole proprietorships/family farms and just have a normal bank account.” –– Glacier FarmMedia Network

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Such a move would embarrass Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who has vowed that Parliament will quickly approve the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (CUSMA). Senior officials for all three nations formally approved a series of amendments on Tuesday for the pact meant to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Trudeau lost his majority in the House of Commons in an October election and needs the support of other parties to quickly push through ratification. Opposition legislators can engage in procedural maneuvers to delay the process.

The Conservative Party complained the Liberals had not consulted them at all in the final stages of negotiations on the amendments. Conservative legislator Leona Alleslev told the House that Trudeau had “sheepishly accepted” the terms put forward by the U.S. and Mexico.

“When will the prime minister realize that here at home he doesn’t have control of Parliament and he needs the support of opposition before finalizing major agreements?” she said.

Trudeau responded by saying he was sure all legislators would back the deal.

That is very unlikely since the separatist Bloc Quebecois promised to vote against the treaty on the grounds that it did not protect Quebec’s powerful aluminum industry.

The CUSMA deal calls for 70 per cent of the steel and aluminum used in auto production to be produced in North America, but specifically bans the use of semi-finished steel from China and elsewhere. There is no such provision for aluminum.

Bloc leader Yves-Francois Blanchet called the deal a catastrophe for Quebec’s aluminum workers and accused Trudeau of abandoning the industry.

Trudeau countered that the deal was good news, noting Quebec would produce much of the aluminum used in North American auto plants.

Deputy Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, who led Canada’s negotiating team, earlier told reporters she had invited her U.S. counterpart “to have a conversation with Canada about what we can do to support the North American aluminum industry.”

— David Ljunggren is Reuters’ political correspondent in Ottawa.

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The signing ceremony in Mexico City launched what may be the final approval effort for U.S. President Donald Trump’s three-year quest to revamp the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), a deal he has blamed for the loss of millions of U.S. manufacturing jobs.

The event at the National Palace was attended by Mexico President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and U.S. White House adviser Jared Kushner.

The result of a rare show of bipartisan and cross-border co-operation in the Trump era of global trade conflicts, the deal was inked the same day as he became the fourth U.S. president in history to face formal impeachment.

Lighthizer called it “a miracle” that actors from across the political spectrum had come together, calling it a testament to the benefits of the deal. Lopez Obrador credited Trump for working with him, while Freeland celebrated a win for multilateralism.

“We have accomplished this together at a moment when, around the world, it is increasingly difficult to get trade deals done,” she said.

The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (CUSMA) was signed more than a year ago to replace NAFTA, but Democrats controlling the U.S. House of Representatives insisted on major changes to labour and environmental enforcement before bringing it to a vote.

Delays, led primarily by Democrats and U.S. organized labour, at times threatened to scuttle the deal, creating investment uncertainty in all three countries and worrying U.S. farmers already suffering tariffs stemming from Trump’s trade war with China.

Intense negotiations over the past week among Democrats, the Trump administration and Mexico produced more stringent rules on labour rights aimed at reducing Mexico’s low-wage advantage, including verification of labour compliance at the factory level by independent labour experts.

“It is infinitely better than what was initially proposed by the administration,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told a news conference, adding that CUSMA was now ready for a House vote.

Some Mexican business groups fear that Lopez Obrador and his chief negotiator, Deputy Foreign Minister Jesus Seade, have ceded too much, and call the labour verification a violation of Mexican sovereignty.

Seade himself, who signed the deal on Tuesday, said some of the changes were reasonable but not necessarily “good for Mexico.”

Next “they’ll cede the Isthmus of Tehuantepec,” said Gustavo Hoyos, president of employers federation Coparmex and a vocal Lopez Obrador critic, referring to a strategic region of Mexico. He called the government “a bad negotiator.”

Republican and Democratic U.S. lawmakers say there is broad support for revising the trade pact, which encompasses US$1.2 trillion in annual trade across the continent and supports 12 million U.S. jobs and a third of American agricultural exports, backers say.

U.S. House ways and means committee chairman Richard Neal, a Democrat, said sections of the text would be reviewed by lawmakers, but he saw no reason for “unnecessary delays” in bringing the trade pact to a vote on the House floor.

However, in a new wrinkle to swift ratification in the United States, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the Republican-controlled Senate would not take up the deal before congressional recess, potentially pushing the vote into next year.

That seemed to put him at odds with Trump spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham, who said the White House would “push hard” to get the implementing bill passed before year-end.

Trump launched a renegotiation of NAFTA in his first year in office, intent on delivering on his 2016 campaign promise to replace what he has derided as the “worst deal ever.” Canadian and Mexican leaders reluctantly agreed to join the negotiations with their largest trading partner.

“America’s great USMCA Trade Bill is looking good. It will be the best and most important trade deal ever made by the USA. Good for everybody,” Trump tweeted on Tuesday. “Importantly, we will finally end our Country’s worst Trade Deal, NAFTA!”

For Democrats, the deal serves as a retort to Trump’s and Republicans’ assertions that their only agenda was pursuing his impeachment.

In addition to the labour provisions, Democrats said they won elimination of a 10-year data exclusivity period for biologic drugs from the agreement, which they feared would lead to higher U.S. drug prices.

But Pelosi said she lost her bid to remove liability protections for internet service providers, a provision she had called a “giveaway” to big tech companies.

U.S. Trade Representative Lighthizer included a last-minute demand of Mexico for a tighter definition of steel and aluminum in CUSMA’s automotive rules of origin to be “melted and poured” in North America. While CUSMA originally required 70 per cent of the metals used in North American vehicle production come from the region, it did not specify production methods, opening the door to the use of semi-finished metals from China and elsewhere.

Mexico and Canada agreed to a seven-year phase-in of the new standard for steel, industry sources familiar with the deal said. The aluminum demand was dropped, but with the caveat that it would be reconsidered in 10 years.

— Reporting for Reuters by Andrea Shalal and Sharay Angulo; additional reporting by David Lawder in Washington and Abraham Gonzalez and Daina Beth Solomon in Mexico City; writing by Dan Burns.

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Huawei’s chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou, who was arrested on U.S. fraud charges in Vancouver last December, will challenge Washington’s extradition request at hearings that are set to begin next January.

China angrily demanded Canada release Meng and detained two Canadians on spying charges. It has also blocked imports of Canadian canola seed and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said he fears further retaliation.

The Globe and Mail on Thursday said former Prime Minister Jean Chretien had floated the idea of the government intervening to stop the extradition case and thereby improve ties with Beijing.

“When it comes to Ms Meng there has been no political interference… and that is the right way for extradition requests to proceed,” Freeland told a televised news conference in Washington.

“It would be a very dangerous precedent indeed for Canada to alter its behaviour when it comes to honoring an extradition treaty in response to external pressure,” she added, saying to do so could make Canadians around the world less safe.

Canadian officials say they see no prospect of relations with China improving until Meng’s future is resolved.

Trudeau said last week he would look at whether it was “appropriate or desirable” to seek a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of a Group of 20 summit in Japan later this month.

Trudeau plans to visit Washington for talks on June 20 which will address the case of the two detained Canadians.

— Reporting for Reuters by David Ljunggren in Ottawa.

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Trump, whose administration has made passing the United States-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) free trade agreement a priority, unexpectedly said on Thursday he would slap tariffs on all goods coming from Mexico unless a surge of illegal immigrants ceased.

Neil Bradley, executive vice-president and chief policy officer at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said the move undermined the relationship with Canada and Mexico.

“This is definitely a roadblock to securing passage of USMCA,” he told CNN.

Trump made his threat the same day that Vice-President Mike Pence visited Ottawa and said he was pushing to get the U.S. Congress to ratify the deal this summer after both Canada and Mexico moved to start the approval process this week.

The news rocked markets and prompted a flurry of protests from Mexican and U.S. business groups.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador told reporters on Friday that ratification efforts would continue.

“The opinion of the executive is that the process of ratification of the treaty continues, that we comply with the commitments that were made and that we finish soon approving the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement,” he said.

The Mexican and Canadian governments appeared unclear as to how serious Trump might actually be. The USMCA was agreed last year after 15 months of sometimes acrimonious negotiations marked by episodes of U.S. brinkmanship.

“It is a little strange, to say the least, that he decides to resolve the issue of immigration using tariffs,” Mexico’s Deputy Economy Minister Luz Maria de la Mora said in an interview on Friday.

Canada and Mexico both ship more than 75 per cent of all their goods exports to the United States and are heavily reliant on free trade.

“Following through on this threat would seriously jeopardize passage of USMCA, a central campaign pledge of President Trump’s and what could be a big victory for the country,” said U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley.

In Ottawa, Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland declined to comment on what she described as a bilateral issue between the United States and Mexico.

“Our intention is, in so far as possible, to move in tandem with our partners,” she told reporters.

Canada moved to ratify the deal by formally presenting it to Parliament on Wednesday.

Roland Paris, former foreign policy advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, said there was no reason for Ottawa to react immediately to Trump’s latest move given that Mexico was seeking clarification from Washington.

“That said, Trump’s new threats are a reminder that we will need to remain vigilant, because negotiations for him never seem to be final,” he said in an interview.

A Canadian source with direct knowledge of the situation said Ottawa was aware that Trump had not always followed through with previous threats to impose tariffs on trading partners.

— Reporting for Reuters by David Alire Garcia in Mexico City and David Ljunggren in Ottawa; additional reporting by Frank Jack Daniel in Mexico City, Chris Prentice, Susan Cornwell and Brice Makini in Washington and Kelsey Johnson and Steve Scherer in Ottawa.

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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau presented the bill to the House of Commons, confirming a Reuters story from Tuesday that said the legislation would officially be offered up to parliament on Wednesday.

Canada, Mexico and the United States signed the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) in November 2018.

However, the deal, which would replace the existing North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), has yet to be ratified by any of the three countries.

“The new NAFTA will secure access to a trading zone that accounts for more than a quarter of the global economy,” Trudeau said. “It is now time for the members of this House to ratify it.”

Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland has said Canada will press ahead with its ratification plans, in tandem with the United States.

With Canadian voters set to head to the polls in October for a national election and the U.S. presidential election in 2020, time is running short.

Pence is scheduled to meet with Trudeau on Thursday to discuss USMCA ratification and other issues. It marks the first time the vice-president has travelled to Canada in an official capacity.

His visit also comes after the U.S. agreed to remove tariffs on Canadian and Mexican steel and aluminum products earlier this month, ending a year-long dispute.

Canadian officials had said Canada probably would not pass the pending trade pact until the tariffs had been lifted.

— Reporting for Reuters by Kelsey Johnson in Ottawa.

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Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland presented what’s known as a ways and means motion to the House of Commons, which opens the way for formal presentation of a bill.

The U.S. struck deals on May 17 to lift tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada and Mexico, removing a major obstacle to legislative approval of the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), the trilateral trade deal to replace the 25-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement.

Pence is going to meet Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Ottawa on May 30 to discuss “advancing” ratification.

“The entry into force of this agreement does not depend solely on Canada,” Freeland told reporters after presenting the motion. “Insofar as possible, we intend to move in tandem with the United States.”

The U.S. is Canada’s top trading partner, taking in 75 per cent of its goods exports. Reaching a new trade deal had been a priority for Trudeau’s Liberal government, and now a national election is just five months away.

Some U.S. Democrats have come out against ratifying the trade agreement. While Freeland has said the government is “full steam ahead” on ratification, she would not say on Monday whether the government would push to get it done before parliament goes into recess ahead of the vote.

John Manley, a former Liberal foreign minister, said Friday that Canada should pass the new treaty this summer.

“To fail to pass it is going to be a signal to the U.S. Congress that it is still open for renegotiations,” Manley told Reuters.

Some U.S. lawmakers have said passing the treaty would become more difficult after the congressional summer recess due to budget battles and increased campaigning ahead of the November 2020 presidential election.

— Reporting for Reuters by Kelsey Johnson and Steve Scherer in Ottawa.

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