The following excerpt is from Freedom Fighter: John Diefenbaker’s Battle for Canadian Liberties and Independence by Bob Plamondon, published by the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy. Foreword by Jean Chrétien. 

Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts visited Canada in October 1957, four months after John Diefenbaker had become prime minister, to receive an honorary doctor of laws from the University of New Brunswick. Prematurely, but not inaccurately, Kennedy was introduced by the university chancellor as the next president of the United States. In his remarks, he dismissed Diefenbaker’s attempt to divert trade away from the United States as “deluded,” noting, “It would be a pity to rigidify the Canadian economy merely for the sake of breaking lances with a phantom American colonialism.” These were harsh words, especially for an American politician to deliver on Canadian soil and an early indication of the difficulties he would encounter with Diefenbaker in matters of state and a personal relationship.