08/27/2026
Last night I attended a reception introducing the establishment of the new South Carolina Dept. Of Commerce Toronto office. When I suggested to Secretary of Commerce Harry M. Lightsey III (on the left) that it was an interesting time to open a trade office. He said South Carolina is not Washington and wants to pursue more fair and reasonable trade with Ontario. In 2025 Ontario/South Carolina trade exceeded 5.7 billion dollars
The Honourable Steven Lecce, Ontario Energy and Mines minister (on the right) gave a great speech that put me in mind of the optimism of our Centennial year when Canada could do anything. He covered ground but talked about the Bruce nuclear expansion and the massive new nuclear power plant being built east of Toronto. SC is embracing nuclear power, and Ontario expertise can figure into that.
He did say that currently Canada produces 24% of the world's uranium.
Good people continue to fight the good fight on both sides of the border.