Canada’s historical amnesia leaves us ill-prepared to confront today’s new realities
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To the south, “Manifest Destiny.” To the north, “Peace, Order, and Good Government.” These constitutional principles define starkly different national identities—one rooted in individualism, the other in collectivism.
Manifest destiny may sound like a relic of 19th-century history, but it remains deeply embedded in the American psyche. Until Donald Trump’s inauguration speech, many Canadians had likely never encountered the term. Yet it explains much about American ambition and unity—qualities often absent in Canada.
Trump’s speech revived the ethos of manifest destiny, framing it as a modern call to action: “The United States will once again consider itself a growing nation … We will pursue our manifest destiny into the stars.” Stirring and unapologetically ambitious, it was bellicose populism at its finest—rallying the troops while feeding the voracious ego of a leader who thrives on division.
For Canadians, such rhetoric is foreign. Unity here often feels elusive, and our leaders rarely invoke it with the same fervour. The closest Canadian equivalent might be Sir John A. Macdonald’s National Policy, a 19th-century strategy designed to solidify the young country’s unity. Yet, ask 100 Canadians about it today, and half would respond, “Who is Macdonald anyway?” Let alone his policy.
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This historical amnesia is troubling. Without a clear sense of our national identity, we face challenges ill-prepared. We squabble among ourselves, making plenty of noise about national unity but offering little substance or direction. Meanwhile, the U.S. continues to expand its influence and ambitions, waving the four aces of manifest destiny in its poker hand almost daily.
Manifest destiny was the belief that the U.S. was divinely ordained to expand westward, a conviction that still inspires American ambition. Trump’s speech revived this ethos, rallying unity while excluding those outside its vision.
As Canadians, we must ask: what’s our version of manifest destiny? What vision unites us?
Canada’s National Policy offers a potential answer. Macdonald used it to foster unity by linking an established East with a growing West. It relied on tariffs to protect Canadian businesses from cheaper U.S. imports, encouraged immigration, and built infrastructure like the transcontinental railway. Above all, it aimed to keep American influence at bay.
Westward expansion highlights the contrast between Canada and the U.S. Both nations offered settlers 160 acres to entice westward settlement. In the U.S., there was little government intervention, and rapid, aggressive acquisition was encouraged. In Canada, the government maintained control, dictating who could settle and imposing stewardship requirements. Of course, both nations’ expansions came at the expense of Indigenous communities, a shameful legacy we must also acknowledge.
This difference—unchecked ambition versus collective management—reflects our national ethos: “Peace, Order, and Good Government.” Yet most Canadians today are unaware of how these principles shaped our history.
Canada faces internal divisions, regional disparities, and global pressures—challenges that demand unity but lack a shared purpose.
Americans, for better or worse, remain inspired by their national mythos. Trump’s rhetoric may have been divisive, but it was undeniably stirring. By contrast, Canadians haven’t heard such a unifying call in generations.
Revisiting the National Policy could help Canadians recover their sense of self. Its vision of linking a stable East with a growing West carried a unifying purpose rooted in pragmatism. Canadians today value “peace, order, and good government,” but many have lost sight of its origins and its potential to guide us forward.
It’s time to rediscover our history. Historians could help Canadians—and their leaders—reconnect with the principles that shaped our nation. Perhaps it’s time for a “National Policy 101,” where historians could reintroduce us to the ideas that once held the country together.
Regardless of your views on Trump, his words remind us of the power of a unifying vision. It’s time for Canadians to find their own. “Peace, Order, and Good Government” may lack the bravado of manifest destiny, but it is uniquely ours—and it’s worth rallying behind.
Bill Whitelaw is a director and advisor to many industry boards, including the Canadian Society for Evolving Energy, which he chairs. He speaks and comments frequently on the subjects of social licence, innovation and technology, and energy supply networks.
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