U.S. envoy to Canada seeks to soothe Canadian concerns about ‘fiscal cliff’

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U.S. ambassador to Canada David Jacobson delivers a speech on the impact of the U.S. election on Canadian-American relations, Tuesday, December 4, 2012 in Montreal.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz

MONTREAL – The U.S. envoy to Canada is seeking to ease concern within the Canadian business community by downplaying the severity of the so-called “fiscal cliff.”

Speaking today in Montreal, U.S. Ambassador David Jacobson described the fiscal cliff as probably more like a “fiscal slide.”

Jacobson says that even if Congress cannot reach an agreement by the Jan. 1 deadline, the impact of the resulting tax increases and spending cuts won’t be felt immediately.

He says the impact would be felt over the following months — until the new fiscal year on October 1.

Jacobson says it’s not going to be the end of the world if Congress can’t reach deal — but he says it would definitely be playing with fire.

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