Obama to Visit Canada First

The high-profile visit with Prime Minister Stephen Harper, confirmed today, sends an important signal about the state of Canada-U.S. relations.  "We have been in close contact with President-elect Obama's transition team," Harper spokesperson Dimitri Soudas said today.  "We can confirm that the President-elect has accepted the Prime Minister's invitation to visit Canada soon after he is inaugurated," he said in an email.

U.S. presidents typically use Canada as their first international trip, although President George W. Bush deviated from the trend and made Mexico his first visit after he took office.