Bragging at its worst. (News in Brief: Canada).

PM Jean Chretien, in a $500 a plate dinner in Montreal on May 14, bragged that Canada is a better country than the U.S. "because we've got gun control, abortion rights, and no death penalty." He went on to say, "We don't have big debates on the rights of abortion because we decided a long time ago in Canada it is the choice of women, which is not the case in a lot of the U.S." Of the four Toronto daily newspapers which reported on the dinner, only the Toronto Sun reported these words.

Then two weeks later, on May 27, Mr. Chretien, in an airplane on his way to Athens, Greece, repeated this statement as part of a boastful declaration about the superiority of Canada over the United States. Speaking about President George W. Bush, he stated, "Of course we don't think alike on many issues. On social issues, he is a conservative. I am for free choice on abortion even though I am a Catholic. He is not. He is against gun control. I am for it. He is for capital punishment. I am against it. I am a Liberal."

Mr. Chretien also went out of his way to praise former Democratic president Bill Clinton and noted the two remain close friends (Toronto Star, Globe, Nat. Post).