What we hosers hope will get resolved
There are a few bright, burning issues of contention that exist between the good neighbours in North America. Hopefully these will get resolved amicably during GW Bush's second term:
1. Lumber tariffs -- though the Canadian stumpage rules do need reform, the tariff regime imposed by the US is way out of line since they can't even prove to their own FTC that anyone has been substantively harmed. This has been going on for over a decade now (almost two) and every multinational dispute panel has sided with the Canada. At stake are several thousand jobs lost, billions drained from the economy, and seized funds in the billions.
2. Beef -- despite all scientific evidence and reasoning, the USA refuses to open its borders to Canadian beef. Over a billion dollars has been lost to the Canadian economy (mostly the province of Alberta, which happens to be the most USA friendly of all). There was a theory that Kerry would have preserved the closure and that Bush is actively working on ending it. Let's see what happens.
3. Intellectual Property -- currently, Canada has far more protections, both legislatively and in common law (i.e., court rulings) for the protection of consumers rights with respect to intellectual property fair use. Provided we don't sell or actively distribute content we have purchased in one medium, we are free to copy it to other mediums for our own use. This is being actively fought by the current, dominant players in the "old media" on both sides of the border.
4. Missile Defense -- besides being ridiculed from both a scientific and military (and financial) point of view, Canada is being pressured to assist the development of active missile defense. Opposition sees this as a scientific boondogle with a serious chance of turning into a fiscal black hole -- a very sensitive issue since Canadian military spending is so proportionally low. However, the current minority government is showing signs of caving in just to ease US-Canada relations.
5. Gay Marriage -- this is pretty much a done deal in Canada. Our courts and (most) legislatures are on their way to allowing homosexuals the same rights under marriage (and divorce) as hetero couples. A large majority of the population in all regions supports this effort. A huge cultural gap between the two countries.
6. Decriminalization of Pot -- mixed feelings about this throughout the Canadian population and various levels of law enforcement. Currently the balance is in favour of so-called "weak decriminilization" of small amounts. Law enforcement on both sides of the border aren't so pleased.