A key difference between US and Canadian spending is that when the US spends $163 million on an American jet, the money stays within the US economy. It's essent

A key difference between US and Canadian spending is that when the US spends $163 million on an American jet, the money stays within the US economy. It's essentially a roundabout economic stimulus program. That said, big economic deals like this between the US and Canada don't happen in a vacuum either. Our two countries have a large, complex, and mutually beneficial economic relationship. And assuming Canada wants to maintain self-defense capability, it needs to buy the jets from somewhere. The F-35 is competitive with or superior to the competition from elsewhere in terms of price and performance.