 Ian Brodie (Chief of Staff in Stephen Harper's Prime Minister's Office), during the media lockup for the February 26, 2008, budget, stopped to chat with several journalists and was surrounded by a group from CTV.The conversation turned to the pledges to renegotiate NAFTA made by the two Democratic contenders, Obama and Clinton.Brodie, apparently seeking to play down the potential impact on Canada, told the reporters that the threat was not serious and that someone from Clinton's campaign had even contacted Canadian diplomats to tell them not to worry because the NAFTA threats were mostly political posturing.