John Alexander Macdonald, an imaginative conservative, is the father of Canadian nation. MacDonald is keen on his English ancestry, but he is more Canadian than those critics who demand him. MacDonald used legendary political skills to unite various political forces to establish a transcontinental country, and made this new country successfully resist the political and economic annexation of the United States. In 2004, McDonald was selected as "Top Ten Outstanding Canadians" in the "Greatest Canadians" contest organized by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.