US encouraging Canada to use 'federal powers' against protesters

RT
Fri, 11 Feb 2022 21:52 UTC

© Global Look Press / Lin Wei

Freedom Convoy trucks line the streets of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

The Department of Homeland Security has reportedly pledged its "full support" to Canada in dealing with trucker protests

The White House has reportedly called on the Canadian government to employ "federal powers" to shut down trucker Covid-19 protests in Ottawa and elsewhere, offering the "full support" of the US Department of Homeland Security.

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) reported on Thursday that members of the Biden administration - including Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas - "held a series of high level calls with their Canadian counterparts, urging them to use their federal powers to end the blockades."

The CBC also reported that members of the Biden administration had offered Canada "the full support of the Department of Homeland Security" to deal with the protests.

Comment: Um, wouldn't that be construed as interfering with the internal politics of another country? But then, that's never stopped the Empire before.

In a statement to the CBC, the White House claimed US officials had been "engaged around the clock" to bring the protest "to a swift end."

Truckers protesting Covid-19 restrictions in Canada, which require them to be fully vaccinated or undergo quarantine every time they cross the US border, have blockaded the Ambassador Bridge which connects Windsor, Ontario to Detroit, Michigan - creating heavy economic losses and angering officials on both sides of the border.

The privately-owned Ambassador Bridge between Windsor, ON and Detroit, MI has been completely shut down.

Trudeau's public safety minister on Wednesday called the bridge protests illegal, accusing the truckers and their supporters of "hurting Canadians."

Protesters have also camped outside Canada's Parliament in Ottawa for several weeks, calling on the government and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to reverse the country's Covid-19 policies and mandates.

Trudeau and other government officials, however, referred to the protesters as a "fringe minority" and extremists, while police in Ottawa have threatened to arrest protesters and anyone who provides them with "material support" such as fuel. Hundreds of protesters responded to the police threats this week by marching through Ottawa carrying fuel cans - many of which were empty or contained water instead of gasoline.

Comment: Ah, the real reason. Not concern for a neighboring country's stability and well-being, but because AMERICA is losing money.

Angry truckers have been disrupting traffic across the Ambassador Bridge, which connects Detroit, Michigan with Windsor, Ontario, for four days straight. The last access point to the bridge was completely shut down early on Thursday morning, CBC News reported. Windsor Police, meanwhile, have asked drivers to take alternative routes.

Mayorkas and Buttigieg offered the "full support" of their respective departments to the Canadian government in resolving the crisis.

"US and Canadian border and customs authorities are working with great urgency to ensure the continued flow of goods and services across our international border, leveraging alternative land routes, as well as air and sea options," a White House official said.

"We know that disruptions like these hit hard-working American families the hardest," the White House said, as quoted by CBC News. A US official further told the outlet that Washington was working "around the clock" to resolve the matter.

Lotsa luck with that. Just ask Ottawa's mayor. And he's not faced with a bridge.

Oops: Removing Freedom Convoy protest trucks could be almost 'impossible,' say heavy towing experts

Detroit-Windsor bridge traffic accounts for about $355 million worth of goods traded between the US and Canada, more than a quarter of all commerce between the two countries. The Canadian authorities have tried to route trucks to the Blue Water Bridge in nearby

Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens told CNN that authorities were prepared to start "physically" removing protesters unless they stop disrupting the traffic.

Canadian police said on Thursday that protesters had used trucks and farm equipment to block the crossing connecting Pembina, North Dakota to Emerson, Manitoba. They also blocked the Coutts access point between Alberta and Montana.

Truckers argue that the vaccine mandate and other pandemic restrictions endanger their livelihoods. They began the so-called 'Freedom Convoy 2022' rallies in Canada's capital, Ottawa, last month. The protest has since morphed into a broader demonstration against the government, with some calling for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to resign.

Trudeau, who says the vast majority of the country's truckers have been fully vaccinated, has taken a harsh stance against the protests.

"Blockages, illegal demonstrations are unacceptable and are negatively impacting businesses and manufacturers," the PM said on Wednesday. "We must do everything to bring them to an end."

Trudeau argued that protesters were trying to "blockade our economy, our democracy, and our fellow citizens' daily lives."

Oh yes, Ottawa's population of government drones is now being inconvenienced, but somehow the 2-year disruption to ordinary citizen's lives is not worth discussing.