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Shop NowIn a startling overreaction to the trucker protests which have drawn international attention to Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has given himself unprecedented emergency powers to crack down on the movement. Trudeau has invoked the Emergencies Act for the first time since it was passed in 1988. The act is intended for use during times of war or other national crises and Trudeau’s move is likely to be extremely controversial, with all eyes already on Canada after weeks of protests.
Dramatic developments in Canada
Trudeau has had the worst month of his political life; the arrival of the protesting truck drivers has placed him in a position he has been stunningly unprepared to cope with.
For Americans watching from south of the border, Trudeau’s response and the mainstream media’s coverage of the situation has sounded very familiar.
Regardless of whether or not one agrees with their cause, the truckers protesting in Canada have been universally peaceful and have shown no interest in starting any violence.
Western liberal societies have made it central to their identities in the last century that peaceful protesters must be allowed to voice their concerns freely.
That was easy for governments and networks to say while the protesting was being done by communists and anarchists; what’s happening in Canada now is the true test of these principles.
It is a rare instance of a democratic Western government being confronted with a right-wing protest movement which has shown itself to be just as obstinate as the left. Everyone should be paying attention to Trudeau’s response.
Trudeau goes too far
The prime minister has adamantly refused to meet with the protesters or listen to their demands. Instead, Trudeau has embraced the unfortunate precedents he has witnessed in the United States.
The protests have been treated as another January 6. The domestic war on terror south of the border has extended itself into Canada and presented Trudeau with what must have looked like an easy way out of the situation.
He may have been too hasty to take that opportunity; the Emergencies Act has never been used before and many people are struggling to find anything to justify its use now.
The act evolved out of the War Measures Act, which explains how serious a decision it is to employ it now. For all but Trudeau’s most devoted supporters, it’s a concerning turn of events.
When Trudeau’s father was prime minister he employed the War Measures Act in response to a serious terrorism crisis. Even then it was seen as an extreme decision.
For the younger Trudeau it looks like a desperate attempt to show strength after being criticized for his inactivity so far. What happens to Trudeau and Canada after this will be of interest to the entire Western world.
