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Hello,
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is ruling out the use of the military to deal with any of the ongoing protests at the border or in Ottawa, saying it is up to police to deal with them.
“We never want to deploy the army against Canadian citizens,” Mr. Trudeau told a Friday afternoon news conference on Parliament Hill as trucks were parked outside, blocking Wellington Street, not far from where he was speaking.
“Using military forces against civilian populations in Canada or any other democracy is something to avoid having to do at all costs. That’s why the solution right now is focused on police forces enforcing the law that exists, protecting public order in the way that they are trained to do, in a predictable, progressive approach that doesn’t skip any steps, that works to conclude this situation peacefully,” Mr. Trudeau said.
“We are a long way from ever having to call in the military, although, of course, we have to be ready for any eventuality, but it is not something we are seriously contemplating at this time.”
The Prime Minister noted that politicians do not direct police, but the RCMP is working with provincial and local forces to enforce the law. “Everything is on the table because this unlawful activity has to end – and it will end,” he said, adding he could not say much about how that would happen.
He said he hoped the protesters would choose to leave peacefully now that they had been heard.
He said he did not think the city of Ottawa had exhausted its tools and resources, noting the police force has been given resources from the Ontario Provincial Police and the RCMP.
Mr. Trudeau was speaking after talks Friday with U.S. President Joe Biden about protests affecting the flow of goods across the border and the shared challenges of dealing with them.
A statement released from the White House said the two leaders agreed that the actions of the individuals obstructing travel and commerce between the two countries are having significant impacts on people’s lives and livelihoods.
“The President expressed his concern that U.S. companies and workers are experiencing serious effects, including slowdowns in production, shortened work hours, and plant closures. The Prime Minister promised quick action in enforcing the law,” it said.
In Toronto, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced earlier Friday that he was declaring a state of emergency in response to the ongoing blockades in Ottawa and Windsor, Ont.
Mr. Trudeau described the announcement as “responsible and necessary.”
Mr. Ford said he would use legal measures to enact orders making it “crystal clear” that it is illegal and punishable to block and impede the movement of goods, people and services along critical infrastructure.
The Premier said that includes protecting international border crossings, 400-series highways, airports, ports, bridges and railways.
Queen’s Park Reporter Jeff Gray reports here on Mr. Ford’s announcement.
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TODAY’S HEADLINES
PROTESTS
BIDEN TEAM PUSHING FOR ACTION ON BORDER-CROSSING PROTESTS – The Biden administration is pressing Ottawa to intervene to end blockades at border crossings and is offering help from the Department of Homeland Security. Story here.
TORIES SHIFT PROTEST POLICY – In a reversal of their earlier support for the protesters, federal Conservatives called Thursday for trucker blockades to end, as a new border protest in Manitoba joined similar efforts in Alberta and Ontario. Story here.
DANIEL DALE ON FALSE CANADIAN PROTEST CLAIMS – CNN’s Daniel Dale looks at several false claims about the ongoing Canadian protests against vaccine mandates, COVID-19 restrictions and the federal government. Story here.
POILIEVRE PROUD OF TRUCKERS – Conservative leadership candidate Pierre Poilievre said he is “proud” of the truckers and stands with them. The Ottawa-area MP made the remarks in an interview recorded Thursday for next week’s episode of the Postmedia podcast Full Comment with Anthony Furey. Story here.
SECURITY RISK CLOSES N.S. LEGISLATURE – The Nova Scotia Legislature will be temporarily closed to visitors starting Friday because of a “security risk.” James Charlton, chief clerk of the Nova Scotia Assembly, wouldn’t provide details on the threats or the locations involved but said ongoing protests in Ottawa and at the Ambassador Bridge were “a factor.” Story here from CBC.
MEANWHILE
CHAREST PODERING LEADERSHIP RUN – Le Devoir is reporting that former Quebec premier Jean Charest is seriously considering running for the leadership of the federal Conservatives, with a decision likely in a week. Story here.
BORDER RULES TO CHANGE : DUCLOS – The federal government is reviewing its pandemic-related border restrictions, and Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos said it will announce changes next week. Story here.
MANITOBA ANNOUNCES EASING OF RESTRICTIONS – Premier Heather Stefanson says Manitoba is accelerating its plan to ease COVID-19 restrictions and expects to have all public-health orders lifted in the coming weeks. Story here.
THIS AND THAT
The projected order of business at the House of Commons for Feb.11 is here.
BERGEN NAMES NEW CHIEF OF STAFF – Interim Conservative Leader Candice Bergen has appointed William Stairs as her chief of staff. The previous chief of staff in the office of the leader of the Official Opposition was Tausha Michaud. Mr. Stairs was a communications director for former prime minister Stephen Harper, among other senior government roles that included chief of staff in the minister’s office at Treasury Board and the Justice Department. Since leaving politics, he has run his own communications consulting firm and taught strategic communications at Carleton University.
RAE ON PROTESTS – Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations is here speaking out on what he thinks is really going on with the protests.
KIND WEEK AHEAD – Next week is the third week of February, which means it’s Canada’s first National Kindness Week. It’s the result of an act brought forward by former senator Jim Munson as a private member’s bill in the Senate and sponsored in the House by Conservative MP Michael Barrett and Liberal MP Emmanuella Lambropoulos. All three will participate in a Tuesday news conference on the subject.
THE DECIBEL – Friday’s edition of The Globe and Mail podcast features Zexi Li, an Ottawa resident who was key to a civil suit that muted the honking of trucker convoy horns in the city’s downtown. Zexi shares what it’s been like living among the cacophony, how she slept and why she agreed to be the public face of the class-action suit. The Decibel is here.
PRIME MINISTER’S DAY
Private meetings. The Prime Minister received a COVID–19 briefing from Theresa Tam, the Chief Public Health Officer of Canada. He also participated in a meeting hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden to discuss Ukraine with the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, the United Kingdom, the European Union and NATO. A news conference was also scheduled.
LEADERS
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, with MP Niki Ashton, met with chiefs about internet connectivity over Indigenous lands.
No schedule released for other party leaders.
OPINION
Andrew Coyne (The Globe and Mail) on time being an ally and boredom a friend in ending the trucker protests: “Much as many may be desiring a quick end to the standoff, that option is not realistically open to us. The better course is what might for want of a better word be called containment, neither assaulting the encampment nor allowing it to spread, but slowly squeezing it: shrinking its footprint, restricting access in or out (a perimeter fence could be useful in this regard), controlling and curtailing its supply lines, increasing the legal and financial pressures on the participants (licences and insurance would both seem points of vulnerability) and depriving them, as much as possible, of the oxygen of publicity – smothering them, as it were, with inactivity. As time goes on, nothing happens, and the media gets bored, so will many of them. That will make it easier to separate the hard-core ideologues from the ones who are just along for the ride – not all at once, most likely, but by attrition, an arrest here, an injunction there.”
John Ibbitson (The Globe and Mail) on how Ontario Premier Doug Ford has astutely shifted blame to Ottawa in the runup to Ontario’s spring election: “Ontario is in turmoil from one end of the province to the other – from a blockade in Windsor to trucker protests in Ottawa. But those disturbances are unlikely to reshape the outcome of the June 2 provincial election. Progressive Conservative Premier Doug Ford appears to be pursuing the politically astute tactic of shifting responsibility to the federal government, while at the same time not alienating voters who may share the protesters’ opposition to pandemic restrictions. It could help him get re-elected.”
Adam Radwanski (The Globe and Mail) on high-profile Conservatives launching a bid to convince party leaders that climate policy matters: “Even as their party appears to be abandoning its short-lived support for carbon pricing, a small group of high-profile Conservatives is launching an effort to get their next leader to take climate policy seriously. Conservatives for Clean Growth, launched on Thursday morning, bills itself as an organization of long-term “activists, advisers and members” who believe “it’s critical for the Conservative Party of Canada to have a credible plan on the environment.”
Daniel Panneton (Contributed to The Globe and Mail) on how the trucker convoy shows how Canadians are being sucked into larger conspiratorial narratives: “Rising food costs and supply chain issues were among the legitimate issues highlighted during the protests, but panic-shopping in the early days of the pandemic demonstrated how the prospect of empty shelves can easily induce irrational behaviour. Already, right-wing extremist activity has surged and increasing numbers of Canadians are thinking conspiratorially. Trust in institutions is failing, and it’s vital that journalists and particularly lawmakers recognize how extremists can opportunistically redefine and hijack existing issues, and hold their peers accountable when they amplify or normalize accelerationist narratives. Failure to do so, or worse, attempting to harness and manipulate them for political gain, will only pull Canada deeper into our present quagmire.”
Hamish Telford (Contributed to The Globe and Mail) on how returning the BC Liberals to glory will be a very tall order for Kevin Falcon: “Under the successful leadership of both Mr. Campbell and Ms. Clark, the liberal and conservative factions in the party were held together by a relentless focus on economic issues, while social issues were generally held in abeyance. Even party stalwarts such as Rich Coleman and Mary Polak held their socially conservative views in check. However, in the past election, some social conservatives in the party were unwilling to suppress their convictions. One candidate suggested that free contraception was akin to eugenics, while another opposed rainbow crosswalks in her community. These candidates did the party irreparable harm in many urban ridings. It will be difficult for Mr. Falcon to put this genie back in the bottle, and even if he is successful it may not be enough.”
Mohammed Adam (The Ottawa Citizen) on how Ottawa is under siege because police inaction enabled it: “Yes, policing is hard even at the best of times, and harder still, when faced with protesters who have turned into occupiers. But let’s be clear about one thing: Ottawa is under siege because police inaction enabled it. Police are now having a hard time ending the demonstration because they let it fester in the first place. They have a lot of questions to answer, not only for how they handled this protest but, critically, going forward.”
Susan Prentice and Lisa Pasolli (Policy Options) on why there is no go reason for Ontario to delay signing a child-care agreement: “All Ontarians – not just parents of young children – should welcome Ottawa’s national child-care policy and urge the province to sign on. Ontario is the last holdout on the national initiative. While Premier Doug Ford dithers, a small minority is trying to weaken the pan-Canadian policy. They are trying to undermine the national approach, for reasons that include skepticism, financial self-interest and old-fashioned nostalgia for the 1950s family. While they may have the Ford government’s ear, they should not.”
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