Trump and Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene have already long since weighed in. Fox News is running wall-to-wall commentary: one Fox host called Prime Minister Justin Trudeau “a wannabe emperor, a haircut with an ego.” A gelato truck operator who was harassed after donating to the convoy made an appearance, as did the interim leader of the Conservative party. Tucker Carlson called Trudeau a “Stalinist dictator” who “suspended democracy and declared Canada a dictatorship.”
Analysis of records purportedly hacked from a crowdfunding website revealed more than half of the donors to the protest — and a little less than half of total funds raised — are from the U.S., including from members of far-right groups such as the Oath Keepers.
Again, here's what's happened.
ReplyDeleteDespite having adequate power to ensure police and the RCMP (our version of the Shin Bet) could clear the convoy (and the government of Ontario did clear a convoy blocking a border point with the US with no special powers needed), the government invoked an act meant to give them emergency powers in war-time. The convoy has now been cleared but the government says it will maintain the state of emergency because if they lift it, the truckers might come back!
The government has demanded banks freeze the bank accounts of anyone who donated money to the truckers. Officially they say they only care about big donors but stories are already coming out about people who gave as little as $50 getting all their accounts and credit cards frozen. The banks aren't differentiating and with the Act they don't have to. So if you gave $50 to the truckers, now you can't pay rent or buy groceries.
The government continues to portray the truckers as a bunch of Neo-Nazis despite any such activity being openly disavowed by the organizers. The other day our idiot PM told a Jewish member of Parliament that while he was "protecting Canadians" she was showing common cause with Nazis. A Jewish member of Parliament. Think about that.
Is there lots of US money coming in? Sure. And a couple of years ago when Natives and Ecofascist groups were blocking rail lines and pipelines and disrupting the economy they too were getting tons of money from US NGO's but the government didn't have a problem with that. Suddenly they do.
In summary - we're in a state of emergency that was only supposed to last as long as the convoy, 30 days at most if necessary and is now being extended indefinitely. Yes, we have a problem.