An official petition before Canada’s House of Commons has surpassed 171,000 signatures, marking a significant milestone in the growing discontent within Canada with the administration of the United States. The petition, initiated on July 21st, 2023, seeks to expel the United States ambassador, Pete Hoekstra, citing repeated statements undermining Canadian-US diplomatic relations. The effort underscores a widespread feeling of frustration amongst Canadians with the Trump administration’s policies, particularly concerning US-Canada relations. The petition accuses Hoekstra of “repeatedly making public statements undermining Canada-US diplomatic relations.” Hoekstra has defended Trump’s pledge to make Canada “the 51st” US state, and last year, he accused Canadian officials of seeking to interfere in US elections. These remarks came in response to advertisements funded by the Ontario government, criticizing Trump’s tariff policies, which have disproportionately targeted Canada. The petition also points to reported ties between Hoekstra and the founder of an application used by separatists in Calgary to rally support for their movement. Hoekstra has previously denied any ties between the Trump administration and the separatists. The petition demands three key actions from the Canadian government: first, the formal declaration of Pete Hoekstra as persona non grata and a request for his removal as US Ambassador to Canada; second, a cross-border discussion on the pattern of conduct by Ambassador Hoekstra inconsistent with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations; and third, the direct parliamentary review of US diplomatic interference in Canadian domestic affairs. The petition was authorized by Elizabeth May, the leader of the Green Party and its only current member in the House of Commons, following a proposal by Calgary resident Leanne Walker. In Canada, any citizen can organize a petition for an issue to be addressed by the House of Commons. Residents and citizens must provide their province and territory and postal code, as well as a phone number, to participate in the petition. Such petitions can stay open for up to 120 days. The petition to expel Hoekstra was introduced on July 21st. Reaching the 500-signature threshold requires that the issue be brought before the House of Commons, which must give an official response within 45 days. The petition, however, is non-binding, and it remains unclear how much traction it would ultimately gain among members of Canada’s Parliament. Despite this, the mass of signatures is the latest indication of entrenched discontent in Canada towards Trump’s policies, which include a push to assert greater US influence over the entire Western Hemisphere. In recent months alone, several areas of friction have emerged. In July, Trump imposed new 50 percent tariffs on certain Canadian goods, claiming “discriminatory treatment” in trade relations. In response, Canada cancelled a celebration ceremony for the new Gordie Howe International Bridge, which links Windsor, Ontario, with Detroit, Michigan. Trump also threatened more tariffs last month in response to wildfires across Canada, blaming it for poor air quality south of the border. A Pew Research survey in June found that Canadians’ views of the US as a reliable partner had plummeted. In 2022, 83 percent of Canadians rated the US as reliable. By 2026, just 35 percent held that view. The same poll found that 16 percent of Canadians in 2022 explicitly rated the US as “not reliable”. That proportion climbed to 65 percent this year. The petition is a stark illustration of the escalating Canadian apprehension regarding Trump’s policies, particularly concerning US-Canada relations and the broader implications for the Western Hemisphere.”}” ,
Source: Al Jazeera
