Fed up Canadians demand expulsion of key Trump ally

After nearly two years of hostility from President Donald Trump and his MAGA allies, Canadians are fed up, and now more than 70,000 have signed a petition calling for the expulsion of the U.S. ambassador. According to the BBC, “The online petition accuses Pete Hoekstra of ‘making repeated interventions in Canadian political discourse’ and of having ‘normalized the Trump administration's threats to annex Canada as the “51st state”’ of the US.”

The petition – which comes as the two countries are engaged in fierce trade negotiations with the goal of securing an agreement before new tariffs leveled by Trump take effect next Wednesday – was launched by a Calgary resident. “It requests Ambassador Hoekstra be formally removed from his role, and a parliamentary committee review ‘US diplomatic interference in Canadian domestic affairs,’” reports the BBC. It also raises concerns about meetings in Washington between U.S. officials and a group of Alberta residents who want the province to secede from Canada. Petition creator Leanne Walker was surprised by the response, saying, "It's beyond what I expected out of this. It tells me that it's not a fringe issue, and that a lot of Canadians are uncomfortable with how Hoekstra has been repeating Trump talking points about our sovereignty and Canada as a whole."

“A Republican and a Trump ally, Hoekstra has been a fierce defender of US President Donald Trump's trade policies, saying they are meant to secure the safety and prosperity of Americans,” the BBC explains, noting that his tenure has been characterized by tension between the neighboring nations. “There was a dust-up between Hoekstra and Ontario's trade representative, and the ambassador has been criticized for reposting Trump's comments about Canada becoming the 51st state and telling reporters it would be a "great discussion to be had" by the leaders of the two countries. Most recently, he faced criticism for inviting one of the leaders of the 2022 Freedom Convoy movement to his official Fourth of July celebration. He has also described some of the political rhetoric in Canada as ‘anti-American’ and has frequently expressed frustration at the decision by most provinces to remove US alcohol from store shelves - a key point of friction in the current trade talks.”

Canadian Green Party leader Elizabeth May will bring the petition for Hoekstra’s recall to parliament later this year. As her office explained in a statement, “She has an obligation to sponsor petitions brought forward by citizens, regardless of whether she personally agrees with what the petition is asking for.”

As the BBC explains, “The House of Commons allows for Canadians to submit petitions, and there are dozens open at any given time, many receiving just a few hundred signatures. Once a petition, which must be submitted by a Canadian resident, is authorized by a member of parliament, it is posted on parliament's website. If it reaches at least 500 valid signatures, it is then presented in the House and requires a government response. The petition reached that bar as of Wednesday morning, garnering more than enough support to be presented in Canada's House of Commons.”

According to the BBC, “It comes at a time when Canadian negotiators are working urgently to avert a planned 50 percent American tariff on roughly $20bn to $28bn in Canadian goods. Last month, Trump announced the proposed tariffs in retaliation for what he called ‘unequal treatment’ of U.S. cars, dairy and alcohol. Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney warned in response that a potential further retaliation was on the table if the new tariffs were enforced.”