Canada is playing fast and loose with the rule of law to suppress the Freedom Convoy. Where's the outrage?


Canada's legislature has been canceled, at least for the day. In a statement Friday morning, the speaker of the House of Commons announced the body would not sit due to operations to clear now-famous "Freedom Convoy" trucker protests in downtown Ottawa.
The decision not to hold go into session during heavy police action is not so shocking. And prime ministers have been accused of delaying legislative activity for political reasons in the past. Still, today's announcement is part of an extraordinary sequence of events that began on Monday, when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act for the first time in Canada's history. The law doesn't override the Charter of Rights and Freedoms — Canada's counterpart to the Bill of Rights — but it does give the prime minister expanded authority to restrict demonstrations, freeze funds, and reinforce local authorities with national agencies.
Because it's such a drastic revision of standard procedures, however, invoking the act also requires approval by both houses of Parliament within seven sitting days of the emergency declaration. With the House of Commons closed, the government is effectively extending the clock on its use of special powers without democratic authorization.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
An extra day may not seem like a big deal. But imagine if right-wing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán or another professedly illiberal leader took similar steps. The measures would almost certainly be treated as a prelude to fascism. In fact, we don't have to imagine a comparison. When Orbán asserted emergency powers to combat the pandemic, he was denounced by European Union officials and a gamut of human rights experts.
Like any analogy, this one has limitations. Orbán's expanded powers were more sweeping than Trudeau's, and there are other reasons to be concerned about the state of affairs in Hungary. Still, it's striking how different the political and media response to a domestically popular government cracking down on dissent can be. In June of 2020, Hungary's Parliament voted to end the state of emergency three months after it was declared. How long before Canada's legislature gets its chance to vote? The clock is ticking.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Samuel Goldman is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. He is also an associate professor of political science at George Washington University, where he is executive director of the John L. Loeb, Jr. Institute for Religious Freedom and director of the Politics & Values Program. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard and was a postdoctoral fellow in Religion, Ethics, & Politics at Princeton University. His books include God's Country: Christian Zionism in America (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2018) and After Nationalism (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2021). In addition to academic research, Goldman's writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and many other publications.
-
What is Starmer's £33m plan to smash 'vile' Channel migration gangs?
Today's Big Question PM lays out plan to tackle migration gangs like international terrorism, with cooperation across countries and enhanced police powers
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Quirky hot cross buns to try this Easter
The Week Recommends Creative, flavourful twists on the classic Easter bake, from tiramisu and stem ginger to a cheesy sharing-size treat
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
What should you be stockpiling for 'World War Three'?
In the Spotlight Britons advised to prepare after the EU tells its citizens to have an emergency kit just in case
By Elizabeth Carr-Ellis, The Week UK Published
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff Published
-
Are we really getting a government shutdown this time?
Talking Points Democrats rebel against budget cuts by Trump, Musk
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Will Trump lead to more or fewer nuclear weapons in the world?
Talking Points He wants denuclearization. But critics worry about proliferation.
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Why Trump and Musk are shutting down the CFPB
Talking Points And what it means for American consumers
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Are we now in a constitutional crisis?
Talking Points Trump and Musk defy Congress and the courts
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
What can Democrats do to oppose Trump?
Talking Points The minority party gets off to a 'slow start' in opposition
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?
Today's big question White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?
Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published