Canada is playing fast and loose with the rule of law to suppress the Freedom Convoy. Where's the outrage?
![Justin Trudeau.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/sz7zGXKsNv7xZTkZJxGkCR-415-80.jpg)
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.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
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.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
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.
-
Magazine solutions - August 2, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - August 2, 2024
By The Week Staff Published
-
Magazine printables - August 2, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - August 2, 2024
By The Week Staff Published
-
'In a normal country, their activities wouldn't even be crimes'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
How Biden's enablers may have delayed his bowing out
Talking Points Joe Biden's inner circle faces calls for a reckoning for allegedly shielding the president — and the public — from questions of aging and electoral viability
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
The Democrats 'resigned to a second Trump presidency'
Talking Points Did the assassination attempt end Biden's election chances?
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
How could J.D. Vance impact the special relationship?
Today's Big Question Trump's hawkish pick for VP said UK is the first 'truly Islamist country' with a nuclear weapon
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Are down-ticket Democrats doomed?
Talking Points President Joe Biden's refusal to step back from his reelection campaign has some local Democrats wondering if their own races are in trouble — but not everyone is worried
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Biden, Trump urge calm after assassination attempt
Speed Reads A 20-year-old gunman grazed Trump's ear and fatally shot a rally attendee on Saturday
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Why Project 2025 is creating headaches for the Trump campaign
Talking Points Democrats want to make Trump 'own' the controversial plan
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Biden flopped, but did Trump really 'win' the debate?
Talking Points The president struggled to articulate a clear vision for the country, but Trump's cavalcade of aggressive falsehoods might not do the Republican candidate any favors in the long run
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Why the Hunter Biden verdict isn't the slam dunk Republicans have been calling for
Talking Points After years of targeting the President's family amidst claims of a rigged justice system, some conservatives still aren't satisfied with the younger Biden's three felony convictions.
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published