(The Center Square) – As Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his plan to resign on Monday, questions remain about his administration’s border security policies and increased terrorism threats in Canada that partially contributed to the demands for his resignation.
At a news conference on Monday, Trudeau said he planned to resign after his party picked a replacement. Critics argue it was an attempt to avoid a vote of no confidence when parliament reconvenes on Jan. 27, which would prompt a call for a new election.
Under Trudeau, the greatest number of illegal border crossers and known or suspected terrorists (KSTs) were reported in U.S. history attempting to illegally enter or were caught after illegally entering the U.S., The Center Square reported.
More than 1,200 KSTs were apprehended at the northern border by U.S. officials after they bypassed Canadian authorities and were caught by American authorities, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data, The Center Square first reported.
Members of Congress called on the Biden administration to increase border security at the U.S.-Canada border after the Trudeau government expanded entry to Gazans after the Hamas terrorist attack against Israel, The Center Square reported. The majority of Gazans voted Hamas into power, and violent attacks against Jews in America and threats of terrorism increased. While Canadian authorities told The Center Square the Canadian government has “taken every step to ensure the security of Canadians and Americans is in no way jeopardized,” many U.S. and Canadian officials disagree.
Last year, the Canadian House of Commons held a hearing to investigate how the Trudeau government granted citizenship to a member of ISIS who went on to allegedly plot a terrorist attack against Canadians, The Center Square reported. This was after the Royal Canadian Mounted Police arrested a Canadian woman on terrorism-related offenses one month prior.
It was also after MPs demanded answers about the arrest of a reporter who asked a Canadian minister why the Iranian Islamist Revolutionary Guard Corps hadn’t been designated as a terrorist organization, and after other reporters have been arrested in Canada, according to multiple news reports.
Last year, a Pakistani national with ties to Iran in Canada was arrested for planning a targeted attack against Jews in New York. Prior to that, an Iranian with terrorist ties was apprehended after illegally entering the U.S. near Niagara Falls, The Center Square reported. That was after a Canadian woman was arrested by U.S. authorities in Buffalo for attempting to poison then President Donald Trump and Texas officials, and the greatest number of Canadian illegal border crossers were reported in U.S. history, The Center Square reported.
While U.S. authorities expressed alarm about antisemitism on the rise, in November, Trudeau’s government was unprepared to respond to violent anti-Israel activists disrupting a North Atlantic Treaty Organization session in Montreal. Trudeau was notably absent on the first day of riots, instead choosing to attend a concert, The Wall Street Journal reported.
After President-elect Donald Trump threatened to impose a 25% tariff on Canadian exports and demanded that Canada increase its border security, Trudeau pledged to commit $1 billion toward border security efforts.
Conservative MP Chris Warkentin also said that Trudeau can’t account for a $62 billion deficit as Canadians’ costs skyrocketed.
For months, members of the Liberal Party called for Trudeau’s resignation. By Christmas, roughly 50 Liberal MPs and several regional caucuses had, media outlets reported.
Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre, whose support in the polls are more than double that of Trudeau’s, said his decision “changes nothing,” and again called for an immediate election.
Liberal MPs who called for Trudeau’s resignation were only acting out of self-interest, Poilievre said: “Their only objection is that he is no longer popular enough to win an election and keep them in power. They want to protect their pensions and paycheques by sweeping their hated leader under the rug months before an election to trick you, and then do it all over again,” he said in a statement Monday.
New Democrats Party Leader Jagmeet Singh argued Canadians shouldn’t support anyone in the Liberal Party. “The problem is not just Justin Trudeau. It’s every minister that’s been calling the shots,” he said. “It’s every Liberal MP that looked down their nose at Canadians who are worried about high costs or crumbling health care. The Liberals do not deserve another chance, no matter who is the leader.”
According to a poll conducted last month, the majority of Canadians wanted a new government last month. Polls also indicate that Poilievre could likely win a majority government this year.
Poilievre has proposed strong border security measures, including reversing Trudeau-era visa policies that critics argue led to increased terrorist threats in Canada.
