Author of Be Ready for Anything and Build a Better Pantry on a Budget online course
Have you heard that “crazy conspiracy theory” about a North American Union that would meld the US, Canada, and ostensibly Mexico into one big happy mish-mash similar to the EU?
Nuts, right?
Maybe not.
Because the Canadian government has signed away the sovereignty of its border to the US government with the Canada-United States Preclearance Agreement.
Before you say that this is Canada’s problem, you should probably note that it isn’t just Canada who signed away the rights of its citizens with this agreement.
What is the Canada-United States Preclearance Agreement?
This is another of those horrifying documents with a happy sounding name, sort of like the “Patriot” Act. In August of this year, the Department of Homeland Security cheerfully announced:
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced today, in partnership with the Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada, the implementation of an agreement to improve mutual security and expedite lawful travel through preclearance for travelers and their accompanying baggage on certain transports. The collaboration is articulated in the Agreement on Land, Rail, Marine, and Air (LRMA) Transport Preclearance between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of Canada, which supersedes the previous 2001 U.S.-Canada Agreement on Air Transport Preclearance, and expands upon the two countries’ partnership.
Preclearance is the process by which officers stationed abroad inspect and make admissibility decisions about travelers and their accompanying baggage before they leave a foreign port, simultaneously increasing efficiency and security. The LRMA provides the legal framework and reciprocal authorities necessary for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Canada Border Services Agency to carry out security, facilitation, and inspection processes in the other country.
“Preclearance strengthens economic competitiveness and mutual security, and benefits travelers by expediting their clearance into the U.S. before they ever leave Canada,” said Acting Secretary Kevin K. McAleenan. “This agreement provides the opportunity for CBP to build on six decades of successful operations and, for the first time, to conduct full preclearance in the rail, ferry, and cruise ship environments. This achievement is important for the Department’s security objectives and is another example of just how close the U.S. – Canada relationship stands.” (source)
Gosh, that’s friendly.
What does this mean for Canadians?
If you read past the immigration rhetoric in this Op-Ed, you’ll find that much of what American border patrol officers can do on Canadian soil is against the law in Canada…if Canadians do it.
The author writes:
U.S. officials can now carry sidearms in these preclearance zones, conduct strip searches, record and keep passenger information, and detain Canadian citizens.
Even if a Canadian official is “unwilling” to conduct a search or has deemed a detainment unnecessary, a U.S. official can override that call. In other words, Canadian law enforcement can now be countermanded within Canada by Americans.
This new authority also allows U.S. border guards to deny Canadians their right of withdrawal. Before the amendment to the law was enacted, if a person felt at all uncomfortable in the course of preclearance questioning she could simply leave, retracting her intention to cross the border with no penalty.
Now, as a result of amendments, the guard is entitled to detain her if he finds “reasonable grounds” to do so. And the request to leave in itself could be construed as reasonable grounds. (source)
So before the Canadian even leaves Canada they can be strip-searched, questioned, and detained by AMERICANS. On Canadian soil.
What does this mean for Americans?
Right now, you may be scoffing, “Stupid Canadians.” If so, then please re-read what the DHS said above – Canadian agents can act on US soil as per this agreement, too.
The LRMA provides the legal framework and reciprocal authorities necessary for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Canada Border Services Agency to carry out security, facilitation, and inspection processes in the other country. (source)
Authoritarian action can be taken against citizens in their own countries by agents of foreign countries.
A friend of mine noted that “coincidentally,” the United States-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) Trade Agreement was just signed last week too.
It’s enough to really make you wonder what the hell is going on. We’ve got Civil War brewing over in Virginia, the government permitting Canadian border control to act on US soil, Massachusetts taking your car if you’re caught with “untaxed vaping products,” and an impeachment circus in Washington, DC.
There is a dramatic shift happening right now and we all need to be paying strict attention. I don’t have the answers but I sure do have a lot of questions.
About Daisy
Daisy Luther is a coffee-swigging, globe-trotting blogger who writes about current events, preparedness, frugality, voluntaryism, and the pursuit of liberty on her website, The Organic Prepper. She is widely republished across alternative media and she curates all the most important news links on her aggregate site, PreppersDailyNews.com. Daisy is the best-selling author of 4 books and runs a small digital publishing company. You can find her on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter.
CanaDUH being its usual self. Antiamerican but hypocritical, with our sellout government being all “reasonable”. Nauseating. I’m sorry that our bastards are helping your bastards take away everyone’s freedoms.
Excellent perspective, Canadian.
For me personaly, it doesn’t mean anything. I’ve never been to Canada, nor have any intention to travel there in this life. As a Constitutional Conservative, it’s alarming that once again rights have been trampled in a sneaky way. I was never in favor of the Patriot Act, and still consider it an egregious overstep of Federal and State authority.
As an American. I totally get the game…we have been silently seeing our rights undermined for decades now. And we are finally waking up. Our neighbors need to smell the coffee and do it right now! Someone out there thinks they are easy pickings because they are viewed as too “nice” and very egalitarian. They believe our Canadian friends will be fooled into thinking this is a good thing. Our Mexican friends won’t even be notified…until someone knocks at their door, with an American Union uniform on. Trade among partners is a great thing. But only as long as it comes with sovereignty.
Read Robert Morning Sky’s The List History of Womankind. Those books are why I left the SEXIST Judeao-Christian SEXIST Cult. I am now an Adversary of all Patriarchal gods. Women have been put down by Men for a long, long time. Men of power do not want women to know their history.
Old news. This all happened some twenty years ago while while America was drinking beer and watching the ball game. The SPP, the Security and Prosperity Partnership. Baby Bush signed it into law. If Bush did not sign it into law, Obama would have. NAFTA (Clinton 1998) was the precursor. Agenda 21(Bush 1992) preempts everything. Understand that if you have a left/right argument, you are an idiot.
The Glass-Steigal act (Clinton 1999) is the real monstrosity.
Tell me something new …
I don’t believe it was ever signed into law. Rather, it’s all based on inter-agency “agreements”, internally generated regulations and informal “treaties” that were never ratified by the Senate. Most of the framework was created by the so called Working Groups that were formed during George W’s administration, and none of it ever had the Congressional stamp of approval. In other words, as with the DHS’s suspension of the Fourth Amendment anywhere within one hundred miles of the U.S border, it was all illegally made up out thin air, but is being acted on and enforced as if it were legitimate. The longer these illegal rules remain in place unchallenged, the more entrenched they become and the harder it becomes to get rid of them.
Time to have a watchful eye. Not sure this is really new, but maybe the rules are clearer and the intent more stated as I am pretty sure this could be done if justified before… That said the erosion of rights is concerning and it accelerated after 9/11 – not sure that is co-incidence rather likely planned.
I feel fairly secure here in Canada as the American civil war possibility and the impeachment fiasco is just a show here… We have out own government issues – look only to Fraund nation in ontario
Thanks for the information Daisy. You mentioned 2001. Do you remember Canada had these planes in their cross hairs but were told to stand down. The US was already in command of our military via NATO. Through time the owner of both THE USA and CANADA CORPORATION are amalgamating the two. It is the THREE CROWNS that control this and much, much, much more. This same CORPORATION has stripped you of your natural right and made you a CORPORATION as well. It is designed to allow you privileges not rights . There designation is: Divide ( Amalgamate) Conquer and Rule.
I would beg to differ with you, Chuck. While it may not affect you personally in that you are not intending to travel to Canada, it DOES affect you personally in the loss of rights. As this will include future rights being trashed.
This affects all Americans and all Canadians. We should be outraged on both sides of the border. I have a few friends in Canada and I adore Canada and Canadians. I may or may not ever get back up to Canada before I die, but this is outrageous conduct by both governments.
This starts to give credence to the conspiracy theory of a one world government.
If you take the time to do a simple search, you find that this “agreement” was signed by the Canadian minister and the DHS Secretary. This is NOT a treaty. There is NO Jurisdiction transmitted to the agencies or agents.
DAISY,I guess you didn’t hear about the TWO YOUNG women who were RAPED after they crossed the canadian border ,BY CANADIAN BORDER GUARDS,this was a few years ago,BUT it doesn’t change who did what,THERES A WAR COMING DAISY,I sure hope your ready to meet the LORD,90% of americans will be meeting SATAN here shortly,,THEY VOTED FOR IT,and now its set in stone,OUR FATHER says he won’t repent of it,mass death is coming….CANADA will be wipped off the map….
Ron then what you are saying is Islam is right about women rights?
What with our entering what is being called one of the severest Grand solar minimums in human history, one has to wonder if the new “cross border patrol policy” has anything to do with the likely increase in people from more northern areas migrating to warmer climes.
At the Ice Age Farmer website, Christian has an overview of the depredations of the Maunder Minimum. Fascinating and depressing, it details a list of crop failures, social unrest, plague and yes, human migration directly caused by the hardships of the bitter cold.
I recommend that you read this for yourselves, and begin now to prepare for the inevitable price increases in food especially, as well as other goods. Prepare also to have alternative heat and water sources. One point that was made was that the soil froze up to two feet deep. Since many areas have already experienced water main ruptures in winter, I can see this only becoming more frequent with even colder winter temperatures and an ever-aging infrastructure.
Having water stored is never a bad thing, but remember that bottled water can freeze and split the bottles, so keep pre packaged water in a place that it is unlikely to freeze, and home bottled water for cleaning, etc. should have space in the bottles for the expansion of the ice if it does freeze. Having a backup plan for preventing your pipes freezing will likely come in handy too.
Be safe, all.