۴ý

Skip to main content

Republican presidential candidates turn attention to border with Canada

Share

With the Republican primary in New Hampshire underway, candidates are turning their attention to border security concerns – this time at the Canadian border.

"What I have found out from New Hampshire is we don't talk enough about the northern border," presidential candidate and former UN ambassador Nikki Haley told CNN's Jake Tapper on Thursday during a town hall. "The southern border is in terrible shape, but 500 people on the terrorist list, terrorist watchlist, have come through the northern border."

According to , 484 individuals on the Terrorist Screening Dataset, also known as the "terrorist watchlist" were apprehended at the U.S.-Canada border in 2023 compared to just 80 at the border with Mexico. Encounters with people on the terrorist watchlist have been falling at the Mexican border, but have been on the rise at the Canadian border.

Meanwhile, front-runner and former president Donald Trump, who oversaw the expansion of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, has mostly focused his rhetoric at tightening security at the southern border. But during a campaign rally in Iowa earlier this month, he remarked, "We also have a northern border that's not exactly doing too well."

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, prior to dropping out of the race on Sunday and endorsing Trump, campaigned on increasing security at the northern border. Vivek Ramaswamy, who also suspended his campaign and later backed Trump, went as far as promising to build a wall between Canada and the U.S., citing the increase in fentanyl crossing the border.

In 2023, the U.S. at the northern border. That represents just 0.02 per cent of the 1.2 billion doses seized by the U.S. CBP last year.

Even at the state level, Republicans have been sounding the alarm about security at the Canadian border. , who is backing Haley, announced in October his state would increase state patrols along its sparsely populated 97-kilometre-long border with Canada.

However, residents don't seem to share these concerns. In a poll conducted earlier this month by the Boston Globe, USA Today and Suffolk University, only 36 per cent of respondents said they were concerned about the security of New Hampshire's border with Canada, while 61 per cent said they are "not at all concerned" or "not very concerned."

Meanwhile, U.S. President Joe Biden has taken steps to reduce irregular crossings at the Canadian border. Last March, Biden came to Ottawa and signed a deal with Canada to tighten the Safe Third Country Agreement to prevent migrants from making asylum claims if they've crossed via an irregular crossing like Roxham Road in Quebec.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

BREAKING

BREAKING Interest rate drops to 3.75% as Bank of Canada makes another cut

The Bank of Canada made a sizable cut to its key lending rate Wednesday from 4.25 per cent to 3.75 per cent as the global economy continues to expand. The half percentage point cut is the fourth rate cut in a row by the central bank as inflation dropped from 2.7 per cent in June to 1.6 per cent in September.

A new report suggests that Canadians' exposure to a radioactive gas is increasing, putting millions of people at a higher risk of developing lung cancer.

Police have confirmed the body of an employee who died at a Walmart in Halifax over the weekend was found in a walk-in oven.

Local Spotlight

A meteor lit up our region's sky last night – with a large fireball shooting across the horizon over Lake Erie at around 7:00 p.m.

Residents of Ottawa's Rideauview neighbourhood say an aggressive wild turkey has become a problem.

A man who lost his life while trying to rescue people from floodwaters, and a 13-year-old boy who saved his family from a dog attack, are among the Nova Scotians who received a medal for bravery Tuesday.

A newly minted Winnipegger is hoping a world record attempt will help bring awareness for the need for more pump track facilities in the city.

A Springfield, Ont. man is being hailed a 'hero' after running into his burning home to save his two infant children.

Hortense Anglin was the oldest graduate to make her way across the platform at York University's Fall Convocation ceremony this week. At the age of 87, she graduated with an Honours degree in Religious Studies.

Looking for a scare with good intentions this Halloween season? The ghosts and ghouls of Eganville, Ont. invite families to tour the Haunted Walk at Lekbor Manor.

The image of a sleepy Saskatchewan small town with 'not a lot going on' is a well-known anecdote. However, one Saskatchewan company is hoping to change that – and allow communities both on and off the beaten path to share their stories and advertise what they have to offer.

A Moncton, N.B., home has been donated to the Friends of The Moncton Hospital Foundation and will be transformed into a resource hub for people living with cancer.

Stay Connected