May 27, 2012
As the so-called trilateral North American “integration” process marches onward toward an ever-closer union between the governments of Canada, the United States, and Mexico, national law enforcement agents are slowly creeping across borders through a variety of shadowy schemes. Going forward, that trend is set to accelerate, according to officials, who say government functionaries may soon be able to chase and arrest suspects outside of their own nations. But critics of the controversial plan are fighting back with increasing urgency.
U.S. and Canadian authorities have already spent millions of dollars on “pilot projects” seeking to blur national borders in the field of policing. Almost 150 so-called “cross-border” officers have been trained so far, according to a reportpublished this month byEmbassymagazine. Meanwhile, the Shiprider program — officially known as “Integrated Cross-border Maritime Law Enforcement Operations” — has been active since 2009, when high-ranking bureaucrats from the United States and Canada signed the agreement without even obtaining legislative approval.
“Shiprider removes the international maritime boundary as a barrier to law enforcement by enabling seamless continuity of enforcement and security operations across the border, facilitating cross-border surveillance and interdiction, and serving as both a force multiplier and, potentially, as a model for other U.S./Canadian cross-border (integrated) enforcement and security initiatives,” the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) says about the scheme on its website.
Under the highly controversial but little-known program, boats staffed by law-enforcement agents from both governments can scurry back and forth as if there was no border between the two nations. And in March, top Obama administration officials met with their Canadian counterparts to super-charge the unconstitutional process by signing even more “agreements” — again without consulting Congress, let alone ratifying a treaty.
“We will continue to work with Canada to further enhance information sharing and integrate our cross-border law enforcement operations, strengthening the national and economic security of both our nations,” claimed Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano after signing a deal to advance the process with Canadian officials. Her counterparts across the border issued similar statements following the meeting.
Disgraced Attorney General Eric Holder — currently being threatened with contempt of Congress charges for covering up and lying about the administration’s deadly “Fast and Furious” gun-trafficking scandal — also touted “integrated law enforcement” as a “key pillar” of what critics consider to be a subversive scheme. In a press release posted by the Canadian government following an agreement, the scandal-plagued Justice Department boss said he was “grateful” to his counterparts in Canada for their work to “strengthen the critical ties that bind our nations together.”
The Defense chiefs from the governments of Mexico, Canada, and the United States also met earlier this year and signed their own deals to integrate the three militaries and discuss ways to expand the use of the armed forces in continental law-enforcement operations. “We know that transnational threats require transnational responses,” the three claimed in a joint statement. “With this in mind, we have agreed to enhance our cooperation to support efforts to counter transnational criminal organizations and to respond to natural disasters in the hemisphere.”
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