White House Dismantles Reports That States The U.S. Wants The Border To Reopen
In response to reports that suggested American patience with the closure, the White House stated that the United States has made no decisions about when or how to reopen the border with Canada.
Jen Psaki, the press secretary said that she was not aware that any decisions had been made about the border beyond the last week’s news that the restrictions which have been in place since March 2020, would thereby be extended to June 21st.
A media report cited out of Point Roberts, Wash, which is a border community hit hard by the restrictions cited some anonymous sources with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection stating that the closure would be ended by June 22nd.
Psaki told that it was just extended for a month and added that she doesn’t think the decision has been made yet and that she is aware of what would happen.
The officials in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s office did not explicitly confirm or deny the report, and instead pointed to his insistence that it would take 75% of the Canadians getting vaccinated before the restrictions could be lifted.
Trudeau said that conversations are ongoing because there is much eagerness to get back to normal on all sides.
He said that step one involves getting the outbreak down to a stage where the minor flare-ups can be managed effectively without any risk of spreading it. And, step two involves the vaccination threshold.
He further added that getting the vaccination numbers up above 75% across the country is going to allow for a much better posture on the reopening situation including around what they do with the U.S. border and the international borders.
As the COVID-19 ran so rampant through the U.S. throughout 2020, the Canadians have been far less eager to ease the border restrictions than their American counterparts.
However, Canada is now outpacing the U.S. in terms of the people who have received at least one dose, 53.5% and 49.3% at last count, while some 40% of the Americans are by now fully vaccinated as compared with less than five% of the Canadians.
Vermont Government, Phil Scott said during a panel discussion hosted by the Conseil du patronat du Quebec that it’s time for them to develop a plan and said that the U.S. could be doing more to help Canadians get their hands on the second doses of the vaccine. He also expressed support for the idea of requiring travelers to show some proof of vaccination to cross the border.
New York Rep, Brian Higgins, who is one of the loudest U.S. voices to date on re-opening the border, has been urging both sides to come up with a plan, including allowing the Canadians to travel to the U.S. to get a second dose.
Higgins wrote that if there is an excess supply of the vaccine; they would do everything in their power to see that the doses do not go to waste.
Glenda Bozeman – Business and Services
Glenda Bozeman writes Business articles for industries that want to see their Google search rankings surge. Her articles have appeared in a number of sites. Her articles focus on enlightening with informative Services sector needs. She holds the degree of Masters in Business and Marketing. Before she started writing, she experimented with various professions: computer programming, assistant marker, and others. But her favorite job is writing that she is now doing full-time.
