GOP Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky said in a recent interview that he would support a trucker convoy in the U.S. similar to the Canadian "Freedom Convoy" that drove across its country in protest of vaccine mandates.
The senator's support comes after a recent report revealed that a trucker convoy may form in Los Angeles on Super Bowl Sunday and drive to Washington, D.C. for the State of the Union in early March. The Department of Homeland Security warned police earlier this week that a convoy to the nation's capital could occur.
Paul said Thursday during an interview with The Daily Signal that he is "all for it" when asked about a potential U.S. convoy.
"Civil disobedience is a time-honored tradition in our country, from slavery to civil rights, you name it. Peaceful protest, clog things up, make people think about the mandates."
"And some of this, we started," he continued. "We put [COVID-19] mandates on truckers coming across the border from Canada so then they put mandates on, and the truckers are annoyed. They’re riding in a cab by themselves, most of them for eight, 10-hour long hauls, and they just want to do what they want to do. It’s their own business."
.@RandPaul on the possibility that we will see trucker convoys in the USA: “I’m all for it. Civil disobedience is a time-honored tradition in our country, from slavery to civil rights, you name it. Peaceful protest, clog things up, make people think about the mandates.” pic.twitter.com/hciWNf0H6T
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) February 10, 2022
Canadian protestors have blocked traffic at three Canada-U.S. border crossings after truckers in the country conveyed to Ottawa to protest COVID-19 restrictions. Canadian truckers crossing the border are required to be fully vaccinated against the coronavirus or be forced to quarantine for two weeks when they return.
On Saturday, Canadian police moved to clear protestors from the Ambassador Bridge that connects Ontario, Canada to Michigan.
A U.S. convoy would "be great," Paul said. "But the thing is, it wouldn’t shut the city down because the government workers haven't come to work in two years anyway. I don't know if it'll affect D.C. It'd be a nice change. We'd actually have some traffic."
The Republican added that he hopes the truckers "clog up cities."
"And we're seeing a break in the dam now. Several Democratic governors are finally sort of relinquishing," Paul said.
Earlier this week, several Democratic states such as California, Oregon, New Jersey and New York announced plans to ease coronavirus restrictions like indoor masking requirements for vaccinated individuals.