But in an interview with The West Block’s Mercedes Stephenson, David Cohen said he was ultimately optimistic that democracies would find a way through the political turmoil of recent years. “I’m always the half-full guy,” Cohen said. “I firmly believe that democracy will prevail. “We may have to deal with some issues. “There may be some rough patches.” “But at the end of the day, you are fighting these tough patches with the power of democracy, with dialogue, with cooperation with other democracies.” His comments come as the US House of Representatives committee investigating the deadly attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021 presents its findings to the American public in televised hearings. The story goes on under the ad
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Cohen added that the challenges to democracy occur not only in North America but in countries around the world where extremists try to use populism to overthrow democratic processes and voices to advance the goals of authoritarianism. China and Russia are among those involved in these efforts to undermine democracy, he said, as well as domestic forces, including elements in truck trucks that blocked the Canadian capital and border crossings for three weeks earlier this year. “I do not know if it is Donald Trump’s lines that have penetrated Canadian politics or if it is this global movement that, frankly, preceded Donald Trump,” Cohen said. “I think the best way to fight some of the hate speech of these extremist movements is with a positive reason, it is with democracies coming together and talking about the benefits of democracy and the things we can do together as democracies and democracies. societies “. he added. “And this is a big debate that took place at the America Summit last week.” 5:42 Who is more vulnerable to misinformation? Who is most vulnerable to misinformation? – April 9, 2022 The summit brought together not only Canada and the United States, but also countries in the hemisphere, including many in Latin America, where analysts argued that US influence had waned in the years since the US ousted the world. Trump. Trending Stories
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The story goes on under the ad This declining influence presents an opportunity for Canada to play a greater role in hemisphere diplomacy and strategy. “Given the US position on all of this, it makes Canada’s potential role in the hemisphere, not just substantive but symbolic, really crucial,” said Kenneth Frankel, chief executive of the Toronto-based Council of America, in an interview. week with World News. “Latinos who fight for democracy and human rights want to know that there is a big country in the neighborhood that is on their side.”
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A constant source of criticism for Canada, however, is to equate rhetoric with action – and dollars. Prime Minister Justin Trindade has continued to question why he does not commit Canada to spending NATO’s 2 percent of GDP on defense, amid what Secretary of Defense Anita Annand has acknowledged is “darker.” And “more chaotic.” world.
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While the government has increased defense spending by about $ 8 billion in its most recent budget, it is still about $ 75 billion short of achieving NATO’s goal, according to an analysis by the Parliamentary Official Budget. The story goes on under the ad Cohen had been critical of the budget increase earlier this year, when he described it as “a bit disappointing, as it was in line with the rhetoric we heard leading to the release of the budget”. Clarify these comments to Global News. “I think there was an impression that there would be a bigger increase in defense spending than it ended up,” he said. At the same time, Cohen said, the United States recognizes that there are spending commitments such as the modernization of NORAD and a review of defense policy that could end up seeing additional defense spending beyond what is described in the budget. “I do not think that, as the United States ambassador to Canada, it is appropriate to say in one way or another what is enough and what is not enough,” he said. “I think Canada has a strong sense of the importance of defense, especially in light of what is happening in Russia – in Ukraine in particular – and in what you said earlier about China’s growing aggression.” “Canada has to decide what is enough to spend on defense and how fast it has to move to get there.” © 2022 Global News, part of Corus Entertainment Inc.
