Ambassador Bridge blockades giving ‘ammunition’ to ‘Buy America’ champions

Disruptions at the Canada-U.S. border affecting production lines for carmakers in both countries are giving more fuel to 'Buy America' arguments, experts say.

The impact of the ongoing Ambassador Bridge blockades on automotive manufacturing on both sides of the border is stoking the flames of economic nationalism and supply chain concerns in the United States.

Blockades in solidarity with the so-called “Freedom Convoy” at the bridge connecting Windsor, Ont., to Detroit, Mich., are stretching into their fourth day, stymying what’s typically the busiest land border crossing in North America and causing delays at other ports of entry.

The impact has been especially acute on the automotive sector.

Toyota said Thursday that operations are being affected on both sides of the border, with production paused at the carmarker’s three assembly lines in Ontario. Ford and General Motors have also reported slowdowns or cancelled shifts this week and other carmakers say they’re watching the situation carefully and warning of widespread impacts on the auto industry.

Also keeping a keen eye on the blockades are American policymakers.

Elissa Slotkin, a congressperson in Michigan, tweeted a thread late Wednesday arguing that the Ambassador Bridge blockades show why the States “can’t be this reliant on parts coming from foreign countries.”

“The one thing that couldn’t be more clear is that we have to bring American manufacturing back home to states like Michigan,” she wrote.