U.S. Customs and Border Protection is slated to open an air and marine border-monitoring outpost just north of the Detroit-Windsor border at Selfridge Air National Guard Base on Lake St. Clair in Michigan.
The $17-million Great Lakes Air and Marine Branch will help fight human and drug smuggling, U.S. officials said. The post will use 11 aircraft, including Blackhawk helicopters, and five boats to patrol the Great Lakes waterways daily, said Eric Rembold, director of aviation operations at U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Windsor West MP and NDP border critic Brian Masse voiced his concern Thursday about the implications of the new surveillance measures.
"If we're going to continue to see weaponization that is used in conflicts like Afghanistan and Iraq put on the Canada-U.S. border, saying that it's required for safety and security, it really changes the nature of our relationship," he said.
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<i>Guess the Bush Administration figures it's time to move it's focus to those scary Canadians. Heck, it worked in Canadian Bacon</i>.




