Gordie Howe Bridge (US-Canada)

[vdeane]

I can't help but wonder if the family that owns the Ambassador Bridge got in touch with Trump again.

[LM117]

I can't help but wonder if the family that owns the Ambassador Bridge got in touch with Trump again.

A very safe bet.

[PColumbus73]

I can't help but wonder if the family that owns the Ambassador Bridge got in touch with Trump again.

A very safe bet.

but the Gordie Howe is nearly finished so... suck it?

[vdeane]

I can't help but wonder if the family that owns the Ambassador Bridge got in touch with Trump again.

A very safe bet.

but the Gordie Howe is nearly finished so... suck it?

Everything except CBP and CBSA moving into their customs plazas is done.  If this bridge wasn't on an international border, it would have opened months ago.

But given the way this administration has been acting, I'm not sure how much that matters with respect to what they'll threaten/do.


Also, what's with the missing posts?  Last I checked, politics is allowed when it relates to roads and all the ones I saw before they were removed were on topic.

[74/171FAN]

Also, what's with the missing posts?  Last I checked, politics is allowed when it relates to roads and all the ones I saw before they were removed were on topic.

I do not know.  I do not see any record of myself or another mod/admin removing posts.  -Mark

[Scott5114]

Who cares? American products SHOULD be sold in Canada if they want to sell their products here. Using leverage is part of the negotiation. I'm sure it will work too.

Canada can't force Canadian stores to carry American products. Many Canadian stores that have stopped carrying American products have done so because Canadians won't buy them anymore.

I believe that's called "the invisible hand of the free market"...

[PColumbus73]

I can't help but wonder if the family that owns the Ambassador Bridge got in touch with Trump again.

A very safe bet.

but the Gordie Howe is nearly finished so... suck it?

Everything except CBP and CBSA moving into their customs plazas is done.  If this bridge wasn't on an international border, it would have opened months ago.

But given the way this administration has been acting, I'm not sure how much that matters with respect to what they'll threaten/do.

True, but if the Gordie Howe can't open because of the US administration, it becomes an albatross in a swing state in the 2026 or 2028 elections.

[davewiecking]

I didn't really read too much of it, but I saw on Twitter that Trump posted on his social media or whatever it's called truth something he will not allow the bridge to open unless Canada starts allowing American products to be sold at grocery stores or something like that. Has anyone else seen this? Does he even have the authority to do that?

And only an hour after Commerce Secy Lutnick met with Marty Mouron. What a shock.

[seicer]

Who cares? American products SHOULD be sold in Canada if they want to sell their products here. Using leverage is part of the negotiation. I'm sure it will work too.

What does stores refusing to stock some American-sourced items have to do with a bridge's construction and opening? Pro tip: it doesn't. Unless we want to enforce communism on another country and force stores to somehow carry American-sourced items so that a bridge opens (which is a completely silly argument to be making), then your argument carries no weight.

But let's do a fact check: https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/10/politics/bridge-us-canada-trump-fact-check

- Trump endorsed the bridge on his first run.
- The bridge is jointly owned by Michigan and Canada. (The US does not and cannot own half of the bridge as Trump asserts.)
- Canada paid for the entire construction of the bridge. So how are we needing to be compensated for construction costs?
- Trump stated that the bridge was built with "virtually no U.S. content," but it's sourced from both U.S. and Canadian steel.

[The Ghostbuster]

The bridge should open when it is scheduled to open. No one should be allowed to change that.

[Flint1979]

I'll never use the bridge anyway so it wouldn't upset me if the thing never opened.

[wanderer2575]

Who cares? American products SHOULD be sold in Canada if they want to sell their products here. Using leverage is part of the negotiation. I'm sure it will work too.

What does stores refusing to stock some American-sourced items have to do with a bridge's construction and opening? Pro tip: it doesn't. Unless we want to enforce communism on another country and force stores to somehow carry American-sourced items so that a bridge opens (which is a completely silly argument to be making), then your argument carries no weight.

But let's do a fact check: https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/10/politics/bridge-us-canada-trump-fact-check

- Trump endorsed the bridge on his first run.
- The bridge is jointly owned by Michigan and Canada. (The US does not and cannot own half of the bridge as Trump asserts.)
- Canada paid for the entire construction of the bridge. So how are we needing to be compensated for construction costs?
- Trump stated that the bridge was built with "virtually no U.S. content," but it's sourced from both U.S. and Canadian steel.

Since when have facts and coherent reasoning been a hallmark of the individual in question?

I hope we can leave it at that and not get the thread off on a wild tangent or locked.

[zzcarp]

It doesn't matter who the politician or political party is. Keeping a needed missing link in the North American freeway system closed for petty politics should never happen.

[NWI_Irish96]

It doesn't matter who the politician or political party is. Keeping a needed missing link in the North American freeway system closed for petty politics should never happen.

It shouldn't happen, but of course only one person from one party would do such a thing.

John James (R) represents parts of Oakland and Macomb counties in Congress. He won by 6 points in 2024. Can't imagine it helps his re-election chances that his party leader is refusing to open the bridge.

[GaryV]

John James (R) represents parts of Oakland and Macomb counties in Congress. He won by 6 points in 2024. Can't imagine it helps his re-election chances that his party leader is refusing to open the bridge

He's running for governor this year (seems to be the front runner for the primary), along with an eventual Democratic candidate and independent former mayor of Detroit Mike Duggan. Having it a 3-way race compounds things, but in any event this isn't going to help him. It remains to be seen if it would hurt him significantly.

[ElishaGOtis]

If you really want to see some heads explode, keep signing it ON-401 into the United States. Hey, if we can have AR-43 in Oklahoma, why not?

Seriously though... the ramps ONLY serve ON-401, I don't see why it should be signed with anything else tbh...

[Flint1979]

It doesn't matter who the politician or political party is. Keeping a needed missing link in the North American freeway system closed for petty politics should never happen.

It shouldn't happen, but of course only one person from one party would do such a thing.

John James (R) represents parts of Oakland and Macomb counties in Congress. He won by 6 points in 2024. Can't imagine it helps his re-election chances that his party leader is refusing to open the bridge.

I don't think that it would hurt his chances but he's running for governor anyway. That's Thanedar's district where the bridge is.

[GaryV]

Last line in an editorial in the Detroit News today:

Or he could allow a sparkling new, unused bridge to stand as a monument to his pique.

[GaryV]

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/politics/2026/02/13/moroun-ambassador-bridge-owner-lobbied-trump-administration-ahead-of-gordie-howe-bridge-threats/88646343007/

Who'd a thunk it?

[The Ghostbuster]

Paywall kept me from reading the entire story.

[JREwing78]

The Morouns are playing with fire. What's to keep the Canadians from declaring the Ambassador Bridge a hazard and shutting down its access to Canada?

[Rothman]

The Morouns are playing with fire. What's to keep the Canadians from declaring the Ambassador Bridge a hazard and shutting down its access to Canada?

Demand for a crossing.

[GaryV]

A city of Windsor councilor

Paywall kept me from reading the entire story.

Sorry, I can't always tell from the website what is or is not free to non-subscribers.

The Morouns are playing with fire. What's to keep the Canadians from declaring the Ambassador Bridge a hazard and shutting down its access to Canada?

A councilor from the city of Windsor is already promoting the tunnel over the bridge.

[ElishaGOtis]

You know... of all the things that could have been done to prevent the opening of the bridge, I'm kinda surprised that an actual US law wasn't used as the excuse, rather than some silly blah-blah-blah regarding trade deals...

Which US Law? MAP 21 regarding toll interoperability 

Granted, I guess the Ambassador Bridge folks would be guilty of this as well lol 

[1995hoo]

When the bridge opens on time, I hope a taco truck is the first vehicle to cross.