Top Democrat tells Biden administration: Get to work reopening border with Canada

This item is part ofWatchingWashington, a regular dispatch from CBC News correspondents reporting on U.S. politics and developments that affect Canadians.

What's new

There's new political muscle in the United States pushing for a return to more regulartravel between Canada and the United States after more than a year of pandemic-related disruptions.

The top member of the U.S. Senate, Chuck Schumer, has written a letter to members of the Biden administration making several demands regarding the border.

He's asked Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for four things.

One is a detailed Canada-U.S. plan released as soon as possible explaining what rules and health-related benchmarks will guide thereturn to non-essential travel. He said this should add clarity and transparency to a process that's confusedandfrustratedpeople.

And in the interim period, he immediatelywants to see Canada and the U.S.allow more people to travel.Schumer wants the definition of essential travellers expandedto includevaccinated people whohave property, educational, medical or business reasons forcrossing the border.

Healso wants clarity for boatersand, finally, he wants a safety plan for border agents including access to testing, vaccines and protective equipment.

Why it matters to Canadians and cross-border travellers

Other lawmakers from Schumer's border state of New York have been making similar calls with little sign of progress. Neither national government has made it a priority to articulate a reopening plan for the border.

ButSchumer'sentry into the debate is a sign of increased pressure on the national governments to at least begin articulating their longer-term intentions.

"Having endured one of the deadliest chapters in New York's history, the residents along the border are ready to turn the page and re-establish the familiar links to their loved ones, their propertyand their prosperity," Schumer's letter said.

"It is now incumbent on the federal government to do their part and aid their desperate desire to fully rebuild and recover. This recovery cannot be done, and I will not rest, until bilateral collaboration to safely reopen the United States and Canadian land border is an utmost priority and a plan for a full reopening is publicly released."

One reason for Schumer'soptimism about reopening is the progress the U.S. has made on residents receiving COVID-19 vaccines. Nearly 50 per cent of adults in New York stateare fully vaccinated, and indoor dining is expanding this week to near-full capacity in New York City.

The United States remainsfar ahead of Canada in itsshare of fully vaccinated residents. However, with vaccine hesitancy becoming an issue in many states, the pace is slowing down, and Canada is steadily catching up in the rate of residents having received a first dose.