'Clog up cities': Sen. Rand Paul welcomes American trucker protest to 'make people think about the mandates'

 Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) welcomes an American version of Canada's "Freedom Convoy" in an effort to "make people think about the mandates."

On Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security issued a warning about potential truck protests emerging in the U.S., including in Los Angeles near the Super Bowl on Sunday. The DHS said it had "received reports of a convoy of truckers planning to potentially block roads in major metropolitan cities in the United States in protest of, among other things, vaccine mandates for truck drivers."

Homeland Security said in a notice, "The group intends to start in California as early as mid-February and travel to Washington, D.C., as late as mid-March, reportedly gathering truckers as they travel across the country." The DHS noted that at this time these American trucker protests are "purely aspirational."

Paul was asked about potential trucker protests in the U.S. during an interview with The Daily Signal on Thursday.

"I’m all for it. Civil disobedience is a time-honored tradition in our country, from slavery to civil rights, you name it," Paul responded. "Peaceful protest, clog things up, make people think about the mandates."

"I hope the truckers do come to America," he continued. "It'd be great."

Paul conceded that a trucker protest in Washington, D.C. "wouldn’t shut the city down because the government workers haven’t come to work in two years anyway."

In regards to the mask mandate, Paul said, "We’re seeing a break in the dam now."

He highlighted how several Democratic governors are beginning to end mask mandates. Democratic governors in California, Connecticut, Delaware, New York, New Jersey, Oregon, and Rhode Island announced they plan to relax various mask mandates in their blue states.

Without mentioning her by name, Paul referenced how CNN medical expert and former Planned Parenthood president Dr. Leana Wen has done a complete 180-degree turnaround on mask mandates by claiming that "the science has changed."

"Even CNN, you got the Dr. Fauci acolyte, that woman's like, 'Oh, facial masks are now just simply decorations.' She’s admitting the truth," the senator said of Wen. "That’s what they've been the whole time, but she’s finally admitting it. So even people who only watch CNN are finally getting the understanding that the masks don’t work and they’re starting to push back too."

"What they’re finding is, moms and dads are upset about this," Paul explained. "They’re not just Republican. Everybody’s upset about this. They’re annoyed that their little kids have to be in a mask."

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) also praised the trucker protests this week.

"God bless these Canadian truck drivers," Cruz tweeted on Sunday. "They’re defending Canada, America, and they’re standing up for freedom! The government doesn't have the right to force you to comply to their arbitrary mandates."

Meanwhile, the Associated Press reported that the "Biden administration urged Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government Thursday to use its federal powers to end the truck blockade by Canadians protesting the country's COVID-19 restrictions, as the bumper-to-bumper demonstration forced auto plants on both sides of the border to shut down or scale back production."

Michigan's Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called on Canada to take "all necessary and appropriate steps to immediately and safely reopen traffic so we can continue growing our economy, supporting good-paying jobs, and lowering costs for families."

"Our communities and automotive, manufacturing and agriculture businesses are feeling the effects," Whitmer said. "It’s hitting paychecks and production lines. That is unacceptable."

You can watch the full interview with Sen. Rand Paul below.

Senator Rand Paul On Truckers, COVID Tyranny, Hypocrites, And Civil Disobediencewww.youtube.com