The Bridge That Still Isn't Open
The Gordie Howe International Bridge was supposed to be a landmark moment for cross-border trade — a modern, six-lane span linking Windsor, Ontario directly to Detroit, Michigan. Construction is complete. But the bridge still isn't open to traffic, and now it's become the centrepiece of a political firestorm south of the border.
Michigan state senator Mallory McMorrow, who is running for the U.S. Senate, has released a campaign ad directly accusing President Donald Trump of deliberately stalling the bridge's opening. Her claim: Trump is holding the crossing closed as a favour to a major political donor with competing interests.
The Corruption Angle
McMorrow's ad frames the delay as a textbook case of pay-to-play politics. While she doesn't name the donor publicly in the ad, her campaign has been pushing an anti-corruption message as its central theme, and the bridge allegation is its sharpest expression yet.
The accusation carries weight because the Gordie Howe bridge is a Canada-U.S. infrastructure project — meaning any deliberate slowdown doesn't just affect Michigan voters, it affects Canadian commerce and supply chains that flow through Windsor every single day.
Why This Matters for Canada
The Ambassador Bridge, which runs parallel to the new crossing and has been Windsor's main artery to Detroit for decades, is privately owned by billionaire Matty Moroun's family. Critics have long argued the Moroun family has financial incentives to keep the new publicly owned bridge from opening, since it would introduce direct competition.
Canada invested billions into the Gordie Howe project precisely to reduce dependence on the privately held Ambassador Bridge and give the government — not a private family — control over a critical trade corridor. Roughly $700 billion in annual trade flows across the Windsor-Detroit crossing. Any delay costs Canadian exporters real money.
McMorrow's Campaign Strategy
For McMorrow, the bridge has become a symbol of everything she's running against. She's positioned herself as a fighter against corruption and corporate influence in politics, and accusing a sitting president of blocking a binational infrastructure project for a donor fits neatly into that narrative.
Whether the allegation gains traction in Michigan's Senate race remains to be seen. But the story has already jumped the border — because for Windsor, Chatham-Kent, and the broader southwestern Ontario economy, the Gordie Howe Bridge isn't a campaign talking point. It's a lifeline.
What Comes Next
Canadian officials have not publicly commented on McMorrow's specific allegation. The bridge is managed through the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority, a binational body, and any formal opening would require coordination on both sides.
For now, Windsor residents and Ontario exporters are watching the U.S. political drama with more than casual interest. The sooner the bridge opens, the better for cross-border trade — and the less leverage any one political figure, on either side, has over it.
Source: CBC News / CBC Politics RSS feed
