Trump administration holds up opening of US-Canada Gordie Howe bridge
The opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, a roughly $4.6 billion span connecting Detroit and Windsor that has been under construction since 2018, is being held up by the Trump administration, NPR reports . President Trump has demanded that Canada share ownership of the crossing with the United States before he will allow it to open; a grand opening scheduled for June was cancelled at the last minute, with invitees told not to attend. The Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority cited “outstanding issues,” and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said the delay came “at the request of the United States.”
The bridge sits on one of the busiest trade corridors between the two countries, which makes it useful leverage: withholding the opening of finished public infrastructure is a way to extract concessions without tariffs or formal trade action. Critics, including Michigan state Senator Mallory McMorrow, have linked the delay to a $1 million donation to a pro-Trump super PAC in January by the Moroun family, which owns the only other Detroit-Windsor bridge and would face new competition once the Gordie Howe opens — though that connection remains speculation. For now, a completed crossing built largely with Canadian funds sits idle while the two governments negotiate its terms.