Kristi Noem Takes Bizarre Revenge on Canadians at Library She Used as a Stunt

The American government is making it harder for Canadians to access the library in both countries where Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem pulled a bizarre “51st state” stunt earlier this month.

Haskell Free Library and Opera House straddles the border—it’s half in Stanstead, Quebec, and half in Derby Line, Vermont.

Although the primary entrance is technically on the American side, the library has long been treated as a neutral zone, where citizens of either country were able to enter as they pleased. As part of the agreement, U.S. border officers patrolled the area around the library and were authorized to search people’s bags.

However, American border patrol officers are planning to ban entry to Canadians through the library’s main entrance unless they first enter the U.S. through an official border crossing point, the president of the library’s board told the CBC.

Sylvie Boudreau said that an officer informed her last week that this new restriction would begin in October.

A DHS official alleged in a statement to the Daily Beast that the library was being used for drug trafficking.

“The library is still open,” the statement read. “Drug traffickers and smugglers were exploiting the fact that Canadians could use the US entrance without going through customs. We are ending such exploitation by criminals and protecting Americans.”

The DHS did not offer any additional details or evidence to support the claim and did not immediately reply to follow-up questions from the Beast. Most drug movement on the northern border is from the U.S. into Canada, according to the Global Initiative Against Transnational Crime.

Talking to the CBC, Boudreau was nearly in tears. She said she was “sad, disappointed, even angry, but we will rise above all this.”

She said that she has already met with a contractor about renovating an entrance on the Canadian side. “It will be a lot of restructuring, a lot of money to be spent,” she said.

The development comes as President Donald Trump has waged a trade war against Canada and called—seriously, it seems—for it to become the 51st state of America.

Earlier this month, Noem visited the library and pushed her boss’ talking points in a bizarre stunt.

She reportedly stepped back and forth across the border within the library. On the American side, wearing a grin, she said, “U.S.A. No. 1.” And on the Canadian side, Noem said, “The 51st state.”

Many top Canadian officials and politicians, including new Prime Minister Mark Carney, have vowed that the northern country will never become a U.S. state.

During the early days of his second term, Trump has also sought to crack down on illegal immigration and deport undocumented immigrants en masse.

At a news conference on Friday, local officials bashed America’s decision to restrict access to the library.

“Today’s announcement does not make sense,” Stanstead’s mayor, Jody Stone, said, according to The Montreal Gazette. “For more than 100 years, there has been an unwritten agreement that allowed Canadians to access the library from this sidewalk. It worked and there were very few problems, a testament to the co-operation and friendship between our two countries.”

He emphasized that the two towns are tightly knit despite being different countries. “Without borders, you wouldn’t even know we are two separate communities,” Stone said.

Beginning next week, the library will ask Canadian visitors to enter the U.S. through an official crossing point. It is also confirmed that it is planning to add a door on the Canadian side for those without a passport. Inside the library, visitors will be allowed to move freely, but they must exit through the same door they entered.