This is what life is like now for Dick Cheney.
The former vice president has reportedly canceled an April appearance in Toronto because of concern about security in Canada.
“He felt that in Canada the risk of violent protest was simply too high,” said Ryan Ruppert, president of promotions company Spectre Live, according to Canada’s National Post.
Ruppert’s company had booked Cheney for an April 24 appearance at the Metro Toronto Convention Center.
If this sounds vaguely familiar, it’s because Cheney has had some trouble north of the border before. In September, the former U.S. vice president was in Vancouver to promote his book, and was forced to stay in his hotel room for several hours when protesters surrounded his hotel.
Now, it’s possible the cancellation is a face-saving move, used as an excuse to paper over poor ticket sales. But that’s obviously speculative, and it doesn’t take away from the startling nature of the official line: Cheney is ducking Toronto because he considers it unsafe. Incidentally, Cheney is using Spectre to line up his events? The scandal-plagued politician, who embraced war and torture, is relying on a promotional company that has the exact same name as an evil organization from the James Bond franchise? I couldn’t make this stuff up if I tried.
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