Cheney Cancels Canada Trip Over Security Fears
The former VP's last trip to the Great White North sparked major demonstrations.
| Posted Tuesday, March 13, 2012, at 12:36 PM
Photo by Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images.
Dick Cheney has canceled a trip to the Great White North because of safety concerns, the Associated Press reports.
The former vice president had been scheduled to speak in Toronto next month, but ultimately backed out after talking it over with security advisers and his family, one of the event's organizers told the news wire.
Cheney was greeted by angry demonstrators last September when he visited Vancouver during a book tour, and was forced to stay in his hotel room for several hours when protesters blocked entrances and clashed with police.
The Globe and Mail explains that in Vancouver, demonstrators called for the former VP's arrest on criminal charges related to the treatment of detainees under the Bush administration, and booed attendees as they arrived at a $500-a-plate event where Cheney was speaking.
Those memories appear to have been enough to convince the Republican to stay home next month. He had been slated to speak in Toronto on April 24 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
Organizers didn't say how many tickets had been purchased for the Toronto engagement, but according to the Globe and Mail, disappointed ticket holders will be offered either a refund or an exchange to see conservative political commentator Mark Steyn.
