Securitization and sovereignty in post-9/11 North America

ABSTRACT

This paper traces the recent evolution of North American economic and security relations within the context of broader debates in international political economy (IPE) concerning globalization and its effects on the state in the international system. Borrowing from David Lake's discussion of hierarchical sovereignty, this paper argues that efforts to meld security to economics in an integrated North American market devoid of institutions have made sovereignty more hierarchical. It presents an approach to looking at North American integration, which can assist in understanding recent developments that are suggestive of new areas of research and policy development for both practitioners and theoreticians.

KEYWORDS:

• North America
• sovereignty
• asymmetry
• Department of Homeland Security
• NAFTA

Notes

1. Trade NAFTA Visas, NAFTA Chapter 16.

2. Section 110, Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act.

3. United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology.

4. Formally, the US-Canada Smart Border Declaration and Action Plan, December 2001, and the U.S.-Mexico Border Partnership Action Plan, March 2002.

5. NAFTA actually created an entirely new visa category, the TN Visa, for business professionals. However, that limited liberalization of labour mobility has been circumscribed by variance in access to them. Canadians can typically apply and obtain them at US ports of entry. Mexicans have had to apply through the US consular services in Mexico.

6. Senate Resolution 1348, Secure Borders, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Reform Act of 2007, died in a cloture vote (31-64) on 7 June 2007, effectively ending the debate.

7. In early 2010, a series of events in Arizona, including the shooting death of an Arizona rancher and controversial state immigration legislation, coupled with a weak economy, have likely tipped the balance against comprehensive reforms in the near term.

8. 2004 Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act (USA 2004, Public Law 108-458).

9. Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade estimated that roughly 22 per cent of Canadians and 29 per cent of Americans travelling between the two countries by sea and air did not hold a passport.

10. There are currently 36, mainly European, countries whose nationals do not require a formal visa for entry to the US of less than 90 days.

11. The Global Entry Program is mainly for US citizens and residents to expedite customs and immigration checks upon re-entry to the US.

12. (See http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/layers/secureflight/).