Canada considers its neighbour to the south more than just a cohabitant of this vast continent, but a close ally, friend, and trading partner. But a popular host on one of the United States' most-watched networks just openly advocated for an armed invasion of Canada, which only begins to make sense when you realize we're talking about Fox News' Tucker Carlson.

The infamous bow-tied right-wing pundit raised eyebrows during Fox Nation's "Tucker Carlson Today" on Thursday, openly calling for a U.S. military invasion to overthrow Justin Trudeau's Liberal government, an administration Carlson accuses of being "authoritarian."

Dear Tucker Carlson,

We are not Cuba and we don’t need to be liberated. We are one of the greatest democracies on the planet.

So, on behalf of all Canadians, go fuck yourself.

Sincerely,
CHT 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/XNhzCwaQxl

— cαηα∂α нαтεs тя☭мρ (@Trump_Detester) January 27, 2023

"So I have to ask you about Canada, and what we saw happen there last winter, the trucker protests, and then the crackdown by the authoritarian government of Canada," said Carlson on the program.

Carlson tells his guest that he is "completely in favour of a Bay of Pigs operation to liberate that country," referencing a failed 1961 U.S.-backed invasion to overthrow Fidel Castro by Cuban exiles.

"Why should we stand back and let our biggest trading partner, the country with which we share the longest border — and actually, I should just say, I love Canada, I've always loved Canada, it's a great country for its natural beauty — why should we let it become Cuba? Why don't we liberate it."

Wait, what the f***? I know I shouldn't be surprised by something Tucker Carlson says at this point, but still, WTF.

Well Tucker Carson wants to invade Canada to rescue us from Trudeau (no thanks), remember this...his followers believe everything he says and they have elected people just like them.

As insane as it sounds, sanity left the Republicans 8 years ago.

— Slightly Snappy.....🇨🇦 💙💛 (she/her) (@snapthennap) January 27, 2023

"We're spending all this money to liberate Ukraine from Russians," continues Carlson, using mocking air quotes (Carlson is known for spouting Putin-backed propaganda and supporting armed coups like the Jan. 6 riots), adding, "why are we not sending an armed force north to liberate Canada from Trudeau, and I mean it."

Carlson's guest, despite being unhinged enough to appear on Tucker Carlson Today, admits, "I don't know that I'm there yet with you," as the host laughs over him.

I have told many people, one of my darkest thoughts is there is a non-zero chance that the US invades Canada in my lifetime https://t.co/N3GlsGcSIQ

— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) January 27, 2023

It sounds ridiculous, but even as recently as the 20th century, a U.S. invasion of Canada was something talked about in media like the 1995 comedy flick Canadian Bacon, but also on the desks of real military strategists during the interwar period of 1919-1939.

During that era, the United States Department of War developed a series of colour-coded war plans that would allow the growing superpower to react to conflicts with several nations.

War Plan Red was devised in the event of war with the British Empire, and the long-declassified plans offer a remarkably detailed breakdown of how an invasion of the Great White North may have played out.

The war would have kicked off with a joint strike by the U.S. army and naval forces on Halifax, cutting off Canada from the naval power of the British Empire.

Canadian power plants, specifically the infrastructure at Niagara Falls, would have been the next target, crippling the most populous area of the country and paving the way for an all-out invasion by ground forces on three fronts, capturing Montreal and Quebec City, railheads in Winnipeg, and nickel mines in Ontario.