Fox News conservative contributor Ari Fleischer left network hosts without a response on Wednesday after he revealed his opposition to a Canadian "Freedom Convoy" protest that was purportedly started by truckers who oppose vaccine mandates.
Throughout the week, Fox News has provided favorable coverage of the protest despite polls that show most Ottawa residents want the demonstrators to go home.
"The facts are important," Fox News host Kayleigh McEnany told Fleischer. "These guys were essential workers, they couldn't have a supply shortage, they're driving their trucks across the border then all the sudden on Jan. 15 there's this new Orwellian restriction put in place and they're looking around, saying, did the science change? Why Jan. 15 do we suddenly -- we're no longer essential?"
Fleischer expressed sympathy for the truckers but said that he disagreed with their tactics.
"I have a different take on this," he revealed. "I've been caught in enough New York City traffic snarls where I couldn't move for two hours because Occupy Wall Street took over all the streets in New York City -- many of the streets in New York City in certain areas."
"You don't have the right no matter how good your cause is to do that to your fellow citizens," the pundit continued. "I do not support blocking traffic, interfering with the mobility of other people, which includes their getting health care, their carrying out the things they need in life to be on time for."
He added: "And so I oppose it whether it's Occupy Wall Street or a group I'm sympathetic toward. Good goals but bad tactics. I think you alienate more people by doing this."
Fleischer admitted that the protest is "kind of fun to watch on TV."
"But these tactics backfire and I don't like them being done by anybody," he remarked. "Stay off the streets. Don't shut down the rights of other people to go where they need to go."
McEnany had no response for Fleischer. Instead, she moved on to a question attacking Ottawa police for tactics used against right-wing protesters.
