The problem is many people — not here on HN but in general — were happy or at least unperturbed when this happened to right wing figures like Donald Trump, the trucker protestors in Canada and the 1/6 capitol riot people in the US.
It was incredibly obvious this would be inflicted in the other direction to anyone who followed what happened to Wikileaks supporters or people around Ed Snowden.
To everyone saying this is about US hegemony, note not only Canada but also UK (see Nigel Farage) has inflicted this on their own citizens - so they certainly helped lay the groundwork for what amount to extremely petty sanctions (and they too have participated in sanctions efforts).