Trump:
The Democrats made us do it.
Stephen Miller: It's our policy to do it.
Sec. Nielsen: We're not doing it.
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) June 17, 2018
To get a handle on what Li’l Donie Trump is up to regards to immigration, we need to go back to the beginning, to the summer of 2015 when Trump descended an escalator to announce he was running for President.
Oh, how we laughed. And laughed. And laughed. And laughed. And laughed.
OK, it’s not so goddam funny now, is it?
Anyway, Trump’s big selling point was we needed to build a wall to keep out a wave of rapists and murderers surging across our southern border. It was a blatant appeal to fear that Trump has never, ever waivered from and why should he? Yes, there a gazillion studies and facts that show Trump is wrong but when it comes to Trump and his followers, who the fuck cares. To them, it certainly seems plausible that entire hordes of rapists and murderers are just pouring over the border from Mexico.
Anyway, Li’l Donnie’s flailing away at that particular dead horse for three fucking years now and he won’t let up. Why? Because it works for him.
Despite the facts to the contrary.
Despite consistently declining numbers of illegal immigrants.
Despite a negligible link between illegal immigrants and violent crime.
Trump pulled out of the Paris climate accord despite facts to the contrary.
Trump violated the Iran nuclear despite facts to the contrary.
Trump has refuted Russian interference in our elections despite facts to the contrary.
Why the fuck should Trump change now on the golden goose of a cause that propelled him this far?
It also worth remembering that Trump isn’t just down on illegal immigration.
He wants to curtail legal immigration. He wants to limit entry into the United States for anybody that doesn’t look like his base supporters.
As I’ve noted in this space, everything Trump does is done with an eye on the base. And that base of non college educated whites look at immigrants, even legal ones, as competition for their jobs. They see the world where their concerns are marginalized in deference to immigrants and minorities. This was a world view that Democrats just could not wrap their hands around back in 2016. “We’re Democrats! We love everybody!” But those voters who form the base of Trump’s support could care less about “everybody”, seeing life as a zero-sum game; attention and sympathy for minorities and immigrants meant none for them.
Donald Trump is a fucking moron but he knows an untapped market when he sees one and has stayed on message for three years appealing to that market, even if doing so flies in the face of facts.
So what if the numbers do not support the epic droves of illegals pouring over the border with Mexico? The non college educated racist white guy notices there are more brown faces around than there used to be and this non college educated racist white guy feels life isn’t as good for him as it used to be. Putting two and two together, the non college educated racist white guy know who is responsible for life not being as good for him as it used to be. So Li’l Donnie ranting double time to push back on the entry of as many brown faces as possible, legal or otherwise, this makes the non college educated racist white guy think somebody’s looking out for him.
Which brings us to the current state of things at the US/Mexican border.
A few months ago, Trump ordered the deployment of the National Guard to refortify the border to stop the flood of illegals crossing the border. So far, the National Guard is basically cooling its heels doing minor chores because the Border Patrol pretty much has things well in hand as there is no flood of illegals*.
*Apparently there has been an increase in border crossings
by a factor of 3 since this time last year. The editorial staff at I'm So Glad My Suffering Amuses You apologizes for the error.
But Trump insists there is. Remember Trump is talking to the people who voted for him who are also convinced, evidence to the contrary be damned, that there’s a flood of illegals just overrunning the border.
And now the latest actions taken by Trump and his team of sycophants, separating kids from parents as they cross the border.
Children forcibly separated from parents is a policy that has earned nearly universal rebuke from across the political spectrum. Trump, like all cowards and bullies, immediately deflects responsibility, blaming the practice of such separations on laws passed by Democrats. This is, of course, a lie. Others in the administration have made it clear this is a matter of policy, of zero tolerance of breaking immigration law. There is no actual law that requires or mandates the separation of children from families.
Jeff Sessions, Attorney General and part time garden gnome, has made it explicitly clear: illegally entering the United States is a crime and anyone committing a crime is subject to the penalties of committing that crime. Then Jeff trots out the Bible to justify his actions. And Sarah Sanders, Press Secretary and Satan’s succubus, has also hidden behind a Biblical defense of this policy.
So how is this playing with Trump’s base? While even a non college educated racist white guy might think it’s a shame to pull a child from their mother, he’s also thinking, at least Trump is doing something. It doesn’t have to be right or good, just do something.
What is happening with families at the border is anathema to our values as a nation. It is an affront to morality and decency. But Trump doesn’t care. He’s doing something. That’s all that matters to his supporters, to his enablers and to Trump himself.
Stephen Miller: It's our policy to do it.
Sec. Nielsen: We're not doing it.
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) June 17, 2018
To get a handle on what Li’l Donie Trump is up to regards to immigration, we need to go back to the beginning, to the summer of 2015 when Trump descended an escalator to announce he was running for President.
Oh, how we laughed. And laughed. And laughed. And laughed. And laughed.
OK, it’s not so goddam funny now, is it?
Anyway, Trump’s big selling point was we needed to build a wall to keep out a wave of rapists and murderers surging across our southern border. It was a blatant appeal to fear that Trump has never, ever waivered from and why should he? Yes, there a gazillion studies and facts that show Trump is wrong but when it comes to Trump and his followers, who the fuck cares. To them, it certainly seems plausible that entire hordes of rapists and murderers are just pouring over the border from Mexico.
Anyway, Li’l Donnie’s flailing away at that particular dead horse for three fucking years now and he won’t let up. Why? Because it works for him.
Despite the facts to the contrary.
Despite consistently declining numbers of illegal immigrants.
Despite a negligible link between illegal immigrants and violent crime.
Trump pulled out of the Paris climate accord despite facts to the contrary.
Trump violated the Iran nuclear despite facts to the contrary.
Trump has refuted Russian interference in our elections despite facts to the contrary.
Why the fuck should Trump change now on the golden goose of a cause that propelled him this far?
It also worth remembering that Trump isn’t just down on illegal immigration.
He wants to curtail legal immigration. He wants to limit entry into the United States for anybody that doesn’t look like his base supporters.
As I’ve noted in this space, everything Trump does is done with an eye on the base. And that base of non college educated whites look at immigrants, even legal ones, as competition for their jobs. They see the world where their concerns are marginalized in deference to immigrants and minorities. This was a world view that Democrats just could not wrap their hands around back in 2016. “We’re Democrats! We love everybody!” But those voters who form the base of Trump’s support could care less about “everybody”, seeing life as a zero-sum game; attention and sympathy for minorities and immigrants meant none for them.
Donald Trump is a fucking moron but he knows an untapped market when he sees one and has stayed on message for three years appealing to that market, even if doing so flies in the face of facts.
So what if the numbers do not support the epic droves of illegals pouring over the border with Mexico? The non college educated racist white guy notices there are more brown faces around than there used to be and this non college educated racist white guy feels life isn’t as good for him as it used to be. Putting two and two together, the non college educated racist white guy know who is responsible for life not being as good for him as it used to be. So Li’l Donnie ranting double time to push back on the entry of as many brown faces as possible, legal or otherwise, this makes the non college educated racist white guy think somebody’s looking out for him.
Which brings us to the current state of things at the US/Mexican border.
A few months ago, Trump ordered the deployment of the National Guard to refortify the border to stop the flood of illegals crossing the border. So far, the National Guard is basically cooling its heels doing minor chores because the Border Patrol pretty much has things well in hand as there is no flood of illegals*.
*Apparently there has been an increase in border crossings
by a factor of 3 since this time last year. The editorial staff at I'm So Glad My Suffering Amuses You apologizes for the error.
But Trump insists there is. Remember Trump is talking to the people who voted for him who are also convinced, evidence to the contrary be damned, that there’s a flood of illegals just overrunning the border.
And now the latest actions taken by Trump and his team of sycophants, separating kids from parents as they cross the border.
Children forcibly separated from parents is a policy that has earned nearly universal rebuke from across the political spectrum. Trump, like all cowards and bullies, immediately deflects responsibility, blaming the practice of such separations on laws passed by Democrats. This is, of course, a lie. Others in the administration have made it clear this is a matter of policy, of zero tolerance of breaking immigration law. There is no actual law that requires or mandates the separation of children from families.
Jeff Sessions, Attorney General and part time garden gnome, has made it explicitly clear: illegally entering the United States is a crime and anyone committing a crime is subject to the penalties of committing that crime. Then Jeff trots out the Bible to justify his actions. And Sarah Sanders, Press Secretary and Satan’s succubus, has also hidden behind a Biblical defense of this policy.
So how is this playing with Trump’s base? While even a non college educated racist white guy might think it’s a shame to pull a child from their mother, he’s also thinking, at least Trump is doing something. It doesn’t have to be right or good, just do something.
What is happening with families at the border is anathema to our values as a nation. It is an affront to morality and decency. But Trump doesn’t care. He’s doing something. That’s all that matters to his supporters, to his enablers and to Trump himself.
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