Where were all the tears, where was all the outrage when
President Obama separated families at the border? When he did that,
anyone who criticized him was called racist. So when did all these
people suddenly find compassion for these children? Or is it not
compassion at all but really hatred – hatred of Donald Trump?
This is what I see. I see masses of people who can’t
think for themselves. They are being used as they allow emotional
manipulation to direct their behavior. They don’t bother to know what
the actual facts are about a situation – they just allow their emotions to be
riled up by (often fake) photos and other emotional triggers, and then, as
encouraged, scream, cry, and attack the Trump administration.
I really do not understand why people are so willing to allow
themselves to be used. Was their love of the previous president
and/or their hatred of the current president so strong that they lost their
ability to think and to see what is actually going on? Do they not
understand the emotional propaganda that is being used to keep them riled up
and working as pawns for someone else’s very political agenda?
2. Do You Know What You Want?
What is it the protestors want? They said it was to
keep families together, but they would not work to actually change the law, the
enforcement of which requires separation. Instead, they attacked the
President for doing his job and enforcing the law. (As Democratic
Senator Schumer stated, the Democrats will reject any legislation to fix the
border crisis. They want to “keep the focus on Trump.”)
When President Trump saw that these people would not even
attempt to work on legislation, he signed an executive order that at least
temporarily keeps families together. One would think that would
satisfy the screamers. But no. Now they are angry that he
signed the order. Hmmm – is it the children they care about or is it
really about hating Trump? What is it these people want? Now it
seems that many have moved on to demanding entirely open borders. Do
they even understand what that means or the consequences, both short and long
term, to our country? I sincerely doubt that.
3. Government 101
I also don’t understand how so many people in this country can
have so little understanding of our government and how it
works. Anyone, with even a simple Google search, can find the basic
role of each branch of government: The legislative branch (Congress)
writes and passes legislation (laws). The executive branch (the executive
departments and the President and cabinet at the federal level) makes sure that
laws are enforced and allocates necessary funding. The judicial branch (the
court system) evaluates the laws passed by the legislative branch and
determines whether they comply with the Constitution. This is all
laid out in the Constitution which I hope (but often doubt) that every citizen
has read at least once.
In every election in which there is more than one candidate
someone will lose, and the supporters of that person will not be
happy. But our job as citizens is to accept that the people have
spoken and support the winner of the election in carrying out his or her
duties. If we are not happy with the winner, our course of action is
not to assault him or her daily, but it is to support a different candidate in
the next election. While under our current government we do have the
right to free speech, simply screaming and launching ad hominem attacks is not
productive. That is not how we unseat our elected
officials. In this country we vote.
4. How Best to Change the Immigration (Or Any Other) Law
Even with just this basic information about the government, one
wonders why those who are unhappy with our current immigration laws, are
protesting against the executive branch which is simply doing its job of
enforcing those laws (the same laws that were in effect when Obama was
president and under which he prosecuted nearly 500,000 illegal immigrants,
resulting in the separation of many families). Either the people
seem to think that the president has the powers of a dictator (he doesn’t) or
they are simply using a situation as an excuse to attack the
president.
The immigration laws can be amended and rewritten in the
legislature and that is why those who are unhappy with the law should be
contacting their legislative representatives. Several bills have or will be
introduced regarding immigration. The Republicans in Congress have
several times proposed bills that would overrule the 1997 order and allow
children to be kept with their parents. The Democrats have opposed these
bills. Some bills call for complete immigration overhaul; others
provide smaller fixes. Some want open borders.
I realize that the legislative process takes time (sorry, no
instant gratification!), but it is the way in which the people govern. We elect
our representatives and they speak for us in Congress. There are amendments and
changes to bills. As in any negotiation, those representing various positions
try to get as much as they can while giving up as little as possible. If the
parties are willing to listen to and work with one another, they will come up
with a bill that essentially represents the will of the people. That is called
compromise! It is how we end up with government of/by/for the people. It is how
our government works. And, those who are truly interested in fixing the
problems they see with our current immigration laws should be reviewing the
proposed changes and contacting their congresspeople to express their
views.
5. Some Notes on the Law Itself
Many protestors also seem to be unfamiliar with the law
itself. In most instances, what people are complaining about is the
treatment of people who enter the country illegally. We have a legal
process of immigration, we have legal ports of entry, and those who follow the
immigration laws will not have violated the law and therefore will not be
prosecuted. That is, it seems that he protesters are attacking a
problem that goes away if the families attempting to cross illegally would
instead choose to follow the law.
Those who enter our country illegally have broken the law and
can be prosecuted under the law just as anyone who breaks any law can be prosecuted.
The illegal immigrants are detained under the law. When an adult is detained in
an adult facility, children cannot be kept there (just as children are not sent
to prison with their parents who may be jailed for other violations of law). A
1997 court order requires the government to place immigrant children with a
close family member or friend, and until that is accomplished to keep immigrant
children in “the least restrictive means possible.” Hence, the children are
kept in juvenile facilities. President Trump’s order now keeps families
together, but that order can be challenged as violative of the 1997 court
order.
When one enters legally, there is no prosecutorial detention.
(Note: those seeking asylum at a legal port of entry will still be
detained while the asylum claim is investigated and
verified. That is, just because one wants to enter, even when
following legal processes, not every request will be granted. To
allow any one in without question would be to create open
borders). Those seeking entry are yet not citizens or legal
residents.
There is a distinction between legal and illegal which many
either do not understand or have chosen to forget. This makes many
of their complaints unclear and ineffective.
6. Inaccurate Words and Analogies
Screaming protests are especially not effective when they are
based on either misinformation or lack of information. For example,
in the current immigration debate I keep hearing the words law and policy used
interchangeably. President Trump's policy is to fully enforce the
law. He cannot change the law. The law is written by the legislative body.
While President Obama’s policy was not one of zero tolerance, nonetheless,
children were separated from families at the border under Obama whose administration
was following the same law as the Trump administration.
Particularly troubling is the comparison of this border crisis
with the holocaust. Not only does this show an appalling lack of
understanding of both the law and the holocaust, it is simply an inaccurate
comparison. The facts reveal that the border situation is nothing at
all like the holocaust in which Jewish and other residents of Germany where
sent to concentration camps based on their religion or other identifiable
characteristics and were in many instances then killed. To call our
border situation equivalent is to cheapen Nazism and genocide by making them
simply synonyms for a bad or allegedly inhumane situation. Anyone
who thinks that is all that the holocaust was is completely ignorant on that
piece of history.
7. Don’t You See You’re Being Conned?
I don’t understand how the protestors do not feel that they are
being duped. By now we know that many of the most emotional photos
are not of children currently separated from families. Even the
little crying girl, used to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars and
appearing on the current cover of Time magazine as part of an attempted shaming
of the President, was never separated from her mother according to her father
and others.
What I don’t understand is why people allow themselves to be
used by politicians who I suspect care little if at all for the children or the
immigrants, but are instead simply using the protesters’ very laudable
compassion to further their own political agenda, to attack Trump, and to
enhance their own power. How many of these people doing the bidding
of the progressive leadership even know the details of the agenda they are
supporting?
8. My Request
I really don’t think that the many protestors are ignorant or
stupid. What I do think is that they are being conned. I
have great respect for those who have compassion for a crying
child. But I think that compassion is being exploited by some who
have little concern for those children. But, for those truly
concerned with the immigration problem and fixing it, the focus needs to be on
the legislature. I simply wish that everyone would take a minute to
understand why they are screaming. Is it for the children? Is it for
immigration reform? Is it simply a primal scream of hatred of the
president? Or, are the screams simply being provoked by ones who are
using a very noble and genuine compassion for a less noble agenda supporting
only their own power? My request is that everyone stop for a moment and consider
all of this.
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