The moment he descended from his gilded tower, Trump has referred to Mexicans as rapists and murders. He’s separated children from their families at the border and locked them in cages. He’s sent US troops to defend against a “caravan” of women and children he characterized as diseased. These racists undertones are built on the lies of his centerpiece legislation; the promise to build a wall and have Mexico pay for it. However, as expected, Mexico was never going to pay for the wall. Nevertheless, despite Republican control of government for the last two-years, it’s only since the 2018 midterms that resulted in Democrats taking control of the house, has Trump declared this issue a national emergency, shut-down the government and decided to hold the nation hostage until taxpayers fund his idiotic wall.
Despite mischaracterizing migrants as invaders who are stealing jobs, mooching off welfare and committing crimes, the reality is at least half of the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. are here because of over-extending their visa’s- and not crossing the border illegally. These are refugees seeking asylum. Largely women and children who are fleeing oppression, poverty, and violence from Central America. Furthermore, 75% of these asylum seekers pay federal, state and local taxes. On average, undocumented workers contribute about 23.5 billion-dollars annually in payroll taxes and another 13 billion more towards social security-with no chance of ever recovering any benefits. On the state level, undocumented immigrants contribute to state excise, sales and property taxes, adding an additional 12 billion-dollars annually to state coffers. Most Americans, except for a few gullible crackpots, recognize a border wall is a 17thcentury solution to a 21stcentury problem. Yet Trump furloughed eight-hundred-thousand federal workers without pay, in the longest shut-down in history, over his failed vanity project. This has as much to do with a national emergency as bathrooms have to do with Transgenders. The wall isn’t negotiable because it’s based on lies, racism and white nationalism. It’s like saying that “Whites Only” signs were ok so long as black-folks got clean bathrooms.
It’s amazing how a few oddballs have decided the greatest threat to our sovereignty and safety are hungry, dehydrated and exhausted families seeking asylum from poverty and violence with nothing but the clothes on their back. But mass shootings, voter suppression, healthcare, climate change, government shut-downs, stagnant wages and a president being investigated as a potential Russian asset are totally fine with them. Any attempt to reason with this organized hypocrisy, is like trying to get your dog to take a pill. First you must wrap the facts in bologna, hold his snout closed and stroke his throat. Then just when you think he swallowed it, he spits it back out on the floor.
It has become increasingly apparent that conservatives have become incapable of governing. As evidenced by the succession of republican presidents whose transgressions and crimes against humanity have grown steadily worse. Conservatives have sacrificed traditional values for a cult of personality. They have put their faith in the criminality, the empty promises, sordid affairs, chaos and scandals of a narcissistic degenerate like Donald Trump. The result is a culture more concerned with being called gullible and paranoid and their percieved emotional persecution and than they are with famine, climate change, stripping healthcare from millions of American workers, or privatizing social security and medicare.
If republicans are so sensitive to what godless, unpatriotic, Volvo-driving, socialist-Democrats think of them, perhaps these same republicans should reevaluate their support of the religious extremism, gun-obsessed policies and the republican deceits that reward the rich, hate the poor and punish minorities.
Discussion2 Comments
I think if we had characterized the migration of Central Americans as an Exodus instead of a caravan the impact could have been a lot different. After all, what Christian would possibly deny the Bible’s message? And clearly, the people in question are Christians. There appears to be a lot of hate and recrimination among the religious folk, that invites question as to their purpose in the 21st century. But that’s a another story.
The border wall. Without analysis of alternative solutions, we are at a loss to understand anything about our choice in this matter. There appears to be no analysis and we are reacting to a knee-jerk by #45 to meet a campaign promise that may have only been for effect. In purely Parkinsonian manner, we are facing a $5.7 billion expense that has been vetted publicly. Given news reports that the wall (fence) could be cut by inexpensive tools purchased at any Lowe’s or Home Depot, how much will it cost to maintain it over time. Isn’t that a normal topic of legislative interest? This suggests that if built, we will have to cough up more money to bolster the wall with the same technological tools (that cost much less) as was proposed as the alternative to the Medieval wall . A likely failure from the beginning. WHAT HAVE WE BECOME?
But the real story is that the President has the power to shut down the government on any whim at great cost and pain to all of us. This action heightens the Constitutional crisis we are experiencing, since Congress seems incapable of meeting its’ obligations and has been doing the presidents bidding (eg McConnell’s refusal to bring anything to a vote that the president will not sign. Where is our democracy and all the reaction from the “patriots” who claim to support it? The wall is another symptom of autocratic rule affecting the body politic for which our democracy must be inoculated, sooner rather than later!
Another excellent summary regarding our current politics. There are many long-term changes the nation needs to address, not the least of which is executive power, however the underlying problem is the constant volitility in our markets, economy and politics which sends everyone scrambling towards short-term solutions. Of course this isn’t happening by coincidence, I believe this is an orchestrated effort by the ruling and donor classes to keep the populace busy juggling manufactured distractions, while they pilfer our rights, loot our wealth and spill our blood. The big question is when the American people finally wake up to what is happening will it be too late?