The President of the United States has declared a national
emergency on our Southern border. He
justifies this by claiming that we are being invaded by masses of terrorists
and drug dealers who are threatening the security of our nation. That is a serious concern indeed. Or is it?
We have yet to see evidence that
supports Trump’s delirious claims. I
wonder how many weapons have been confiscated by border security from those who
are being contained. The fact is weapons
are being smuggled out of the
United States, not into it, according to the Associated Press.
“A 2013 report by
the University of San Diego says the number of firearms smuggled from the
United States was so significant that nearly half of American gun dealers rely
on that business to stay afloat. On average, an estimated 253,000 firearms each
year are purchased in the United States expressly to be sent to Mexico, the
report said, the vast majority of the sales originating in the border states of
California, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona.”
Lisa
Marie Pane
The
Associated Press
September
30, 2018
And what about drugs? How many drugs have been found in the
possession of the illegal immigrants?
The Federal government’s records show that most of the drugs entering
the United States come through the legal ports of entry.
It is essential to understand how
many people we are talking about who are seeking to enter the United States
illegally. The Immigration and Customs
Enforcement reports that in 2018 there was an average of 42,000 people in
custody on any given day. Of that
number, 15,000 were children under the age of 18. These minors were also separated from their
parents and held in different facilities.
There is no denying that this
represents a serious concern. However,
it is not a threat to our national security.
Rather, it is a humanitarian problem that needs to be addressed in a
rational and humane way. Many of those
being detained are seeking asylum.
United States law allows people to apply for asylum for anyone who has
suffered persecution, or who fear they will suffer persecution, due to race,
religion, nationality, membership in a social group or political opinion,
according to the U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Those who
seek asylum may remain in the United States while their application is
considered. This includes persons who
attempt to enter the country through ways other than the legal ports of entry.
At least this is how it is supposed
to work. However, once again the Trump
Administration plays by a different set of rules. Since then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions
announced a “zero tolerance policy” toward illegal immigrants even those who
seek asylum are now treated as criminals.
Children are separated from their parents and all are locked up in
detention prisons to await deportation.
I do not get it! The United
States of America is morphing into a police state. Fear is driving our national activity and
shaping our policy. This fear is
unfounded but is promoted from the highest powers within the land - - the White
House. And the Republican Party has
crumbled into a bunch of cowering puppets who are terrified to hold their rogue
President accountable. There are
individual exceptions but they are powerless against the majority within the
GOP.
Let’s get realistic here. Is there a crisis? Yes.
Is this crisis a security threat to our nation? No! This
is a humanitarian crisis caused by the Executive Branch of our government. Kirstjen Nielson, Secretary of Homeland
Security, oversees the agency responsible for supervising immigration. Her recent appearance before the House
Homeland Security Committee on March 6, 2019 was most revealing. In her testimony it became painfully obvious
that Nielson either is determined to deceive Congress and the American public
by refusing to answer questions and defying our laws, or she is woefully
ignorant of what is happening at the border.
Either way she proves herself to be incompetent and unqualified for her
job. Consider these takeaways from her testimony
under oath, as reported by CNN.
·
On children in custody: Nielsen said she didn't know how many children are in Customs
and Border Protection custody.
·
On Trump's national emergency: She defended President Trump's national emergency declaration
despite his claim he "didn't need to" do it.
·
On terrorists entering the US: Nielsen confirmed that most terrorists were stopped while trying
to fly to US — not at the border.
·
On zero tolerance: Nielsen defended the administration's "zero
tolerance" policy, which called for the criminal prosecution of adults
crossing the border illegally and, as a result, the separation of
families.
·
On the dangerous journey to the
US: Every girl over 10 who crosses
the border is given a pregnancy test, Nielsen said.
·
On family separations: She said family separation wasn't intended to be a deterrent
despite leaked memos.
·
On drugs at the border: Nielsen said she didn't have numbers on drugs coming through
border.
·
On cybersecurity: The current cybersecurity threat is “blinking red” and is
possibly the "highest threat" to the US homeland, she said.
For the life of me I cannot
understand how Republicans in Congress can possibly continue playing dead in
the path of this Administration’s absurdities.
There are exceptions, thankfully, and opposition is beginning to mount. But it is slow in coming. One has to wonder what it will take to restore
honor and responsibility to our national identity.
G.
D. Gehr
March
8, 2019
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