Alex.m.haward via Flickr, licensed CC
When word came down last Friday that the United States was issuing a ban against Muslims via President Trump’s Executive Order, the Twittersphere and my Facebook Newsfeed went nuts. Condemnation and defenses were going at such a breakneck speed, it was difficult to figure out what was true, what was false, and what was just spin.
But there also seemed to be the swift sword of criticism and rhetorical attacks on anyone who wanted to take a pause before condemning the executive order and the travel ban without getting all of the facts.
This for example, came from one of my relatives. Someone I have known from birth:
In the choice between hate and ignorance I guess I plead ignorant – because I truly didn’t know all of the specifics behind the order and all of its repercussions.
I want to understand the truth. I don’t want to just back Trump because he was my choice (in the lesser of two evils category). Nor do I want to join every bandwagon against him. So in an effort to understand the issue, I did some research and finally came across this well parsed and thought out article by Dan McLaughlin at the National Review.
So first some facts about what the executive order and American Immigration policy.
- It is not a permanent ban. It is 120-day halt to admitting refugees.
- The halt only includes seven countries: Iraq, Iran, Syria, yemen, Sudan, Libya and Somalia
- Does not discriminate between Muslim, Christian, Jewish or any other immigrants.
- The Obama administration discriminated against religious minority Christians from Syria admitting only 1/2 of 1% from Syria.
- The Obama administration never had an open-borders policy for all refugees from everywhere and in fact stopped processing refugues from Iraq for six months in 2011.
- Only three weeks ago, Obama stranded scores of refugees from Cuba in Mexico and Central America.
- Foreigners do not have a constitutional right to demand entry into the United States or to challenge reasons for refusing them entry.
- The 9/11 plotters were immigrating from the Middle East to German.
- Tsarnaey brothers and the Bostom Marathan were children of asylees
- Time Square bomber was a Pakistanin immigrant
- Underwer bomber from Nigeria
- San Bernadino shooter son of Pakistani immigrants
- Chattanooga shooter from Kuwait
- Ford Hood shooter from Palestinian immigrants
- Ohio State stabber from Somalia.
“But efforts to salami-slice the problem into something that looks like a minor or improbable outlier, or to compare this to past waves of immigrants are an insult to the intelligence of the public.”
None of my liberal friends on Facebook address this. Not. a. one. And my young friend’s dilemma of pushing us all into the either the “hate” or “ignorant” category left out the more pressing “fear.” Fear of an unprovoked, unimagined, and unexpected attack sometime, somewhere in the mall, campus, grocery store, football game, or some big sporting event.
So why these seven countries? Because these countries, include the most refugees and the biggest problem in vetting backgrounds. Hopefully once the vetting process (which is already stringent) is more secure for these coutries and the countries themselves can give more information, the travel ban will come down.
Where Trump failed this time was in the way the order was issued. With a little more heads up and more personnel trained to vet visitors who were already on the way to the United States, this wouldn’t have been such a nightmare.
This, shouldn’t have happened.
Watch this video and then try to describe immigrants in dehumanizing terms such as “waves” or “floods.” #MuslimBan pic.twitter.com/vTqvE3Nvys— CJ Werleman (@cjwerleman) January 31, 2017
And how embarrassing that we invited this doctor to our country and then denied her entry!
And is there ever really a reason to put a 5-year-old in handcuffs?
5-year-old Boy handcuffed at Dulles
As Mr. McLaughlin said, this was a “public relations amateur hour, and an unnecessary, unforced error.”
A little more notice and training on the ground could have prevented a lot of this.
The executive order explicitly permits consideration for refugee and asylum:
The Secretaries of State and Homeland Security may, on a case-by-case basis, and when in the national interest, issue visas or other immigration benefits to nationals of countries for which visas and benefits are otherwise blocked.
Hopefully we will see that.
The entire McLaughlin essay is worth a read. I printed and highlighted my copy.
His conclusion summed the reality up well:
The American tradition of accepting refugees and asylees from around the world, especially from the clutches of our enemies, is a proud one, and it is a sad thing to see that compromised. But our tradition has never been an unlimited open-door policy, and President Trum’s latest moves are not nearly such a dramatic departure from the Obama administration as Trump’s liberal critics (or even many of his fans) would have you believe.
At this time more than any, it is important that citizens do their own homework, and look at news from a variety of other sources. My young friend’s Facebook post was a wakeup call. At the behest of my friend, I choose to live in the real world of facts, truth and faith – not hatred, ignorance or fear.
