The "Wall or Nothing" standoff continues unabated
"They say it's a medieval solution, a wall. It's true, because it worked then and it works even better now." - Donald Trump during a recent bill signing at the White House.
In making his false case for the need to build a wall at the U.S. southern border, #DishonestDonnie claims it is needed to make the nation same from a vast flow of drugs, thugs, terrorists and other people entering the nation illegally.
Drugs - the truth is that the vast majority of illicit narcotic substances entering our nation do so by being smuggled in a legal entry-points into the U.S.
Thugs - #DishonestDonnie tried using anecdotes of heinous crimes committed by those in the U.S. illegally. As reported by NPR, multiple studies prove that the presence of people in the U.S. illegally does not increase the problems of violent crime. Studies also indicate that people in the country illegally are arrested for violent crimes at lower rates than those who were born here.
Terrorists - We heard over and over again about how 4,000 suspected terrorists were identified attempting to enter the U.S. at the southern border. Actual data from the Customs and Border Protection agency shows the total of such individuals identified in the first six months of 2018 was actually just 6.
Others entering illegally - I just heard someone on Fox News pointing out that illegal immigration into the U.S. is at a 20-year low.
* * *
When the #InfantInChief banged his hands on the table before walking out of a meeting where the leadership of the Congress was meeting with him to try to end the Trump Government Shutdown (TGS), he made it clear that his position on this issue is "Wall or Nothing."
Fine. He can hold that position if he wants to. But then he shouldn't be sending Mike Pence out to claim that Democrats won't negotiate. It is clear that Trump wants the entire $5.7 billion and the Democrats won't give him more than what was in the legislation that had already passed the Senate in 2018.
Joshua Tree National Park was going to be shutdown tomorrow morning (January 10th) but now it appears the closure will be temporary to clean up the massive mess created while most of the people who keep the park clean and safe are out on furlough. But at least three people have died in the National Parks during the shutdown. Were those deaths the result of the shutdown? The problem with these park closures is that the precious natural resources they were created to protect and defend are suffering irreparable damage at the moment. Their protectors aren't there.
At work yesterday I dealt with three clients whose situations required contacting the IRS. That is not possible at the moment. While the IRS won't begin accepting returns and issuing refunds until the end of this month, most of their collection activities are continuing unabated. One client is having funds taken from their bank account that they don't actually owe; and that will have to be refunded once the paperwork involved is properly processed by the IRS. In a year where there are so many changes involved in filing tax returns, it is just plain wrong for the IRS to be operating at severely reduced manpower levels.
CNN reports that an email was sent by Martin Elam, who directs TSA security operations at five Southern California airports, to the TSA employees who work at Palm Springs International Airport. It says that excessive absences have "adversely impacted security operations" at that location.
The number of FDA food inspections being conducted has dropped sharply since the TGS began.
Our health, our safety and our nation's economy are being damaged. People's financial futures are being ruined.
#DishonestDonnie bangs tables and fumes.
That is not leadership. To paraphrase FDR, January 9th, 2019. A date where our president is practicing infancy.
In making his false case for the need to build a wall at the U.S. southern border, #DishonestDonnie claims it is needed to make the nation same from a vast flow of drugs, thugs, terrorists and other people entering the nation illegally.
Drugs - the truth is that the vast majority of illicit narcotic substances entering our nation do so by being smuggled in a legal entry-points into the U.S.
Thugs - #DishonestDonnie tried using anecdotes of heinous crimes committed by those in the U.S. illegally. As reported by NPR, multiple studies prove that the presence of people in the U.S. illegally does not increase the problems of violent crime. Studies also indicate that people in the country illegally are arrested for violent crimes at lower rates than those who were born here.
Terrorists - We heard over and over again about how 4,000 suspected terrorists were identified attempting to enter the U.S. at the southern border. Actual data from the Customs and Border Protection agency shows the total of such individuals identified in the first six months of 2018 was actually just 6.
Others entering illegally - I just heard someone on Fox News pointing out that illegal immigration into the U.S. is at a 20-year low.
* * *
When the #InfantInChief banged his hands on the table before walking out of a meeting where the leadership of the Congress was meeting with him to try to end the Trump Government Shutdown (TGS), he made it clear that his position on this issue is "Wall or Nothing."
Fine. He can hold that position if he wants to. But then he shouldn't be sending Mike Pence out to claim that Democrats won't negotiate. It is clear that Trump wants the entire $5.7 billion and the Democrats won't give him more than what was in the legislation that had already passed the Senate in 2018.
Joshua Tree National Park was going to be shutdown tomorrow morning (January 10th) but now it appears the closure will be temporary to clean up the massive mess created while most of the people who keep the park clean and safe are out on furlough. But at least three people have died in the National Parks during the shutdown. Were those deaths the result of the shutdown? The problem with these park closures is that the precious natural resources they were created to protect and defend are suffering irreparable damage at the moment. Their protectors aren't there.
At work yesterday I dealt with three clients whose situations required contacting the IRS. That is not possible at the moment. While the IRS won't begin accepting returns and issuing refunds until the end of this month, most of their collection activities are continuing unabated. One client is having funds taken from their bank account that they don't actually owe; and that will have to be refunded once the paperwork involved is properly processed by the IRS. In a year where there are so many changes involved in filing tax returns, it is just plain wrong for the IRS to be operating at severely reduced manpower levels.
CNN reports that an email was sent by Martin Elam, who directs TSA security operations at five Southern California airports, to the TSA employees who work at Palm Springs International Airport. It says that excessive absences have "adversely impacted security operations" at that location.
The number of FDA food inspections being conducted has dropped sharply since the TGS began.
Our health, our safety and our nation's economy are being damaged. People's financial futures are being ruined.
#DishonestDonnie bangs tables and fumes.
That is not leadership. To paraphrase FDR, January 9th, 2019. A date where our president is practicing infancy.
posted by me at 2:48 PM
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