Trump stops pretending it’s about the ‘worst of the worst’
The murder of 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom, who served her country in the National Guard to pay for college, is horrific.
Fellow soldier Staff Sgt. 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe continues his fight for life.
The alleged attacker is an Afghan national Rahmanullah LakanwalThe 29-year-old is in custody and likely faces the federal death penalty.
It is important that we pause for a moment and acknowledge the unacceptable horror that two men serving our country were shot and killed in an apparently targeted attack just a few blocks from the White House the day before Thanksgiving. It is also important to examine Lakanwal’s path to the United States to see if any red flags were missed.
But it is equally important to stop pretending that Trump’s increasingly overt racism counts as sound immigration policy.
As infuriating and distressing as this crime is, it is not a statement against all immigrants. But there it goes again.
“We don’t want those peoplehe said Sunday night, referring to refugees from Third World countries.
This was around the same time The official White House account released a video Trump read civil rights song “The Snake” Oscar Brown Jr. by
“‘Oh, shut up, stupid woman,’ he said with that creepy grin,” Trump said over footage of immigration officers rounding up, you guessed it, brown people. “You knew very well that I was a snake before you let me in.”
I mean, the Klan would be toast over this sort of thing.
While we’ve seen this before, Trump’s attack on non-white immigrants this time appears to be a move not to appease MAGA voters but to marginalize them; embracing the increasingly powerful MAGA contingent of its base further to the right, which has been open in its disdain for pluralism and equality.
Shortly after the tragedy in Washington, Trump vowed on social media that “the United States will eliminate anyone who does not have net worth or the ability to love our Country.”
Please note that he has completely dropped all the shenanigans involving violent criminals and even people crossing the border illegally (who MAGA (and many others) think will be targeted in an immigration crackdown).
Instead, he appears to be drawing support from younger, angrier Republican men who eschew traditional conservatism as weak and misguided. Unfortunately, there are a growing number of these small tent conservatives who openly express their belief that America should be a white Christian nation ruled by men.
Members of America First, led by Nick Fuentes, are the most high-profile of these types outside the administration, but there are other groups, some affiliated and some openly hostile, that are gaining power both within the Republican base and within its power structure. Domestically, one need look no further than Stephen Miller’s rants for evidence that racism has become an increasingly official Trump policy, extending far beyond closing our borders or removing undocumented people.
Sound alarmist? Let’s let Trump finish it.
A few days ago, he promised in a social media post that he would “denaturalize immigrants who disturb civil peace and deport any Foreign National who is a public charge, poses a security risk, or is not compatible with Western Civilization. These goals will be pursued with the aim of achieving a major reduction in illegal and nuisance populations…Only REVERSE IMMIGRATION can completely ameliorate this situation.”
Destructive populations. Like US citizens of Mexican descent? Indian Americans? Or maybe protesters? What about voters?
Before you hit the keyboard to tell me this is another of Trump’s toothless rants, take a look here: Official account of the Ministry of Laborwho recently posted an image of the Lincoln Memorial with text (in a font associated with this post) Third Reich) writes: “The struggle for Western Civilization has begun – and Americanism Will Prevail.”
Or look at the recently released Department of Homeland Security. “Come back now” and they have been claiming for months that we have been in a war for “Western civilisation”.
This particular term, repatriation, is used by far-right believers. Large Displacement Theory For the idea that predominantly white counties can only survive if they eliminate people of color, either peacefully or violently.
“Give me your tired, your hungry, your blonde” if you want. Protect your “shithole” residents.
In the lull of the holidays, with other issues on our minds like how we will pay for Christmas, many felt the tension around this rogue administration ease. Democrats appear to be gaining traction for the upcoming midterm elections, offering hope that Congress won’t stagnate.
The media began referring to Trump as a “lame duck” on the way out; Whether the GOP nominee is a third-term Trump or a not-so-great replacement like Vice President J.D. Vance, he has begun to ignore, to the point of journalistic error, the ground he has made to undermine and even rig the next election.
However, this is an important moment when the mask is removed.
Financing comes into play To take the deportation machine to new levels. Literally billions of dollars will be spent rounding up and removing those without proper documentation, including people who have lived here for decades and done nothing but work hard and raise families.
This frightened American immigrants, whether they were citizens or not. Our schools lost students, our businesses lost customers. We even pushed legal immigrants underground when it was unclear who or what was safe.
At the same time, the midterms are less than a year away, and the election deniers Trump has installed in key positions are already working to create systems that will likely make it harder for poor and marginalized Americans to vote. This includes reducing mail-in ballots (leaving some to decide whether to take time off work to vote) or imposing identification rules that could disenfranchise married women, foster children, naturalized citizens and more.
This should be a moment when the nation remembers Beckstrom and prays for Wolfe. Profiles of Beckstrom describe him as: care, public-spirited young woman WHO I wanted to make a difference and serve his country. He never had a chance.
But it’s also a time to be honest about what’s going on. We have a president who says. All Brown and Black immigrants, even some who have attained citizenship, pose a problem.
It’s never been about the “worst of the worst” but about being able to tell the difference between the snake and its victim.
