Trump Is Threatening To Close The Border

[AGBF]

Trump is threatening to close the southern border of the United States entirely. Can this crazy be allowed? Today's article. Today's madness.

"WASHINGTON — On the seventh day of a partial government shutdown, President Trump threatened on Friday to close the southern border and cut off aid to Central America if Congress refuses to fund a wall.

'We will be forced to close the Southern Border entirely if the Obstructionist Democrats do not give us the money to finish the Wall & also change the ridiculous immigration laws that our Country is saddled with,' Mr. Trump tweeted Friday. 'Hard to believe there was a Congress & President who would approve!'

Mr. Trump escalated his threats as up to 800,000 government workers were left in limbo and with Congress not set to take up the issue again until after the new year. 'At this point, it looks like we could be in for a very long-term shutdown,' Representative Mark Meadows, Republican of North Carolina and a close ally of Mr. Trump’s, told CNN.

Democrats stood firm against agreeing to funding for a border wall, according to a spokesman for Representative Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California and the incoming House speaker. 'Democrats are united against the President’s immoral, ineffective and expensive wall, the wall that he specifically promised that Mexico would pay for,' the spokesman, Drew Hammill, said in a statement. Mr. Hammill also noted that the White House has made no formal outreach to Ms. Pelosi since Dec. 11, when Ms. Pelosi and Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the minority leader, met with the president at the White House.

Mr. Trump also reiterated his threat on Twitter on Friday to cut off aid to Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador as punishment to countries he claimed 'are doing nothing for the United States but taking our money.'"

 

[Dancing Fire]

 

[YadaYadaYada]

This could be a completely ignorant statement but IMO we need to take care of our veterans before we let more people into this country. The care they receive at the VA hospitals is atrocious, they compose a large population of the homeless and they have sacrificed so much to serve our country, it's just a shame.

 

[Dancing Fire]

We need more murderers in our country.
https://www.modbee.com/news/local/crime/article223670960.html

 

[Ellen]

This could be a completely ignorant statement but IMO we need to take care of our veterans before we let more people into this country. The care they receive at the VA hospitals is atrocious, they compose a large population of the homeless and they have sacrificed so much to serve our country, it's just a shame.

Amen. Our govt. treats them as if they are "disposable". I can't even think about it without getting upset.

 

[Indylady]

This could be a completely ignorant statement but IMO we need to take care of our veterans before we let more people into this country. The care they receive at the VA hospitals is atrocious, they compose a large population of the homeless and they have sacrificed so much to serve our country, it's just a shame.

What do vets have to do with immigrants? You seem to assume that immigrants are necessarily taking from this county, not adding to it. Immigrants are powering this country—you wouldn’t have Google and Apple and farm workers without the work of immigrants.

The vets are going into war (and becoming vets), and needing care, for wars that the US chooses to wage. The answer would be to stop sending so many soldiers into combat and creating veterans in the first place.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@Indylady, I was just saying that the resources we are using to house immigrants and feed them etc could be used to improve the lives of people who have defended and given their lives for ours.

Also I have no problem with people immigrating and doing it the proper and legal way but when you have an influx of thousands and thousands coming at one time, literally tossing their kids over a fence and threatening to storm the border, that is a problem.

To answer your question, it is completely relevant, we need to take care of our own people who are struggling before we can assume the responsibility of others.

 

[Dancing Fire]

@Indylady, I was just saying that the resources we are using to house immigrants and feed them etc could be used to improve the lives of people who have defended and given their lives for ours.

Also I have no problem with people immigrating and doing it the proper and legal way but when you have an influx of thousands and thousands coming at one time, literally tossing their kids over a fence and threatening to storm the border, that is a problem.

To answer your question, it is completely relevant, we need to take care of our own people who are struggling before we can assume the responsibility of others.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Mr. Trump also reiterated his threat on Twitter on Friday to cut off aid to Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador as punishment to countries he claimed 'are doing nothing for the United States but taking our money.'"

Sounds good to me!. We can then spend those billions on our own citizens.

 

[Indylady]

@Indylady, I was just saying that the resources we are using to house immigrants and feed them etc could be used to improve the lives of people who have defended and given their lives for ours.

Also I have no problem with people immigrating and doing it the proper and legal way but when you have an influx of thousands and thousands coming at one time, literally tossing their kids over a fence and threatening to storm the border, that is a problem.

To answer your question, it is completely relevant, we need to take care of our own people who are struggling before we can assume the responsibility of others.

Hi StephanieLynn,

I’m confused by your comment—it is Trump’s policy detain immigrants at the Southern border (and therefore forcing the US to pay for their detention). Those immigrants are coming lawfully in the proper and legal way—they are presenting themselves at the border requesting asylum. The standard policy is that asylum seekers would pay for their own stay and accommodations during the asylum process. Perhaps you are against detention, which would save the US lots of money. I agree with you on that, the detention practice is a very unnecessary expense that only benefits the private companies that own the detention facilities.

Again, you seem to think immigrants need care. Most immigrants do not and work and pay taxes.

Yes, of course we should take care of our own vets. Sending our soldiers to war is creating vets; we should not create people who are suffering by sending them to war, and we should help the vets that return from war. The President should focus on vets and their care by providing funding to them. The $5 billion he would like for a wall could be better allocated as $5 billion towards the care for veterans. Many would be very happy to hear that.

 

[AGBF]

The money that should go to veterans has nothing to do with money going to immigrants. But Trump's wealthy friends are waiting for a windfall from the VA; keep an eye on them if you want to see where the money that should go to the soldiers may end up.

Veterans are treated dreadfully because their usefulness has ended. Once they have fought and died, no one can get anymore from them so they are just disposable poor people. It is a disgrace. It is beyond despicable.

I am the daughter of a World war II veteran. And the niece of two. One was "only" a dentist who was a Major who fixed teeth of soldiers in Florida, but one was a combat veteran who took part in D-Day and the battles in the South Pacific with the marines. And I am the great-niece of another combat veteran who was in D-Day and The Battle of the Bulge where he got a bullet through his helmet. And I had a cousin killed in action in the US Navy. I thank God that veterans were once treated with at least a modicum more of respect than they are now: left to live in the street, mentally ill and sick from substance abuse, homeless, waiting for appointments at the VA. And the VA under Trump-of course-may be privatized so that wealthy individuals can make more money still off our former military, eke more money out of the system. The military doesn't want this; but Trump does.

I have seen how VA hospitals work. The care is very, very slow at the absolute best of times. And at the worst of times, people can die waiting in line.

But the threat to the VA is privatization. Read about it. Keep an eye on it. Don't think immigrants, for the love of Pete!!! Why would immigrants even occur to you as a threat? Look at what is front of you!!!

Deb/AGBF

 

[lilmosun]

We are a a country of immigrants. My father was an immigrant. Because he was not a citizen, he got sent to Korea (instead of officers school which he passed the test for). He stepped on a landmine, was hospitalized for a year and suffers effects to this day. There are many more like him.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@Indylady you are correct in that detention centers are a definite problem, no idea what a better solution is though and I have no issue with people coming in from other countries and seeking asylum, I probably was a little scattered in my posts prior. My husband works for a tree company that employs many from Honduras and Guatemala, they are hard workers and very good at what they do, so they are a definite asset as many immigrants are and can be.

I'll leave it at that, maybe I got off on a tangent with the veterans but I just don't know that there is enough housing, enough jobs etc for asylum seekers with so many of our own on the street who can't better themselves because they can't find a job. That's all.

 

[Indylady]

StephanieLynn, I can understand a worry about competition for jobs and resources in the US. I certainly would not want a cost or dilution of opportunity for Americans because of immigration; I don’t think that that will happen on this scale (the few thousand people at the border now, which is many, but not enough to take up opportunity and resources on a national scale) but I understand the worry.

 

[Dancing Fire]

StephanieLynn, I can understand a worry about competition for jobs and resources in the US. I certainly would not want a cost or dilution of opportunity for Americans because of immigration; I don’t think that that will happen on this scale (the few thousand people at the border now, which is many, but not enough to take up opportunity and resources on a national scale) but I understand the worry.

A few thousand now, but what about the millions who will be coming if we open the floodgates?

 

[Indylady]

A few thousand now, but what about the millions who will be coming if we open the floodgates?

By open the floodgates I assume you mean having no immigration policies or requirements (or an extremely open policy, one very different from what we have now), and don’t think anyone is doing that or advocating for it.

 

[AGBF]

This could be a completely ignorant statement but IMO we need to take care of our veterans before we let more people into this country. The care they receive at the VA hospitals is atrocious, they compose a large population of the homeless and they have sacrificed so much to serve our country, it's just a shame.

As I mentioned in a previous posting, the real threat to the current VA system is privatization. Trump and friends would like to farm out health care of veterans to private providers who would provide less care at a higher cost and would get to pocket the money personally. These, of course, would be friends of Trump or "new" friends who were paying to play. (Think "Russians" and "Saudis", but domestic.) Remember, we are dealing with Donald Trump who engages in corruption and cronyism in all his affairs.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/charle...atizing-of-veterans-health-care/#eea6ebb73794
https://psmag.com/social-justice/trump-is-pushing-the-va-to-go-private

PS-I am not directing this posting at you, StephanieLynn. I read the posting in which you said you had not wanted to go off on a tangent. This thread just awakened a need to discuss privatization of the VA which has worried me for years.

 

[Calliecake]

By open the floodgates I assume you mean having no immigration policies or requirements (or an extremely open policy, one very different from what we have now), and don’t think anyone is doing that or advocating for it.

Thank you for posting this Indylady.

 

[vintageloves]

I feel like the only rational response to this is to call his bluff. It'll trap American citizens in foreign countries, shut down trade, send a trigger happy market into a tailspin, cause food prices to skyrocket, and be yet another loss in court for the Trump administration. But, sure, Donnie, go ahead.

 

[AGBF]

I feel like the only rational response to this is to call his bluff. It'll trap American citizens in foreign countries, shut down trade, send a trigger happy market into a tailspin, cause food prices to skyrocket, and be yet another loss in court for the Trump administration. But, sure, Donnie, go ahead.

I really doubt he has the authority to do it. It would involve so many agencies and so much coordination, that I cannot believe he has the legal authority to control every aspect of what it would take to close the southern border. Not before a federal judge declared what he was doing illegal and stopped him. Imagine the illegality of failing to allow US citizen to come through the southern border on return trips home. Just that would probably get a federal judge to issue an immediate stay. He is such a blowhard!

 

[Calliecake]

@AGBF , The New Jersey AG has obtained evidence that Trump’s New Jersey Golf Club may have committed Federal Immigration crimes. Supervisors at Trump’s NJ Golf Club provided fraudulent green cards and social security numbers to undocumented immigrants.

You can’t make this stuff up.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Imagine the illegality of failing to allow US citizen to come through the southern border on return trips home. Just that would probably get a federal judge to issue an immediate stay. He is such a blowhard!

I'm sure all US citizens will be allowed reentry.

 

[vintageloves]

I really doubt he has the authority to do it. It would involve so many agencies and so much coordination, that I cannot believe he has the legal authority to control every aspect of what it would take to close the southern border. Not before a federal judge declared what he was doing illegal and stopped him. Imagine the illegality of failing to allow US citizen to come through the southern border on return trips home. Just that would probably get a federal judge to issue an immediate stay. He is such a blowhard!

No, he doesn't have the authority. More importantly, he has no intention of doing this, and it's no different then when he going to wave his magic wand and change birthright citizenship. He feels backed into a corner, lashes out in a way only the truly ignorant can, his base goes wild with applause and the media stupidly lets this stuff change the narrative. When a toddler is throwing a temper tantrum, it's common sense to just ignore it.

I'm not worried that Trump will shut down the border. I am worried at how many Americans aren't educated enough to understand shutting it down only stops the LEGAL crossings/trade at official points of entry. It's not going to stop migrants who hire coyotes and already avoid legal crossing points. Or the migrant on a VISA already in the US who overstays (the most common source of illegal immigration). Or the increasing number of illegal immigrants who fly in from China.

I'm very against illegal immigration. But I'm also against stupidity.

 

[House Cat]

This could be a completely ignorant statement but IMO we need to take care of our veterans before we let more people into this country. The care they receive at the VA hospitals is atrocious, they compose a large population of the homeless and they have sacrificed so much to serve our country, it's just a shame.

I agree wholeheartedly that we need to take care of the men and women who have served this country. My husband is a Marine and my best friend is going on 21 years in the Army National Guard. She’s been deployed four times. She fights the California Wildfires and does search and rescue for her day job. Everyone close to me is a veteran. Many people I know have PTSD. A close friend is 100% disabled due to PTSD and TBI from the Iraq war. Too many of the people I know who have PTSD and aren’t getting effective treatment for it. My husband had a knee surgery through the VA where they made his knee worse...they gouged out most of the cartilage in his knee, he will most likely need a replacement.

We just had a friend commit suicide who served in Iraq. He also had PTSD.

Unfortuately, with the corrupt way our government works, I don’t see them taking the money from the immigration pot and directly handing it over to the VA pot. They just absorb the money and move on. It is never viewed as more resources for other things. It is viewed as more resources for their corrupt agendas. To me, it is best to keep money where it is doing good for others and to try and get them to allocate more money to those causes. If there is money going to immigration, good..give more and help those suffering people. If there is money going to our veterans, good...give a ton more to them. The unfortunate issue is a majority of our money is going to serve the desires of special interests groups and big business. We spent a huge amount of money on this “tax cut” and the verdict is in, big business and the wealthy are seeing the benefit of this cut. This huge amount of money and debt could have benefitted out veterans too. They could have been brought out of total homelessness with this money.

Instead of taking money from the unfortunate and the suffering, i believe we should be watching how our government is spending money on the already fat and wealthy. The victims and the poor are never to blame. They simply aren’t powerful enough to run our government.

 

[AGBF]

This is wonderful. I sat at an upright computer for almost ten minutes, watching and laughing out loud intermittently throughout the entire monologue. How often does anyone make Donald Trump into a topic that does anything other than make you angry, fearful, or sad? In my case the answer is: almost never.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Everytime when I meet a new Chinese immigrant I advise them...

not to fall into the trap of depending on welfare, food stamps and free housing. The money is coming out of someone else's pocket, b/c there are no such a thing as a free lunch. Be self-sufficient and work your way up the ladder and contribute into the tax pool. The Dem's goal is to keep minorities in poverty for their votes only. Your goal is to become the top 5% er not the bottom 5% er. I have been living in the US for over 50 yrs and I know what I'm talking about.

 

[Matata]

 

[tkyasx78]

I try to never listen to the lies that trump spews. It hurts my brain.
I dont listen to the news at ALL unless I have a remote in case they put his voice on air.
Today however I ran into the kitchen remote free and came back to the crap he was putting out this morning.

Here were some of the things he said that I will never unhear
“I didn’t pound the table. I didn’t pound the table.” "I don't have temper tantrums." “I’ll probably will do it, maybe definitely.” "The buck stops with everybody" "I'm a professional at technology"

He is a professional at technology? WTH is that even.

At what point will the republicans know this guy is a liar!? Oh and when he said he didnt know that manafort was giving the GRU agent the polling info?? How stupid does he think we are? does he also expect us to believe he never told cohen to pay the women he cheated on his wife with or is he still pretending he never cheated?

there is a crisis at the border today, it is trump.

 

[cmd2014]

Everytime when I meet a new Chinese immigrant I advise them...

not to fall into the trap of depending on welfare, food stamps and free housing. The money is coming out of someone else's pocket, b/c there are no such a thing as a free lunch. Be self-sufficient and work your way up the ladder and contribute into the tax pool. The Dem's goal is to keep minorities in poverty for their votes only. Your goal is to become the top 5% er not the bottom 5% er. I have been living in the US for over 50 yrs and I know what I'm talking about.

You mean the ones buying the multimillion dollar houses and driving $100,000.00 cars? That's the new Chinese immigrants in my neighbourhood. We should post signs in Mandarin at the bank with your message....

In all seriousness, immigrants of all ilk are the hardest working people I know. They usually have two or three jobs, sacrifice everything they have for the betterment of their children, and have a much higher proportion of their children going to medical school (or into pharmacy) than any other group where I live. They also work all the jobs that many North Americans do not want to do (often despite being trained as doctors, dentists, and other professionals in the countries they have come from). My mind is always boggled when Americans worry about immigrants being lazy and staying on welfare forever, because that is not at all what we see here.

 

[Matthews1127]

For the love of God. Everyone who lives in the US is an immigrant, or directly descended from immigrants...UNLESS...they are Indigenous Americans.
PERIOD!
Trump’s “logic” means, quite literally, that approx. 80% of US Citizens (or greater) don’t belong, here.

This Country was founded by Immigrants...from England. The original “Colonists” were not BORN here....they INVADED it.

As an Indigenous American....now everyone else understands the struggle of the Native people of this country.

The US is a Melting Pot; we have a little bit of everything, here.

Crime & Criminals come in all shapes, sizes, colors & ethnicities. There are more violent criminals who were born in the US, who are US Citizens, AT BIRTH, than there are illegal immigrants who commit such atrocities.

The last time I checked the history books, the largest group of Serial Killers/Rapists/Child Killers/Pedophiles were: AMERICAN, White, Male, between the ages of 25-40.

Minorities do not fit the profile of serial killers, nor do they fit the profile of serial crimes.

Sex trafficking is world-wide, and stems from the white man...not the Guatemalan. Mexicans, Dominicans, etc. are known to be involved in the drug cartel. Why? Cuz American “Whitey” is willing to pay $$$ for the drugs & the women, and vice-versa.

My brother is an Army Veteran. He used to work for the DEA. I’m extremely, and ACUTELY aware of what is happening across the southern border....
He lives 1.5 hrs from El Paso, TX. Anyone who is knowledgeable of that particular area knows what that means. I don’t need to elaborate.
When I visit with my children, I am like a hawk, because any trafficker can get top dollar for me, my daughter and my son in the sex trade because of our coloring.

Yes. This is the reality, but the majority of the people who are trying to cross the border, into the US, contrary to the “crazy” Trump spews from his disgusting pie hole, are not a threat to US Citizens.

Imagine where our country would be, if Ellis Island had been shut down to the droves of Europeans from England, Ireland, Italy, etc. The majority of the current population of the US would not exist, today.

This “President” is an abomination, and a disgrace to the Human Race. If one can even call him “Human”.
Last I checked, ORANGE was not a skin color.

Yes, immigration at the Southern Border needs to be better regulated. There is NO dispute, there!!
However, no wall will solve that problem, nor will closing the border.
Where there’s a will, there’s a way, and there are people who are fleeing much worse than they are facing just trying to get here.

There is NO logic involved in this hijacked mess. This is all emotionally driven by a crazed, orange, demented, over-grown brat!!!
If he had his way, White Supremacy would reign supreme!!! Hitler 2.0!!!

The Oval Office is under siege by a deranged lunatic!

This is not politics! This is not a Republican vs. Democrat issue!! This is far beyond that, at this point!!

Pay our Vets! Pay our Gov’t. Workers!!
Stop PUNISHING hard working AMERICANS over a STUPID WALL!!!

Have we become COMMUNISTS??? Is this BERLIN?!?!!?
WAKE UP!!!