After President Donald Trump’s first State of the Union Address, the rhetoric from key Democratic politicians in critique of the speech was quite harsh. According to an article by Al Weaver of the Washington Examiner, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) had a mouthful to say concerning the so-called controversial speech. Concerning President Trump’s remarks on immigration, Pelosi stated: “What he is doing brings tears to the eyes of the Statue of Liberty, and instills fear in the hearts of the people who are concerned about our Dreamers.” The imagery of a sobbing Lady Liberty is enough to invoke strong sentiment in the breast of any American. However, when we dissect Trump’s speech and the details of his plan for Immigration Reform, Pelosi’s words prove to be a grandiose embellishment at best. In the events that lead to the short-lived government shutdown, Democrats claimed they were withholding funds for the entire federal government because they wanted an extension on the Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (better known in the American political lexicon as DACA). This program simply allows undocumented immigrants who arrived before the age of sixteen, to remain in the country legally. However, it provides no pathway to citizenship or even permanent legalization. According to President Trump’s address his immigration plan provides, “…a path to citizenship for 1.8 million illegal immigrants who were brought here by their parents at a young age — that covers almost three times more people than the previous administration.” If President Trump’s immigration plan is designed to, as Nancy Pelosi so eloquently stated, “…to make America white again…”, he must be doing a very poor job of achieving this accused goal. His plan goes above and beyond merely extending the DACA program. It provides meaningful immigration reform that renders the program unnecessary by giving nearly 2 million undocumented immigrants the opportunity to not only be granted permanent legal status, but an actual pathway to citizenship. If Democrats were truly in this to help Dreamers and other illegal immigrants, this bill would be already on President Trump’s desk. Sadly, the Democrats appear to choose party over country because if President Trump’s plan is signed into law they stand to lose a great deal of political capital. First, they would have a much harder time painting President Trump and Republicans as the xenophobic boogeymen they claim them to be. In addition, if DACA is no longer an issue and Dreamers can now become American citizens, they lose an issue that they feel they can hold over Hispanic and other immigrant communities that leads to them accruing a great deal of votes they may no longer have. So Representative Pelosi’s claim that Trump’s immigration reform plan would bring tears to Lady Liberty, has taken extreme liberty with the truth. The actions of the Congressional Black Caucus at Trump’s State of the Union speech should also raise quite a few eyebrows. When President Trump touted the lowest unemployment rates for Black Americans in recorded history, one would expect this esteemed group of Congressmen and Congresswomen to at least show some signs of approbation. However, the Congressional Black Caucus remained seated with noticeable scowls across their faces. If they were truly in solidarity with the struggles of Black Americans, as their garb suggested, they would have been elated over this bipartisan statistic President Trump shared with nations. Instead, just as House Minority Leader Pelosi, the Congressional Black Caucus unfortunately chose partisan politics over country and the issues they claim to represent. I could continue outlining fallacious and hypocritical remarks and actions taken by many in the Democratic Party towards President Trump and his State of the Union Address. Unfortunately, I neither have the space nor readers who possess the inhuman quality of an unlimited attention span. Admittedly, President Trump’s brief tenure has not been perfect by any stretch of the imagination. President Trump has made some foolish remarks and should most likely take advice from the hit cartoon series South Park and “put down the phone”. However, in his first State of the Union address, President Trump showed a clear desire to accomplish tasks such as passing meaningful and bipartisan immigration and infrastructure reform legislation. President Trump has already passed, in less than one year, the most extensive tax reform in American history that has dramatically bolstered the American economy. But, in order for him to succeed in passing further reform legislation, he needs the Democrats to not constantly oppose his proposals, that contain many principles that Democrats purportedly stand for, merely on the basis that it comes from Donald Trump and the Republican Party. Let’s hope that the Democratic Party no longer holds this country in a seemingly perpetual state of disunion because they lost an election in 2016 and don’t have a personal affinity for the man currently occupying the Oval Office. AuthorJason Greenberg is a junior accounting major at Towson University in Maryland. He considers himself a conservative independent with strong libertarian leanings. He was contributor and editor for his high school paper The Franklin Gazette and primarily concentrated in politics and sports.
2 Comments
2/6/2018 01:02:59 am
You have insulted your reader by supposing that I do not have the patience to read a book. Trump wishes to request the American taxpayers pay double the amount of money ever spent for NASA in it's entire history, to build a physical wall which may be completely useless. Mexican tunnel diggers do have experience! SMH at stupid ideas from Trumpers.
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Jason Greenberg
2/6/2018 11:32:44 am
To your first point, that was a hyperbole to demonstrate how I could list figuratively endless points to refute the leadership of the Democratic Party. Secondly, $25 billion would result in a mere spending increase of 0.068% (2017 federal government spending was $3.65 trillion). In my opinion, $25 billion spent on securing our southern border is definitely worth that minute increase. And the $25 billion would go well beyond just building a wall or fence. It would provide more advanced technology to our stewards of border security, so that they not just build a wall, but they can defend our borders in a more efficient and effective manner. I disagree with your conjecture, but respect your interest and passion in the subject.
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