Biden says he'll shut down the border if deal gives him authority
Biden says he'll shut down the border if deal gives him authority
The White House statement comes after a week of frantic negotiations in the Senate.
The White House statement comes after a week of frantic negotiations in the Senate.
President Joe Biden on Friday urged Congress to pass a bipartisan bill to address the immigration crisis at the nation’s southern border, saying he would shut down the border the day the bill became law.
“What’s been negotiated would — if passed into law — be the toughest and fairest set of reforms to secure the border we’ve ever had in our country,” Biden said in a statement. “It would give me, as President, a new emergency authority to shut down the border when it becomes overwhelmed. And if given that authority, I would use it the day I sign the bill into law.”
Biden’s Friday evening statement resembles a ramping up in rhetoric for the administration, placing the president philosophically in the camp arguing that the border may hit a point where closure is needed. The White House’s decision to have Biden weigh in also speaks to the delicate nature of the dealmaking, and the urgency facing his administration to take action on the border — particularly during an election year, when Republicans have used the issue to rally their base.
The president is also daring Republicans to reject the deal as it faces a make-or-break moment amid GOP fissures.
The fun thing is that this bill would give any president that power.
…. Oh.
But maybe that’s what they want. A president that can shut the border for political points would decimate industry. These tend to be industries that employ a lot of salt of the earth people, and the owners give a lot of money to Republicans. Republicans use this as a wedge issue and have spent years whipping their base into a frenzy. Giving them the authority to hurt themselves.A stupid Republican president would shut down the border and harm industry. A smart Republican president would not fall into that trap, but be paralyzed until a new talking point arises.
The base would support populist moves like shutting the border. Donors wouldn’t. Farmers with rotting crops would not.Shrewd.
Fucking hell, here's to hoping Congressional Republicans are too self defeating to pass this fucking trash, the fact that Democratic negotiators thought this was a good idea - like, right after the fucking Trump administration, thought "yeah, let's give the executive branch more power to be assholes to immigrants" - is just mind boggling
Then again, it feels pretty similar to Obama trying to work with Republicans to gut social security a few years after 2008, so maybe I should stop being surprised by these things
Gee, I can't imagine who else could abuse that newfound power for some other arbitrarily heinous reasons.
Jfc can we get someone up for election who's not a raging fascist?
Fuck this country, and fuck everyone who supports this. Every. One. No matter how much you screech "iLlEgAl" at our prospective immigrants and refugees from the comfort of your home. Fuck you personally if you're someone who does that and who thinks this is a good move by our president.
Does this mean if Trump gets elected he'll have even more legal power?
Channel 5 with Andrew Callaghan has been doing some great pieces lately including a couple good ones on the border recently.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dQ4-VNaG3s - Migrant Detention Camp
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buZWVQuqx0o - Arizona Border Crisis
E: Is the amount of curation in this thread off the charts or is it just me?
Can someone explain to me why the border shouldn’t be closed except to legal travel?
Because it sounds to me like illegal travel SHOULD be stopped. People immigrating illegally are working for super low wages, increasing supply of labor and therefore lowering demand. It’s bad for workers. I know people say “Americans won’t do those jobs” but that’s because they are paying nothing since they can get highly desperate exploitable people. Labor should be on the side of restricted immigration.
Note I’m not talking about asylum, but the USA shouldn’t be the only place people go for asylum. It’s my impression that most immigrants are economic anyways.