Posted on 02/24/2018 5:24:25 PM PST by MarvinStinson
President Trump's speech to the Conservative Political Action Conference started out as a relatively tame performance touting signature accomplishments such as tax cuts and judicial nominations, but it took an ugly turn as he moved to the topic of immigration, broadly painting those who come here as a result of the lottery system as "horrendous."
The context was that Trump was lambasting Democrats for not agreeing to his terms as part of an immigration deal. Though they're willing to give him funding for the wall, he said, they won't budge on other issues, such as chain migration and ending the visa lottery.
Kali Uchis Breaks Down "After The Storm" Watch Full Screen to Skip Ads "Think of a lottery," Trump then said. "You have a country. They put names in. You think they're giving us their good people? Not too many of you people are going to be in the lottery." He then pointed out to the CPAC crowd and continued. "So we pick out people. Then they turn out to be horrendous. And we don't understand why."
Now, it's one thing to say, it would be preferable to decide immigration based on merit than by random chance, as Trump went on to argue. But it's another thing to speak of lottery winners as a group as bad people. Now, I'm getting some blowback from Trump supporters on Twitter, arguing that Trump was merely calling the lottery a horrendous system. Go back and reread what he said or watch it again. He was not referring to the lottery as horrendous. He wasn't even saying when you have a lottery, there's a risk that some people being let in won't be as deserving as others who happened to lose out, thus making a merit-based system superior.
He said, mockingly of other countries, "You think they're giving us their good people?" Then he said, "We pick out people. Then they turn out to be horrendous." Key point — not some of them turn out to commit crimes, but, "they" — broadly speaking — "turn out to be horrendous."
Also worth noting: those who believe the U.S. should draw a harder line on immigration have traditionally argued they are critical of illegal immigrants, who by their very presence in this country already broke the law. But Trump in this context is speaking about people who followed the legal process to enter this country. Yet he calls these people "horrendous."
To hammer his point home, Trump then repeated a ballad he has occasionally recited at rallies called, "The Snake." It tells the story of a "tender-hearted woman" who rescues a snake only to have the snake bite and kill her.
There was a great controversy last month over whether Trump, during a meeting with Democrats on immigration, referred to some places as "shithole" countries. But this isn't some private meeting where Trump's defenders can deny he said something. Trump's ugliness on Friday came in his public statements before a large conservative audience, that, sadly, cheered him on.
As noted previously, Trump's rhetoric on immigration is a stark contrast to Ronald Reagan, the man who for decades was the hero of CPAC-goers, routinely invoked by speakers to the point of parody.
"They came to build," Reagan said in 1980, speaking in front of the Statue of Liberty about immigrants' contributions to our country. He went on to say, "They brought with them courage, ambition and the values of family, neighborhood, work, peace, and freedom."
At the end of the ballad Trump performed, when the lady asks why the snake bit her, the snake responds, "Oh shut up, silly woman ... You knew damn well I was a snake before you took me in." Indeed, everybody knew who Trump was when he was taken in, they are being reminded now, and his disgusting words were met with ravenous applause.
It's heartbreaking to witness the darkness that movement conservatism has descended into.
When immigrants came here, awed by the recently erected Statue of Liberty, they came here with very little cash or assets, and understood that there were no food stamps, no welfare, no free phones, no rent subsides, no free transportation, nothing!
They busted their ass to provide for their family and themselves!
Today, I see mexican’s in my community working hard to make ends meet, while the white senior employees running machinery, sitting on their asses on the job site are constantly on their smartphone, contributing little to the project. Legal, Illegal, I don’t know!
Trumps merit based system is the way to go, if hard workers and their limited family will add to the productivity of the nation
I used to go to the center of hell of liberal sites to find out what they say. It makes my stomach turn to say the least and only fuels my anger and misery in a non productive manner. I don’t mind if we get it here because it is very necessary to see how the left and GOP (left lite) and #NeverTrump-tards think and say.
Wow, so it was that good. Great!
I loved President Trump’s CPAC speech. It was inspirational for me.
It sounds as though Klein is either a died in the wool open borders guy or is at least a fellow traveler with them. It apparently makes him uncomfortable calling our destructive immigration system “horrendous” because to do so might hurt the feelings of MS 13 gang members, 7th century Somalis, and Mexicanos who insist on downing a bottle of tequila and then playing demolition derby on our highways.
Klein should be given a free, two year vacation to one of the more violent Mexican provinces and then we’ll consider another preachy article from him. (If he survives.)
PDJT CPAC speech bump.
This guy is an enemy so who cares what he thinks?
>>Legal vs illegal is not the most important distinction.
Third world vs first world is more important.<<
Apples and oranges.
Loved the speech and that’s exactly why the left hated it. Approval 50 % and climbing like a rocket.
President Trump is right.
The lottery system needs to end.
Chain migration needs to end.
The border needs to be secured.
The civilized-countries-last immigration policies of the last 53 years need to be reversed.
Trump is not a lawyer or a diplomat and often speaks loosely, as a common person would. Everyone understands what he means. He’s obviously saying the lottery system can bring bad people, not that every one of them is bad. These never Trumpers who try to parse every word of his negatively are a bit ridiculous, and doing the Dems’ work for them.
And he is a glibalist ass
True words
Trump gave another great speech.
97% approval of those in attendance and 100% here at home, so even if my first statistic is overstated, it’s clear...Trump was engaging, firm, telling, hopeful, promising, undeterred and admirable! MSM panic as he predicted in 3-2-1...
Klein is a knob
Bookmark . Thanks for posting link.
Pure BS from PK! We have long moved on from Ronald Reagan’s era.
And there I thought the Washington Examiner was somewhat conservative...
Some journalists are congenitally dense.
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