Serious Suggestions to Consider

The Immigration Juxtaposition Game

3/23/2017 - David Levin Townhall.com

The current human condition is a curious one. And I have to confess, I don’t actually understand our thinking a lot of the time. Certainly, not when it comes to politics. Like him or not, Donald Trump was elected largely because he vowed to make America great again and keep us safe. Two pretty good ideas in my book. Personally, I want as much of great and safe as I can get. I’m sure you do too.

But with Trump’s newest immigration ban, it seems progressives would actually prefer that we’re weak and at risk instead of great and safe. Frankly, I always thought America’s greatness was the very reason why everyone was trying so hard to come here to begin with. I always thought our greatness laid in our strength and resolve. 

But now, especially if you’re a Democrat, all things Trump are bad. Even great and safe. I’m pretty sure if it were left to Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi, the slogan “Make America Great Again” would be reclassified as hate speech if spoken in public or graffitied on a wall somewhere.

So earlier this week, in keeping with his campaign pledge to keep the country safe, the president’s latest iteration of his immigration ban hit the airwaves. And as fast as you can say “Obama in 2020”, two more politically motivated federal judges blocked it. Apparently, they felt the ban focused unfairly on Muslims simply because they were Muslims. But that’s wrong. Trump’s ban is not focused on all Muslims. Just those who use their religion as a rationale for terror and killing. And its goal is to stop them from ever entering the country. Fine with me.

In 2015, 28,328 people were killed in terrorist attacks worldwide. These attacks were all carried out by Islamic terrorists. There were also over 12,000 terrorist-related kidnappings and hostage incidents as well. Should governments not look to protect their citizens from this? Don’t you want to be safe in your own country? Frankly, it’s their primary job. And here in the U.S., that’s just what Trump is doing.

So, the president’s immigration agenda is back in the news once again. And the liberal outrage machine has turned the volume all the way up. It should be noted, however, that President Obama also issued a travel ban against many of the same countries when he was in office. That one, however, was somehow acceptable to the left. But now, with Trump in the White House, everyone is getting in the act. Lawmakers, the media, and professional protesters who are essentially against everything are all raging against Trump. Progressives are forcing the national conversation on immigration back into the limelight. In the media, the immigration ban has gotten so twisted and unrecognizable that it’s nearly impossible to determine what’s actually true and what isn’t, what was intended and what wasn’t. 

Of course, the Democrats opening move is the usual assortment of flaming labels and acidic tags that they affix to anyone or anything with an opposing view. First, they called it a Muslim ban. Then, identity politics. After that, racist, xenophobic, prejudiced, bigoted, and heartless. To Schumer, Pelosi & Co., Trump is a just a bloated manifestation of Satan in a $10,000 Brioni suit. And they see his latest executive order on immigration as the devil’s work.

But maybe we should try to look at it a little differently for a minute. Maybe we should change some of the words and players. What would happen if we swapped the word Muslim for the word lawyer in Trump’s travel ban? Or banker. Maybe architect or engineer. What if accountants were the terrorists beheading those poor hostages in the orange jumpsuits? Or if rogue psychiatrists were behind all the lone wolf attacks in the U.S. and France. Imagine if it were a bunch of grey-suited actuaries that attacked the World Trade center in 2001. Or if the ranks of ISIS were filled with angry dentists instead of religious zealots.  

And what if Trump’s immigration ban didn’t actually include any Muslim countries on the list at all? Instead, it was western countries producing the majority of the world’s terrorists. What if countries like Germany and France, the UK, and Switzerland were producing a new breed of non-religious terrorist? A secular terrorist. An agnostic terrorist. Killer lawyers from Italy. Bomb-making engineers from Australia? Machete wielding investment bankers from Sweden. Now, people who work at investment banks like Morgan Stanley or big law firms like Baker & McKenzie would be targeted and detained at the airports as they hid anxiously behind their laptops in the airport lounge while plotting their next attack.

Sounds pretty crazy, doesn’t it?

But what if this was how it was? What if bankers and lawyers were the real bad guys? How would Trump’s immigration ban look to you now?

Pretty good, I bet.

Because if we took the word Muslim out from Trump’s executive order and substituted it with words like banker and lawyer, something tells me that those nutty progressives on the left might just be OK with it. One thing is for sure though. They certainly wouldn’t be able to accuse the ban of being xenophobic or racist anymore because it would have nothing to do with religion or ethnicity. And the liberals could no longer be morally outraged either (a staple of their game plan) because there would be no disadvantaged or marginalized groups being unfairly targeted in their eyes.

But bankers and lawyers? That’s an easy one. The progressives would be having their very own crazy, left-wing Mardi Gras celebration right there on the White House lawn. And let’s face it, nobody really likes bankers and lawyers anyway. I can already hear the protesters shouting “Keep out the criminals. Keep out the bankers and lawyers!”

So, as you watch the multitude of legal challenges for and against Trump Ban 2.0 emerge over the coming weeks, for just one minute, try not to think of it as a ban against Muslims. Rather, try to see it as an immigration ban against lawyers and bankers. It’ll definitely be easier for you to swallow that way. And remember, these are the really bad lawyers and bankers. The really dangerous ones. Secular terrorists with suicide vests wrapped around their torsos who want to come to the U.S. to attack you and anybody else they can take out.

But if Trump can somehow manage to get his immigration ban implemented, while we might end up with a few hundred thousand fewer bankers and lawyers, one thing is for sure. We’ll definitely be a lot safer for it.