James Besanvalle
Apr 21, 2020
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President Donald Trump announced he’s going to sign an executive order to stop immigration in the hopes of protecting American jobs but people think he has other motivations.
Late on Monday night, the POTUS tweeted:
The White House has since declined to comment further on the tweet.
To date, the US has recorded almost 800,000 coronavirus cases and over 42,000 deaths.
Many are wondering why Trump has decided to implement this blanket ban now, when the spread of the virus has already devastated so many lives. While he claims it's to "protect jobs", people are understandably sceptical, given it's the global pandemic (not immigration) which is causing high rates of unemployment in the country.
Representative Don Bayer of Virginia believes it’s “xenophobic scapegoating”, tweeting:
From the beginning Trump has flailed about seeking someone to blame for his own failure. Obama. Governors. China.… https://t.co/d9AbdqV5bh— Rep. Don Beyer (@Rep. Don Beyer) 1587436558
Former presidential hopeful Kamala Harris also responded to the tweet and accused Trump of “shamelessly politicizing this pandemic”:
Trump failed to take this crisis seriously from day 1. His abandonment of his role as president has cost lives. And… https://t.co/gJiivg7LDv— Vice President Kamala Harris (@Vice President Kamala Harris) 1587438473
Fellow former presidential hopeful Amy Klobuchar followed suit:
The reaction from the general public was equally as scathing, with many calling the move predictable but also stigmatising for immigrants:
Millions of immigrants are on the front lines risking their lives for all of us, from our hospitals to our grocery… https://t.co/ODuiBPf5zi— NILC Immigrant Justice Fund (@NILC Immigrant Justice Fund) 1587441063
He's a monstrous xenophobe... but he's doing this because he knows his coronavirus response has been so badly misha… https://t.co/KaJSAZpCGT— Neera Tanden (@Neera Tanden) 1587436079
What an insult to the millions of immigrants currently risking their lives in essential jobs while the Trump admini… https://t.co/IlUKnNtdrR— Judy Chu (@Judy Chu) 1587437487
Many thought he should be focussing his attention on the domestic spread of the virus:
I'm more concerned about visitors from Florida and Georgia than I am about immigrants right now, but you knew he'd… https://t.co/PDqEKuaQRz— Tom Nichols (@Tom Nichols) 1587436272
We are #1 in infections We are #1 in deaths #1 in leaders who blew it off #1 in leaders who called it 'hoax' #1 in… https://t.co/FqEcYGrPBr— John Fugelsang (@John Fugelsang) 1587436388
If he'd suspend border crossings from Georgia that would make more sense. (Note: the US has more positive cases a… https://t.co/MmyyiVuZsj— Neera Tanden (@Neera Tanden) 1587435498
While others couldn’t see the logic in Trump wanting to ease up on US lockdowns but tightening international borders:
On the exact same day that Trump desperately shoehorned in guidance to re-open large swaths of the country, he *als… https://t.co/477SFGu4bi— Brian Tyler Cohen (@Brian Tyler Cohen) 1587435660
The exact details of the executive order are unclear.
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