Hardball, Part One
The term “hardball player” is an American colloquialism that is often used to describe someone who behaves in a forceful and uncompromising manner. It is often applied to “tough hombres” in business, management or law.
The term could also apply, increasingly, to President Trump. Although Mr. Trump has had more than his share of victories (Supreme Court appointments of Justice Neil Gorsuch and Justice Brett Kavanaugh, tax reform, and numerous pro business executive orders that have spurred our economy) there have been some disappointments too. Initially Mr. Trump, I think, could be faulted for a number of rather milquetoast appointments, the most disappointing of which was Attorney General Jeff Sessions, but which also included Chief Of Staff Reince Priebus and Press Secretary Sean Spicer (all of whom, unfortunately, were not tough enough for their job descriptions) as well as others. He also pursued several initiatives (health care reform and DACA legislation) in a much too “gentlemanly” manner. Democrat “resistance” and surprising Republican intransigence (especially from the soi desant “Freedom Caucus” on the issue of health care reform) were tolerated for far too long by Mr. Trump, to the detriment of both himself and our nation. It almost made one long for an “SOB” like Lyndon Johnson who would brook no such nonsense and would, frequently, kick some Congressional ash. Trump was simply too much of a softie. But, not anymore! That was then, and this is now. Perhaps emboldened by the collapse of the Mueller investigation… it’s NO MORE MISTER NICE GUY. Trump is finally moving ahead aggressively on a number of very necessary fronts.
First, let’s look at Mexico. Mexico’s response to the migrant caravans crisis was abominable. As most Americans now know, the caravans that traipsed the 2000 mile length of our southern neighbor were NOT Mexican. And, as many Americans now know, the caravans were a set up by foriegn provocateurs with anti American political agendas. Mexico knew this as well, so why didn’t it intervene? Well it turns out that huge sums of cash flowed into Mexico from those provocateurs. They claimed the funds were for “humanitarian support.” How much money was involved we don’t know for sure because Mexico won’t even divulge the identitiy of the sources of the money, let alone the amounts. It’s a safe bet, however, that those crafty Mexicanos were profiting handily from the whole affair. And the unfortunate caravan participants were, unwittingly, mere pawns in a political game of chess. Our diplomats repeatedly petitioned Mexico to intervene, but to no avail. And of course, our own Congressional “leaders” failed to help. So, what to do? Fight back! President Trump realized that he could tackle the problem using the most effective motivator of all: the almighty dollar (or, in this case, the “almighty peso”). By threatening trade tariffs, Trump finally got Mexico’s attention. And, lo and behold, within days, THOUSANDS of troops were dispatched and bank accounts were FROZEN. A huge victory. Hardball.
Next, consider our insane immigration laws. One of the things that enabled the border debacle was our own laws. By allowing anyone who CLAIMS political persecution to be entitled to a lengthy asylum adjudication that may take years to complete and which, in the interim, often gives the “asylum seeker” carte blanche entry into the United States, our policies encouraged the migrants and the provocateurs. Numerous attempts by the Trump administration to encourage legislative reform to the address this problem were met with astonishing indifference on the part of the Democrats. The Democrats, apparently, have no desire what-so-ever to do anything that might diminish what they envision to be a bonanza of future Democratic voters. They care not that our system is overwhelmed, that migrants, especially women and children are suffering everything from dehydration to disease, rape and death. They care not that our housing facilities are over run. President Trump and Republican leaders have pleaded for legislative reform even offering plans that would provide “DACA” (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) individuals with a path to citizenship. These entreaties have been of no avail. What to do? Fight back! Trump realized that the threat of massive deportation of illegal immigrants by ICE, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (which is a part of the Executive Branch, and therefore is under President Trump’s direct control) would get the Democrat’s attention. So, refusing to enact sane immigration policy might now COST Democrats future voters. For the first time, Democrats now have an incentive to negotiate. Like it or not, it looks like they’ll have to go to the negotiating table. And, hopefully, this time there’ll be results. And, if there aren’t results… well… then deportations will commence shortly. Hardball.
To be continued in Hardball, Part Two.