Safety and Liberty
In 1775, Benjamin Franklin famously wrote, “They who can give up essential Liberty to obtain a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”
We should all remember that when we consider the actions and words of Donald Trump this Thanksgiving weekend, when he attacked the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals because they would not give him what he wanted on immigration policy. But he didn’t just attack the decision, he attacked the whole court:
Judges must not Legislate Security and Safety at the Border, or anywhere else. They know nothing about it and are making our Country unsafe.
There’s that safety word. Trump continued:
It is out of control, has a horrible reputation, is overturned more than any Circuit in the Country, 79%, & is used to get an almost guaranteed result.
According to PolitiFact, the Ninth Circuit is not overturned more than any Circuit in the country. The Sixth circuit has that honor, with 87%.
The decision Trump is complaining about says that he cannot bar immigrants who enter the US illegally from seeking asylum. The decision cites federal laws that make Trump’s decision unlawful.
So this is a two-fer. Trump is claiming that he can violate laws passed by Congress to do whatever he wants. And in addition, that courts can’t question his orders because they relate to safety.
But wait, there’s more. Trump continues:
Our great Law Enforcement professionals MUST BE ALLOWED TO DO THEIR JOB! If not there will be only bedlam, chaos, injury and death. We want the Constitution as written!
It sounds like he is also proposing a police state.
Ironically, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, John Roberts, disagreed with Trump’s opinion about the Constitution. So what did Trump do? He attacked Roberts. Doubly ironically, in order to overturn the decision of the Ninth Circuit court, it would need to be reviewed by the Supreme Court, so pissing off the Chief Justice may not help Trump’s case.
When did Trump become a dictator? (Answer: when politics crossed a penis and a potato. Get it?)
Also published on Medium.