Melania Trump took a separate car to the State of the Union because she now knows that her husband had an affair with a porn star right after the birth of their child and then paid over a hundred grand in blackmail cash to keep the other woman from talking to the press.
Still, she showed up and smiled, which is awfully big of her.
The speech itself was so flat and monotonous that I’d forgotten most of it before he even finished.
He took credit for things he’s not responsible for and lied about a bunch of numbers, but he really didn’t propose much. The GOP has no idea where to go from here. So, I guess they’ll just fuck with the FBI and the Justice Department and pretend that they can pass things without any Democratic votes, like an infrastructure bill that they won’t pay for.
As for the Dreamers, as much as I’m concerned for them, it’s not a good idea to pay a ransom for them. Trump has set this up as a way to fundamentally alter our entire immigration system in a very unfair and racist way, and that’s not a trade worth making for hostages that the GOP does not want to deport en masse while television cameras capture the indefensibly sad and outrageous stories. A bluff must be called here. I hate to say it, but it’s the right thing to do in these circumstances.
So, if that means a shut down, that’s fine with me. And if that means the DACA protections lapse, that’s a price the Democrats have to be willing to pay. It’s right on the politics and it’s right on the merits. We have a legal immigration program that’s under assault and it can’t be reformed the way that Stephen Miller wants to reform it.
I also object strenuously to the idea of spending tens of billions of dollars on a stupid wall that will be a symbol of racism visible from space running along our southern border. This should not be done just to help Trump save face. It would be a blot on the country and a stain on the record of everyone who votes to fund it.
The offer to Trump should be sensible border protection and enforcement investments rather than unrealistic boondoggles. He’s tying to play the bully here but he doesn’t have the cards to win this hand.
Rather than asking what Trump needs to rescue the DACA recipients, the Dems should be demanding funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau before they’ll even consider funding anything else.
