National Shame

With limited resources, President Obama used his prosecutorial discretion to concentrate immigration forces on criminals. Although he made a decision not to tear apart families and to give the dreamers a break, 90 percent of the prosecutions were undocumented criminals and he was criticized as the “deporter-in-chief.”

President Trump, doing the opposite, made a decision in February of 2017 to use terrorism as a tactic to scare off those hoping for asylum from countries where they and their children were in mortal danger.

Trump used his prosecutorial discretion to criminalize asylum seekers (not against the law) and to prosecute undocumented families (a misdemeanor). He decided to tear little children from the arms of their mothers and scatter them all over the country.

Courts were overwhelmed, with 30-40 tried at a time. The agents became kidnappers and babysitters while the real criminals are ignored.

I care and am ashamed. Aren’t you?

Jerry Brule

Eugene