The NYT Pitches a Tantrum

More Misinformation from the Mass Media:

First reflect on the cruelty of President Trump’s decision on Friday to indefinitely suspend the resettlement of Syrian refugees and temporarily ban people from seven predominantly Muslim countries from entering the United States. . . . The first casualties of this bigoted, cowardly, self-defeating policy were detained early Saturday. . . . breathtaking in scope and inflammatory in tone, was issued on Holocaust Remembrance Day spoke of the President’s callousness and indifference to history. . . . The order’s language makes clear that the xenophobia and Islamophobia that penetrated Mr. Trump’s campaign are a stain to his presidency as well. Un-American as they are, they are not American policy. – Donald Trump’s Muslim Ban Is Cowardly and Dangerous, The Editorial Board, The New York Times, 1/28/17

Fact Check: One reading this unbalanced rant, particularly with its reference to the Holocaust, might get the impression that Donald Trump is contemplating a “final solution” for refugees. Alas, the reality of Trump’s policy is a sensible and moderate plan designed to protect the safety and security of American citizens.

It is not, as the Times article falsely claims, a “ban” on Muslim immigration. Specifically, it places a temporary restriction on the entry of refugees from seven countries, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen in order to establish effective screening to keep out terrorists and other criminals. These are Muslim-majority countries, but the ban applies to all of their citizens. President Trump did not arbitrarily select these countries.

As he explained, “This is not about religion—this is about terror and keeping our country safe. There are over 40 different countries worldwide that are majority Muslim and are not affected by this order. My policy is similar to what President Obama did in 2011 when he banned visas for refugees from Iraq. The seven countries named in the Executive Order are the same countries previously identified by the Obama Administration as sources of terror.”

Trump also capped refugee admissions this year at 50,000. The Obama Administration had projected a total of 110,000 for 2017, a figure far above the average for the past fifteen years. Trump’s limit places the ceiling closer to the norm for that time frame. That lower number will make it easier to ensure that the refugees who come are properly vetted.

The president’s proposals, once again, are moderate and reasonable. To call them bigoted, cowardly, dangerous, and un-American is rank hysteria. It is almost comical that the Times also indicts Trump for using “inflammatory” language. One must wonder what is “un-American” about safeguarding the security of Americans.

The Times editorialists, like many immigration enthusiasts, don’t seem to believe in America as a country which stands for the interests of its citizens, but rather a prototype for some kind of borderless global society. That notion is most truly un-American.

 

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