Either one is for the safety of American citizens and the sovereignty of this country or you're not. IMHO, that's it in a nutshell.
C'mon, LB, you know it's not that simple. The EO was not only sprung on the nation without warning, it was a surprise even to those tasked to implement it. John Kelly, the new head of Homeland Security was, according to the WSJ, not informed of the details of the order until the morning of the announcement, before Kelly had even had the chance to get a second-in-command in place.
GOP leaders in Congress weren't informed of the order in advance, and of course neither was the acting AG. How to deal with those already approved for arrival and in transit was apparently cooked up on the fly, and a lot of good folks were put through the wringer for no reason. Collateral damage to innocent people - and completely unnecessary.
That's reckless behavior, and the chaos that ensued was entirely predictable. Maybe Trump doesn't give a damn about the collateral damage to travelers, but his long-term ability to govern is among the casualties. Recklessness also marks the completely unnecessary fight Trump picked with Mexico. We may well need to improve security at the border, but I am sick of Trump's conceit that we must force the Mexicans to pay for it (by tariffs that will, of course, be passed on to American consumers).
This is going to end badly because Trump is taking risks he doesn't need to, and making enemies he doesn't have to. The Koch brothers condemned Trump's immigration ban yesterday, labeling it "misguided" and "the wrong approach [that] will likely be counterproductive". Sober analysts have noted that the ban plays into the hands of ISIS, by reinforcing the narrative that our enemy is Islam itself. Whatever the merits of the idea itself, the implementation has been a disaster, giving a Trump a wound that won't soon, if ever, heal.
I had an interesting conversation with a liberal friend on the train this morning. He's convinced that Trump's base of toothless hicks is lapping all this chaos up, and will reward him with a second term. I'm becoming just as convinced that his recklessness will lose him the White House within a year or two. We are each, from our differing perspectives, fearing the worst.
It doesn't have to be this way. There's still a narrow window of opportunity to get this Administration off on the right path, by prioritizing JOBS and the tax and regulatory reforms for which he can gain allies in Congress - and quickly improve the lives of working Americans. That's where his mandate lies, not in picking fights and sowing chaos for its own sake. But I fear that Trump is Trump, an impulsive improvisor with his finger on the button.
