Trump's Not Messing Around on the Border

AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

If anybody thought that Trump was just running for president to avoid prosecution (yes, a lot of Democrats did believe that!), his initial moves as president-elect should dispel that notion and put them on notice that he intends to win bigly. 

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Trump's announcements on his appointments should scare the pants off of the left. His team is already filling up with hard-liners who will take no s**t and pull no punches. Nothing says this more than his appointment of Tom Homan as Border Czar, or as some have coined it, Border God. 

Watch this. Homan is not F'in around. 

The left is freaking out, and rightly so. Trump didn't hit the ground running in most respects when he was elected the first time, and he is not making that mistake this time around. He has a long list of badasses ready to go on day 1, and they are totally unafraid to offend the establishment. It is their mission in life to do precisely that. 

Usually, there is a vast difference between political rhetoric and policy realities, and no doubt that will be true on many of Trump's musings during the campaign. As a practical matter, a president (or any elected official) has to focus on a few issues an prioritize the top ones. Trump, I suspect, will be expansive in his priorities, but it is difficult to see how he can check every box in one term. 

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The border will be one of those priorities. Restoring peace and prosperity will be another. 

Ironically, the election of Mexico's new leftist president--who hates Trump with a passion--may be a blessing in disguise. Instead of a tug of war, we may have an open (metaphorical) war, and the US has the bigger stick in this fight. Mexico is not and should not be seen as an adversary, but it also is not an ally. It is also a failed state where only the large urban areas are under government control. Law enforcement there is corrupt, and while that makes alliances with them difficult, it also gives us a freer hand in going after cartels if we want to. If Trump really does declare the cartels to be terrorists, they better watch out. 

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I doubt that you will see troops roaming the streets looking to sweep up illegal aliens, but you will likely see actions just short of that. The priority will not be to go after the low-hanging fruit, either. It will be to go after dangerous aliens first and then go down the line. Cutting off federal aid will cause many to self-deport. 

The media and liberal governors will fight tooth and nail, but this time around it will be more difficult. There will be legal battles galore, but I suspect that the will to fight in the second Trump term will be exponentially greater. Trump has financial levers he can use to punish liberal states who defy him, and the court decision ruling that the federal government sets immigration policy--a ruling the Biden administration pushed for--will help Trump immensely. 

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Homan is the right man in the right job at the right time, both because we need a hard ass like him to clean things up and because it sends a signal that he is serious and prepared to do what he promised. 

Good. 

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Ed Morrissey 10:00 PM | December 12, 2024
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