RUTHFULLY YOURS

Supporters of Donald Trump, many of whom prominently campaigned for his election, are outraged by all the campaign promises he has reversed himself on — NATO, military action in Syria, the Federal Reserve, and the repeal of Obamacare, to name a few. But the straw that may break the camel’s back is the issue of immigration and border security.

Trump campaigned against letting more Syrian refugees in; in fact, he was so firmly against them, he said he would deport the ones already here.  But what has happened now is that not only is Trump letting in more Syrian refugees, he is admitting them at twice the rate that Obama did. On this issue, Trump is the political equivalent of not one, but two Barack Obamas.

President Donald Trump called Syrian refugees a “great Trojan horse” during the 2016 campaign, but his administration has resettled them in a quicker pace than President Barack Obama did.

Since Trump was inaugurated, 1,401 Syrian refugees have been resettled, State Department figures as of Wednesday reveal. This is more than double the 625 Syrian refugees resettled under President Obama in the same time frame last year.

“Bad, bad things are gonna happen,” Trump said about Syrian refugee resettlement at an August rally.

But not so bad as to stop Trump from accelerating the admission of Syrian immigrants.

Let’s be very clear about two points:

1) The judicial stay on Trump’s entry ban has nothing to do with this. A federal judge may have prevented a blanket ban on Syrians entering the country, but only the Trump Administration could grant refugee status to individual Syrians. President Trump has the power to deny admission simply by not granting refugee status.

2) These refugees are unvettable. There is no reliable government to check up on these refugees.

Trump has already left many supporters feeling betrayed by his failure to repeal the illegal “Dreamers” program.

Brenda Sparks, an “angel mom” whose son was killed by an illegal immigrant, appeared onstage with Trump at an August campaign event in Phoenix. She said he promised her that he would overturn the program known Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, in short order.

While Sparks said she didn’t think it would be done immediately, “I had expected it before now.”

Michelle Dallacroce, an anti-immigration activist, is more pointed. Immigration is “why we voted for Donald Trump,” she said. “This could be the most elaborate reality show. I’m wondering, was this all an illusion for us, using our movement so he could get in there?

And now the Syrian refugees are flooding in, faster than ever before. Immigration and border security was the main issue that Trump ran on. Could opening the door to a new flood of Syrian refugees cost him the nomination in 2020?

If the Syrian refugees merely continue the creeping trend towards Sharia law in pockets of American communities, probably not. But if someone Trump lets in commits a terrorist act, after Trump promised not to admit any more Syrian refugees, then I think he would be very vulnerable to a primary challenge.

“Donald Trump dropped an emotional anchor. He captured how Americans feel,” said Tania Vojvodic, a fervent Trump supporter who founded one of his first campaign volunteer networks. “We expect him to keep his word, and right now he’s not keeping his word.”

You can read more here and here about the many Trump supporters who are already halfway off the Trump train.

There is no rational reason related to national security why Trump is letting these refugees into the country.