# Donald Trump vs. the US-Mexico border **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 29, 2019, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729 "2019-03-29T18:39:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2019, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/81 "2019-04-03T19:33:37Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Border and border! What is border? It’s that thing that Wall is supposed to protect. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/82 "2019-04-04T06:44:36Z")
And the Feeders of Wall protect Wall. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/83 "2019-04-04T07:05:21Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > Border closed? Oh no, not border! [Borders](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borders_Group) closed and he’s just now catching up ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/84 "2019-04-04T12:32:39Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > [Borders](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borders_Group) closed and he’s just now catching up So _Doctors without Borders_ isn’t an organization of physicians that meet to lament the closing of their favorite bookstore? ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/85 "2019-04-04T13:31:53Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > So _Doctors without Borders_ isn’t an organization of physicians that meet to lament the closing of their favorite bookstore? No, they’re physicians who don’t have an artful graphic design surrounding themselves. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/86 "2019-04-04T14:15:46Z")
They also have to borrow rescue dogs when attending building collapses. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/87 "2019-04-04T17:27:11Z")
President Blowhard capitulates. Again. **“The only thing frankly better, but less drastic than closing the border, is to tariff the cars coming in,” he told reporters at the White House on Thursday. "We’re going to give them a one-year warning and if the drugs don’t stop or largely stop, we’ll put tariffs on Mexico and products, in particular cars.”** I bet Mexico is shaking in it’s boots at all your spineless, do-nothing bluster! ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/88 "2019-04-04T17:42:48Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > President Blowhard capitulates. Again. "I don’t play games,” [the dumb ass said](https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-border-closing-calexico-california-20190404-story.html), like a six-year-old in a schoolyard. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/89 "2019-04-04T17:51:36Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > "I don’t play games,” [the dumb ass said](https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-border-closing-calexico-california-20190404-story.html), like a six-year-old in a schoolyard. **“We’re shutting the border down next week!!!”** One week later: \*\*"Nevermind, you have a year to so something!!!’ \*\* One year later: Journalist: It’s been a year and nothing has changed. Closing border or tariffs? **“FAKE NEWS!!!”** ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/90 "2019-04-04T17:59:57Z")
I’m guessing someone, possibly numerous someones, possibly slightly panicked numerous someones in his administration worried he might actually do it and hurt their bank accounts, had a long Talk with Trump. There is no evidence proving they didn’t have to use brightly coloured flash cards in large fonts to get their point across, nor that the font used was Comic Sans, therefore it would be irresponsible of us not to assume they absolutely did. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/91 "2019-04-04T18:10:09Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > I’m guessing someone, possibly numerous someones, possibly slightly panicked numerous someones in his administration worried he might actually do it and hurt their bank accounts, had a long Talk with Trump. There is no evidence proving they didn’t have to use brightly coloured flash cards in large fonts to get their point across, nor that the font used was Comic Sans, therefore it would be irresponsible of us not to assume they absolutely did. I think Kudlow and Mnuchin probably pulled Javanka aside and told them that there was no way to know what the effects of a border shutdown would be, because they’d injure all sectors of the economy. The ripple effects would be felt from Texas to Ohio and Indiana, and almost immediately. In short, they probably told Jared and Ivanka that they’d better slap some sense into Dotard because it’s a disaster waiting to happen. What I wonder now is what happens when Trump gets called a coward by right wing shock jocks - will he goaded into going against the advice of real economists and shut down the border anyway? Remember, all it took was an Ann Coulter tweet to push him into a reckless fight with the House over the government shutdown. We’re not out of the woods yet. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/92 "2019-04-04T18:19:05Z")
We are not indeed. As people that help limit an even larger increase in asylum seekers can tell you: > **[Trump's move to cut aid to Central America will spur more migration, aid...](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trumps-move-to-cut-aid-to-central-america-will-spur-more-migration-aid-workers-warn/)** > > "It will almost certainly drive a new — and much larger — wave of migration to our southern border," Rep. Norma Torres, the only Member of Congress from Central America, told CBS News > [@](#): > > Trump’s move to cut aid to Central America will spur more migration, aid workers warn > [@](#): > > Although a State Department official told CBS News Mr. Trump “determined these programs have not effectively prevented illegal immigrants from coming to the United States,” the findings and statements of other agencies in the administration contradict the president’s assessment. In its country fact sheets for El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, USAID touts the feats of USAID-backed programs in the region — including lower homicide rates, job creation, poverty reduction, government transparency and increased crop harvesting. > > In one finding in its Honduras fact sheet, the agency states, “Since 2011, USAID agriculture investments have lifted 17,937 families, or over 89,000 people, out of extreme poverty.” All three USAID country fact sheets have been updated during the Trump administration. > > Torres said the U.S. should continue its aid not only because it has a moral responsibility to the region, but also because it is in America’s interest to address the factors driving migration from the region, rather than to spend funds to bolster security and increase detention of migrants along the southwestern border. > > “Here we have an opportunity: It’s a lot cheaper for us to get involved there in the region than it is to deal with them at our southern border,” she said. ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/93 "2019-04-04T18:46:55Z")
It might be cheaper, but for Der Fakher the optics are better if there are “hordes” of brown-skinned refugees heading north. Puts the fear of God into his base, you bet’cha! ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/94 "2019-04-04T20:47:44Z")
That’s interesting, _el temor de Dios_ is supposed to be an incentive to do what’s right for those who won’t do it out of inherent righteousness; it makes “doing what’s right” a matter of self-interest. Does it work differently in English or is that some sort of Evangelical variant? ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/95 "2019-04-04T23:13:58Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > President Blowhard capitulates. Again. > > **“The only thing frankly better, but less drastic than closing the border, is to tariff the cars coming in,” he told reporters at the White House on Thursday. "We’re going to give them a one-year warning and if the drugs don’t stop or largely stop, we’ll put tariffs on Mexico and products, in particular cars.”** > > I bet Mexico is shaking in it’s boots at all your spineless, do-nothing bluster! Didn’t we [just get done negotiating a new trade pact?](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States%E2%80%93Mexico%E2%80%93Canada_Agreement) Does he realize that slapping new tariffs on one of the most important products covered by that pact is going to open up a whole new can of worms? What am I saying? Of course he doesn’t. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/96 "2019-04-04T23:27:01Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > That’s interesting, _el temor de Dios_ is supposed to be an incentive to do what’s right for those who won’t do it out of inherent righteousness; it makes “doing what’s right” a matter of self-interest. Does it work differently in English or is that some sort of Evangelical variant? I’ve always interpreted it as “fear of any overriding power” - for example if my boss were to drag me into her office and put the fear of God into me about posting to the Dope from work (er…) then what would have actually happened would be that she’d have filled me with fear of _her_. I actually can’t think of a time where the intended meaning seemed to be that wrath people were being made afraid of was an actual god. It’s my vague recollection that the infraction inspiring the wrath-putting is only rarely one that God would have a stake in anyway. But then I’m an atheist, so I may be biased away from the notion that the literal God was the subject of the fear. Fictional things aren’t scary, after all… ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2019, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/97 "2019-04-04T23:31:21Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > Didn’t we [just get done negotiating a new trade pact?](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States%E2%80%93Mexico%E2%80%93Canada_Agreement) Does he realize that slapping new tariffs on one of the most important products covered by that pact is going to open up a whole new can of worms? > > What am I saying? Of course he doesn’t. He’ll just tear up the deal and refuse to pay. Because that’s just how he rolls. And the Magabots will scream their approval. And when this gets slapped down, they will howl with dismay about "the deep state’. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2019, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/98 "2019-04-05T00:43:51Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > "I don’t play games,” [the dumb ass said](https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-border-closing-calexico-california-20190404-story.html), like a six-year-old in a schoolyard. Except golf. A lot of golf. Lots and lots of golf. A lot of golf cheating. Lots and lots of golf cheating. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2019, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/99 "2019-04-05T01:19:34Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > Didn’t we [just get done negotiating a new trade pact?](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States%E2%80%93Mexico%E2%80%93Canada_Agreement) Does he realize that slapping new tariffs on one of the most important products covered by that pact is going to open up a whole new can of worms? > > What am I saying? Of course he doesn’t. He’s a five year old with a gun that didn’t get his Twinkie. ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2019, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729/100 "2019-04-05T01:37:27Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > Except golf. A lot of golf. Lots and lots of golf. A lot of golf cheating. Lots and lots of golf cheating. “Donald J. Trump: He doesn’t just cheat on his wives!” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trump-vs-the-us-mexico-border/831729.md?page=6)