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one_liners
_Trump is once again asking Congress for billions more of taxpayer dollars in Fiscal Year 2021 to fund his hate-fueled attacks on immigrants and border communities — it is literally a heartless blueprint of terror.
_There is something not quite right about brain-washing young Border Patrol Explorers to hunt down and arrest people who are only seeking safety or a better life.
_Maybe it’s because Trump has few to no redeeming qualities that makes him claim at a campaign rally that Mexico was going to pay for the wall with “redemptions.” ¿Qué, what?
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must_reads
_Emergency insurgency. Yep, on the week that marks a year since Trump declared his fake-ity fake national emergency, we definitely are in the mood for a rebellion. First, Trump announces looting another $3.8 billion from the Pentagon’s budget_this time from military equipment, like planes and ships_to build more miles of wasteful and harmful wall. Hours later, he announces extending for another year the national emergency declaration he manufactured so he could steal from military construction projects and counterdrug initiatives for his vanity pet project. While congressional members on both sides of the aisle are protesting Trump’s complete disregard for their constitutional powers of the purse, others are becoming skeptical of military funding at a time when the Fiscal 2021 budget is being considered. And, the ACLU is adding this latest Trump move to our joint lawsuit. Meanwhile, our communities suffer the increasing damages and indignities of bulldozers and explosives that are desecrating our fragile habitats, sacred sites, and places of national heritage. On this Valentine’s Day, let love overcome hate...
_Shameful cycle of violence. This latest report by Doctors Without Borders lays bare why it’s time for us to stop the violent and cruel cycle of Trump’s policies towards families seeking safety at our nation’s southern doorstep. While we supported this congressional colleague letter to Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf that called for an end to the horrific (and clearly misnamed) Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), much more needs to be done. SBCC steering committee member Joanna Williams of Kino Border Initiative criticized MPP for placing families “in precarious homelessness in Mexico,” adding "there's not a way for this to be a humane or just policy, so it's not just a matter of fixing on the edges, but it's a matter of really realizing that we as a nation are choosing to inflict suffering on families and children.” Let’s pull the plug on it.
_Border Patrol Mafia. We weren’t surprised to learn of the Border Patrol Douglas Mafia that gave rise to corruption to even the highest ranks of the Border Patrol. We’re guessing it’s not the only faction. Border Patrol has had a long history of corruption among its ranks and there has been little to no accountability for the more than 100 people who have died after an encounter with a border agent. This is why we need to re-think borders and create a new more humane and effective model to ensure public safety for all, protect human rights and human life, and welcome people arriving and returning. In short, we need a #NewBorderVision.
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border_lines is published every Friday for your reading pleasure. If you’d like to submit an item for inclusion, please email Vicki B. Gaubeca at [email protected], by Wednesday COB. The Southern Border Communities Coalition is a program of Alliance San Diego.