IF ONLY our laws had been enforced all the way down the line.
IF ONLY our judicial system had stepped up to the plate and given a resounding 'NO!', backed up by the House and the Senate when somebody just upped and made a unilateral and unconstitutional decision all by his lonesome (because, you know, he had a phone and he had a pen).
We can 'if only' until the cows come home.
The fact of the matter is that we have been handed a rather daunting situation and somebody's going to have to figure out what to do about it. We cannot go back and change anything; all we can do is the best we can with what we have to work with.
Thankfully, we do have our Constitution. Although it has been kind of ignored in recent years it is still our guide and our law.
Because somebody did ignore it, and nobody stepped up to say, 'Hey, you can't do that; it's unconstitutional!' we've got a mess on our hands. That it didn't have to happen in the first place is entirely moot, except for the unlikely possibility of somebody getting held accountable for what he has wrought. As I say ... unlikely. I think the DACA folk ought to sue him as an individual (not the government), a class action suit, for landing them in this boat. He could have chosen otherwise; he could have enforced the law of our land; he could have insisted that their parents obtain citizenship; he could have made it mandatory that they apply for citizenship upon reaching their majority (or leave at that time) ... they've all got to be going through some powerful anxiety as a result of his actions ... he himself, out of his own pocket (although over a million/year plus a lot more for secret service is coming out of OUR pockets) ought to at LEAST pay any associated fees for them to obtain citizenship as well as any mental health services required for them to cope with their lot. HIS pocket, not OURS. We're the ones who are already lining his pockets; why should we have to pay multiple times for how he chose to use his phone and his pen? Which we also paid for, come to think of it. Uffda.
There are now hundreds of thousands of folks who are not guilty of anything except having had parents who broke the laws (which weren't being enforced anyway). They are innocent (unless they've broken laws themselves - other laws, not the ones broken by their parents) and do not deserve to be punished for something they did not do. That's a fact.
Because one branch of our government, without being checked or balanced by either of the others, did something that was illegal, We the People have been saddled with the sorry situation of having to look askance at all three of our branches of government. Many of the 'guilty parties' are still right where they were when they failed us as a nation. That too will have to be dealt with.
The issue at hand is poignantly heart-rending. Hundreds of thousands of innocent lives are on the line. Maybe not literally, but they will most assuredly be affected (as will we all) over the course of the next months as the legislative branch of government, who should have been the ones to either deal with this in the first place or at least stepped up to either confirm or deny what the executive branch chose to do unilaterally (AND - I presume - the judicial branch, who also should have come out with a very clear statement about the constitutional validity - as in the lack thereof - of said choice) are at last called to task about the whole thing.
I'm just a little old lady and not personally affected by DACA, except in the sense that as a citizen of the United States of America I am inherently as culpable as anybody else.
So what are we going to do about all these folks who are just living their lives out as best they can, but are suddenly faced with the consequences of the actions of others?
Are we going to turn them out?
I think not.
That they are now adults is a factor that has to be taken into consideration.
That they have been well aware of their status for all this time has to be taken into consideration.
That they have, each and all, had ample opportunity to apply for legitimate citizenship, and could have done so as soon as they reached their majority, has to be taken into consideration.
Some of the culpability here belongs squarely on their shoulders as well as on those of the (now-ex) executive branch of our government, the legislative branch, and the judicial branch - and our own as we didn't step up to say, 'Hey that's unconstitutional, what are you DOING!?!' either.
We're all guilty, when it comes right down to it.
Solutions?
I have no 'solutions', only thoughts on the matter.
I'm thinking that every last one of our DACA folk need to get themselves posthaste to the closest immigration office and get their paperwork started.
I'm thinking the legislative branch needs to clearly and definitively put an end to the continuance of something that was unconstitutional in the first place.
I'm thinking that the judicial branch has got to present a decisive ruling on the matter.
I'm thinking that enforcement ought to be stepped up even more, to clear out the criminal elements.
All of these things ought to have been done long since but 'long since' is long gone.
Now is going to have to suffice.
I looked up the DACA thing and the guidelines are pretty clear. The people affected fall into specific parameters, which does help.
It's not like this is the end of the world, folks. It's just got to be taken care of so everyone can calm down and get on with getting on.
The same goes for those who are over-staying their visas. They can follow the rules about renewing them if that's an option, or they can go home. It's not complicated.
I have a feeling it's liable to come as a shock to some peoples' systems that there really are actual laws in our nation, and that (until/unless duly changed) they're (GASP!) supposed to be followed. I know there has been a great deal of 'flexibility' these past years about that little detail, and it might take a while for the concept to sink in. Hopefully it won't take too long.
When it comes down to it, the same goes for all of the illegals among us. It seems to me that, while our legislative branch is dealing with this one part of the whole they may as well extrapolate and deal with the rest of it at the same time. If your paperwork for citizenship is in the works, and; if you're gainfully employed or enrolled in a bonafide educational/training program, and; if you've been here straight through for five years or so, and; if you have no criminal record ... welcome home. Everyone else, so sad too bad, you had your chance, out you go.
Effective immediately, until we as a nation get back onto our feet and can assess our ability to take on anything more, the doors are closed. To everyone.
That's about the only way I can see the whole thing.
No doubt I'm not being 'politically correct' here but honestly I don't much give a rodent's behind about being 'politically correct'.
It's not the current administration's fault, this mess. It's part of the 'legacy' of the one/s before. A disrespect for the laws of our land, coming from the highest of our governmental positions, has been disheartening for a lot of us. For those who didn't know, didn't care, or welcomed it ... I don't know what to tell you except that now you know. You might still not care, and you might not welcome the return of our Constitution, but now at least you know.
God bless us all, and most especially those directly affected by what's coming down the pike including those whose paths are to enforce what has to be done.
And ... you know ... God bless our President. Mr. Trump's destiny is not one many of us would envy. His is the task of righting the wrongs of others, on our behalf I might add. The least we can do is give him our prayers and not get in his way.
Taking care of our DACA folk is a step.
Our legislative branch has six months to get something done that ought to take a whopping fifteen minutes tops. IF they can't manage to do even that much, I hope they're busy getting alternative careers planned and prepared for. It's too bad they can't be 'recalled', but they sure as heck don't have to be re-elected. None of them, on either side of the aisle. We can't repeal them, but we can most certainly replace them.
Our DACA folks have those same six months to get their rears in gear and get their paperwork started, get a job or enroll in a training program, prove their residency for the past five years, and make sure their records are clean and clear. The ones who can't/won't do those things might want to take this opportunity to vacate our nation voluntarily.
IF (yes that IF is in capital letters and in bold) our legislative branch isn't completely dead, and they know the meaning of the word 'extrapolate', it's not just the DACA folk who might want to be taking care of the paperwork, the job/training, the documentation of residency for five years, and proof of a law-abiding lifestyle. As for the Visa folks, just get 'em renewed or go home.
Just sayin'.
Ach. But what do I know?
No comments:
Post a Comment