Trump's plans to deport millions of people
Washington's latest plans could lead to millions of deportations. A directive from President Trump affects all undocumented migrants who have committed a criminal offence or been classified as potentially dangerous in the US. Trump is taking revenge for his foiled plans, commentators write, and criticise him for using the weakest members of society as scapegoats.
President taking revenge for defeats
The situation of almost a million undocumented Latin American immigrants living in the US could worsen dramatically, Hospodářské noviny fears:
“The wall along the Mexican border is more or less on ice, as is the travel ban for Muslims from several countries. Trump's new directive is aimed at illegal immigrants in the US. De facto this means he realises that he's lost the battle in the courts. ... Now the White House wants to quickly expel 940,000 people whose cases have already been decided in court but who have been granted a deferral. They are to pack their bags and leave. Trump's hunt has begun. What he wasn't able to achieve on the first attempt is to be boxed through in a second attempt. With full force. So that the new president can show that he can fulfil at least some of his promises.”
US attacking the weakest
Migrants are being used as scapegoats for the impoverishment of the middle class, La Vanguardia also fears:
“This is not about the wisdom or folly of deporting those who display criminal or harmful behaviour. It's about the fact that the way the laws are formulated gives the authorities a lot of leeway in their implementation. And the isolationist tendencies, the superiority complexes and the xenophobia that the new administration has displayed to varying degrees raise fears that these laws may be abused. … We should bear in mind that the US has always presented itself as a land of equal opportunities where everyone - regardless of their social or geographic background - has the chance to live the American dream. This same country is now attacking the weakest section of its society and turning it into a scapegoat for the fate of the middle class, which has been left impoverished by various factors.”
How will this help jobless miners?
US President Donald Trump is pursuing a classic scapegoat policy with his offensive against illegal immigrants, Tages-Anzeiger comments:
“The fear that the new insecurity is spreading doesn't help anyone, and it certainly doesn't help Trump's voters. The causes for their economic and social problems lie elsewhere. The fact that America's steelworks and coal mines have gone bankrupt has nothing to do with illegal immigration. Trump is trying to tell the Americans that their country is being occupied and ransacked by hostile foreigners. He's inflating the problems that illegal immigration creates for America - which undeniably exist but are solvable - into an apocalyptic crisis. This is classic, demagogic scapegoat policy. How does it help an unemployed miner in West Virginia if a Mexican in Arizona who entered the country illegally is deported? That's right: not one bit.”