Day 813: Report: Trump told acting DHS head to violate law and he’d get pardon if arrested
Donald Trump’s shadiness really knows no bounds. He has been unable to lead the way on comprehensive immigration reform with a unified Republican government and equally inept at the task since Democrats took back the House of Representatives. The Department of Homeland Security has become empty of high ranking officials as Trump proclaimed himself solely responsible for its direction.
His direction is of the illegal variety.
According to a report, Trump is trying anything to stop migrants from legally seeking asylum on the southern border. He has apparently gone so far as to tell the head of border patrol (and current acting DHS head) to unilaterally turn asylum seekers away, even if they’re following the law. Trump promised a pardon if he was arrested for violating federal law.
President Donald Trump told Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan he would grant McAleenan a pardon if he were sent to jail for having border agents block asylum seekers from entering the US in defiance of US law, senior administration officials tell CNN.
Trump reportedly made the comment during a visit to the border at Calexico, California, a week ago. It was not clear if the comment was a joke.
Two officials briefed on the exchange say the President told McAleenan, since named the acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, that he “would pardon him if he ever went to jail for denying US entry to migrants,” as one of the officials paraphrased.
During his visit to Calexico last Friday, Trump said on camera: “We’re full, our system’s full, our country’s full — can’t come in! Our country is full, what can you do? We can’t handle any more, our country is full. Can’t come in, I’m sorry. It’s very simple.”
Behind the scenes, two sources told CNN, the President told border agents to not let migrants in. Tell them we don’t have the capacity, he said. If judges give you trouble, say, “Sorry, judge, I can’t do it. We don’t have the room.”
After the President left the room, agents sought further advice from their leaders, who told them they were not giving them that direction and if they did what the President said they would take on personal liability. You have to follow the law, they were told.
Trump is trying to entice people who have promised to protect and defend the Constitution to ignore it solely because he wants them to. They know — and everyone knows — that’s wrong, but Trump is pushing for it anyway.
For any other president in U.S. history, trying to induce aides to break the law with the promise of a pardon if caught wouldn’t just be a scandal, it would be an offense for which impeachment documents were immediately drawn up. For Trump, the media treats it like a Friday news story that will likely be off the national radar by Monday.
813 days in, 649 to go
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