When Trump first issued his executive order on
Muslims--er, I mean immigration--I was out to lunch. Not literally; I was
literally sitting in my office, trying to make headway on a report before the
weekend arrived. It seems unbelievable that I wouldn't have stumbled upon
the breaking news; like many other Americans, I'd spent the first week of
Trump's presidency compulsively refreshing my New York Times app, seesawing
between horror and morbid curiosity, unable to unplug. But it was the end
of my workday, and as is my want, I'd gone into overdrive to finish half a
dozen last things. So, Trump's executive order escaped my attention.
At home, there was a family to catch up with, a workout to manage, dinner to cook, a couple of beers to drink with Taylor. We sat down, the three of us, and watched the final movie in the Hunger Games series. I can't get enough of future dystopia these days--in movies, books, mental preoccupation, whatever. My thirteen-year-old, Zac, is on board. Shortly after Election Day, I handed him first 1984, and then Fahrenheit 451, and he read them voraciously. (He took a stab at Brave New World, as well, but wasn't keen on the writing style.)
The next day, we set out on a overnight trip to the coast. It was elephant seal season at Piedras Blancas, and after seven years in California, we still hadn't witnessed the spectacle. In the spirit of vacation, I promptly let my phone die, and left it that way for most of the weekend. We bought a campsite on a bluff about a mile from the ocean, flanked by many other state park-goers with the same idea. Deeply resentful of other humans in our imaginary wilderness, we wandered a quarter-mile out of the campground into a brushy grove of Monterey pines, where we contemplated setting up a stealth camp. Taylor was the biggest advocate of this approach. Zac and I are more inclined to be comfortable, however, and outvoted him. Back at camp, we picked ticks off each other, and most particularly off Zelda the dog, for hours--evidently our punishment for plotted rule-breaking. No matter. We stoked a smoky fire, perfect for throwing ticks into. We ate brats and s'mores, identified constellations, and despite the crowds, slept soundly in our tents.
The next day was elephant seal day. It delivered. All these years, I'd assumed elephant seal viewing was kind of a wildlife nerd thing to do, something requiring binoculars and a field guide, requiring you to hoist your kid on your shoulders and point out a few blobs in the distance that could be seals, but could also be rocks. I was glad we'd finally made the trip, but I wasn't expecting anything mind-blowing. We pulled into in a massive gravel parking lot that looked to be at capacity, a hundred cars or more. With no other visible options, we parked where it said "No Stopping Any Time." There were no ticks here, after all. Taylor and I donned our binoculars, and I remember thinking, as I looked out at an oceanside boardwalk that appeared to be thronged with ordinary tourists and not wildlife nerds, "Everyone's going to ask to use them. It's going to be so annoying."
As it turns out, binoculars are dead weight at Piedras Blancas. The writhing mass of seals starts just ten feet or so below the boardwalk, and stretches south until the beach curves out of sight. In late January, it's an all-ages show, with females nursing babies born just last night, month-old young independent of their mothers, adolescent males pretending to be in charge, and enormous bosses of the beach, up to 16 feet long and 5,000 pounds, that only have to lumber a few feet out of the surf before all the lesser boys scatter. We were transfixed. The seals were so close we could smell them. The tourists didn't matter--the selfie sticks, the jostling, the cityslicker cologne. It was just us and nature, the wilderness experience we'd hoped for at camp. We would walk a few steps along the boardwalk, stop, gape for ten minutes or so, walk a few more steps, stop, gape. All the while a symphony of yips, hoots, groans, and snout-to-snout growls came welling up from the beach, jubilant chaos to our ears.
 |
| Elephant seals at Piedras Blancas, January 29, 2017. |
 |
| Lone bull at Piedras Blancas, January 29, 2017. |
We returned home late Sunday night. By
then, my phone was somewhat charged. My New York Times app lurked in the
background, unattended for 48 hours. In bed, just before turning off the
light, I did what you're not supposed to do, and what I can never resist these
days: I checked the news.
If you were at all tuned in last weekend, you know the headlines I saw. Lives Rewritten with the Stroke of a Pen. How Trump's Rush to Enact an Immigration Ban Unleashed Global Chaos. Demonstrators in Streets, and at Airports, Protest Immigration Order. Protest Grows 'Out of Nowhere' at Kennedy Airport after Iraqis are Detained. Judge Blocks Trump Order on Refugees Amid Chaos and Outcry Worldwide.
The word "chaos" was what got me. It erupted off the screen, hovered in the air between my face and my phone as I tapped and scrolled, trying to figure out what was going on. I didn't wade in too far; it was after midnight, and there was work and school the next day. But I read enough to know that seven Muslim-majority countries were affected, and that none of them were linked to any recent acts of terror in the United States. I also read that the ban had a number of potential legal issues, and that a possible constitutional crisis was emerging in its aftermath, in that customs and border officials were disregarding stays on the ban imposed by federal judges.
When Taylor came to bed, I mumbled something about our nation being on fire. He said he didn't want to know. Smart man.
The next day I looked into it more. I learned that a handful of Republican lawmakers (e.g. John McCain) had come out against the ban, a larger handful (e.g. Paul Ryan) had endorsed the ban, and the vast majority (e.g. my very own Congressman Tom McClintock) had issued no opinion. It was time to act. It wasn't that I thought this toady Congress was about to pass a law overturning the order, but I did feel that, at this precipitous moment, all representatives needed to hear from their constituents. I tried calling first his D.C. office, then his Roseville office, and got the busy signal. I kept trying the Roseville number, and finally got through, in a manner of speaking. It rang about a dozen times before shuttling me to the answering machine, where I left an impassioned and slightly incoherent message that ended with, "I have really strong feelings about this. I'll be following up with an email."
In the evening, I sat down and made it happen. I had only about a one-hour window to work with, and had to be quick. I couldn't be bothered with formalities. I addressed Tom like a living room nemesis, like a friend's friend who was buzzed up and quoting Sean Hannity, or some such nonsense. When I was finished, I asked Zac to review it for me. He suggested that it might be "pretty informal," but it did the trick. I pressed send.
Dear Congressman McClintock,
From what I understand, you have not yet taken a position on President Trump's recent immigration order. I am writing to urge you to stand with courageous Republican leaders like Senator John McCain, and voice strong opposition to this dangerous, irrational, and potentially illegal order.My concerns with the order are many-fold. First, there is the legal side of things. The order discriminates against people of particular nationalities, which makes it a violation of the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act. The order also appears to discriminate against Muslims, in that it targets seven Muslim-majority nations, but may, according to President Trump, be circumvented for Christians from these nations. As you know, religious discrimination is a violation of the U.S. Constitution.
Second, the order is irrational and, for President Trump, likely self-serving. If Trump were really trying to prevent acts of terror from being committed in our homeland, he would logically look at where previous foreign-born terrorists had hailed from--right? The 911 hijackers came from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Lebanon--all mysteriously missing from Trump's banned list. Is it a coincidence that the Trump Organization currently does business, or has in the past done business, in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt? On the other hand, since 1975, foreign-born citizens of the seven nations targeted in Trump's order have killed ZERO people in terrorist attacks on U.S. soil.
Finally, there is the matter of the touchy-feely. This is perhaps the biggest, and most amorphous, issue. This act is decidedly un-American. We are the melting pot, we are the land of opportunity--and we are all (or almost all) immigrants. This act is inhumane. In a time where refugees from Syria and other war-torn nations are fleeing for their lives, it is cruel and, at the very least, un-Christian, to throw up a wall. This act is massively unfair. People who have gone through lengthy visa applications and immigration hurdles are now being turned away--including people who have already been studying or working in the U.S., contributing to our economy and society.
Hopefully, this is all stuff you know yourself, and you've been able to just quickly scan this email. But once again, as your constituent, I urge you to take a stand against Trump's executive order. Please keep America America.
Thank you,
[Bekah]
There were a lot of things I forgot to mention in my email. For example, in retrospect, I think one of the scariest things about the ban and how it has been carried out has been the disregard for checks and balances. When portions of the order are blocked in federal court, and Department of Homeland Security personnel on the ground continue to do Trump's bidding, we have a serious problem. For a precedent like this to be set so early in Trump's presidency is extremely ominous.
Nevertheless, Congressman McClintock must have been moved by my correspondence, for the very next day he updated his website to reflect his position on the immigration order. It was a complete shutdown. Here is what he said:
Dear [Bekah]:
I strongly support President Trump’s executive order on refugees. There is no unconditional right to enter the United States, and the President has a sworn responsibility to assure that those entering our country are not hostile to our Constitution, our people, or the rule of law. The order is limited to countries that are hot-beds of Islamic extremism and provides for case-by-case waivers to assure that bona fide dissenters from these regimes can enter. This is a temporary stop-gap to give the administration time to put a new vetting system in place that can adequately assess the veracity of a refugee’s claims and his intentions.
Okay, I confess he did not actually post "Dear [Bekah]" on his website. That's just how it felt. And like a living room nemesis, he went on to say a bunch of shit that he probably felt was patriotic and well-informed, but actually sounded drunk. Like the part about about the President needing to ensure that "those entering our country are not hostile to our Constitution, our people, or the rule of law." If that were actually the case, the President would have no choice but to cancel his own visa.
Even better than McClintock's statement is actual language from the executive order:
In order to protect Americans, the United States must ensure that those admitted to this country do not bear hostile attitudes toward it and its founding principles. The United States cannot, and should not, admit those who do not support the Constitution, or those who would place violent ideologies over American law. In addition, the United States should not admit those who engage in acts of bigotry or hatred (including "honor" killings, other forms of violence against women, or the persecution of those who practice religions different from their own) or those who would oppress Americans of any race, gender, or sexual orientation.
There are at least five clauses in that paragraph that obviously beg a "Trump!" cough after them. Zac and I had a short read-aloud session in which we did this, and found it depressingly hilarious. Try it at home and see for yourselves.
I suspect I will have a lot of "Dear Tom" actions this year. Some I will write about; others I'll just do as part of my new-normal life. Next up will probably be environmental policy, as one Obama rule after another comes up on the chopping block under the Congressional Review Act.
The northern elephant seal is my current totem animal for conservation, a shining example of what we can do when we stop exploiting and consider the approaching horizon. From the 18th century to the early 20th century, elephant seals were heavily hunted for their blubber, which was used as oil for lamps and lubrication. They were driven to the very brink of extinction. In their darkest hour, they occupied a single colony on a remote island off the coast of Baja. Their numbers dropped to as low as 50 seals. With the advent of kerosene and protections put in place by Mexico in the early 20th century, the species began to recover. Today, its numbers are estimated at 225,000 and still climbing. While my living room nemesis might point out that fossil fuels saved the day, I think of it instead as a reminder to stay creative and resilient, to embrace alternatives. To live not for power and wealth in the present, but for life in the future.
Meanwhile, back on the immigration front, it's been touch-and-go for a week now. A few points for the people, courtesy of the judicial branch. Big pushback from the administration. A few more points for the people, this time with the State Department on board, and the Department of Homeland Security once again observing constitutional law. The freedom fighters of California's District 4 turned out en masse for Tom McClintock's town hall meeting in Roseville yesterday, where they loudly opposed his blind support for the immigration order, among other positions. He had to leave via police escort. We're seeing an awful lot of democracy in action right now, even as the clouds continue to build. Let's keep riding this momentum--and let's play a smart game, eyes wide open to both the big, gut-busting issues and the lesser headlines, pacing ourselves for the long haul.
No comments:
Post a Comment