linnposts.com

Trump defenders say everybody needs to take a step back, a deep breath, and stop exaggerating what his ban on immigrant and refugees from seven Muslim countries really means.

Okay. So we’re to believe his sole intention is to stop immigration from these countries until he can figure out how to best vet them for security purposes.

That’s the best face to put on it, and in accepting it, the first question that comes to mind is this: “If security really is his sole concern, why didn’t he present his plan to the various agencies in charge of national security and whose departments would be affected to get their input BEFORE he signed the order.”

The fact that he didn’t is reason enough to believe this was not about national security. It was about politics, about playing to Trump’s base, an irresponsible act that actually put our country more at risk, not less.

Apparently that is exactly what Republican Senators McCain and Graham think.

“Such a hasty process risks harmful results. We should not stop green-card holders from returning to the country they call home. We should not stop those who have served as interpreters for our military and diplomats from seeking refuge in the country they risked their lives to help. And we should not turn our backs on those refugees who have been shown through extensive vetting to pose no demonstrable threat to our nation, and who have suffered unspeakable horrors, most of them women and children.

“Ultimately, we fear this executive order will become a self-inflicted wound in the fight against terrorism. At this very moment, American troops are fighting side-by-side with our Iraqi partners to defeat ISIL. But this executive order bans Iraqi pilots from coming to military bases in Arizona to fight our common enemies. Our most important allies in the fight against ISIL are the vast majority of Muslims who reject its apocalyptic ideology of hatred. This executive order sends a signal, intended or not, that America does not want Muslims coming into our country. That is why we fear this executive order may do more to help terrorist recruitment than improve our security.”

So my reply to Trumpers who want the rest of us to step back and take a breath is that this executive order is another example of why we think Trump is so dangerous. He acts without thinking through the impact his actions might have.

That is the very definition of irresponsible leadership.

What if nuclear weapons are involved next time? Not possible, you say. Neither was Trump’s election, and look how that turned out.

Frankly, the argument that Trump is doing everything he can do to protect our national security is an insult to all Americans.

How dumb do Trump and company believe the America people are? We have sense enough to know that this kind of broad stroke approach to security makes America less safe rather than more.

You don’t get to offend 1.6 billion Muslims around the world and then argue that you are making us safer.

So as we enter the second full week of the Trump presidency, all signs point to a presidency that thrives on controversy and chaos because Trump needs both to feed his ego.

Honestly, the more Trump supporters defend his actions, the less seriously we should take them.

Until Trump stops acting like a child, his circle of sycophants stop massaging his ego, and we see evidence that adults are once again running the White House, no one should cut him any slack. No one should step back and take a deep breath.