Make Them Hear You

Make Them Hear You! The Immigration Ban

Make Them Hear You! is a weekly feature on KGNU, produced by Chris Mohr, letting listeners know how they can have their voices heard on issues up before Congress. You can hear it Wednesday mornings at 8.20am during the Morning Magazine.

On December 7th, 2015, the Trump campaign stated, “Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on.” The next day, then-Governor Mike Pence called the ban, “offensive and unconstitutional.” Then-General James Mattis said, “They think we’ve completely lost it. It’s sending shock waves through this international system.” Trump kept repeating his threat, and now is enforcing a travel ban on people arriving from seven Muslim-majority countries. Trump denied it was against Muslims, ignoring his past statements. Rudy Giuliani said Trump wanted a “Muslim ban” and requested a commission to show him “the right way to do it legally.”

Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and other countries where Trump does business are exempt. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Government are suing Trump for constitutional violations. Trump’s ban is condemned by high-tech firms and universities which teach foreign nationals.

Dick Cheney said the ban “goes against everything we stand for and believe in.”

Rep. Mike Coffman said, “I have never, nor will I ever support a blanket travel ban for people solely based on ethnic or religious grounds.”

Sen. Cory Gardner, said “A blanket travel ban goes too far. I urge the Administration to take the appropriate steps to fix this overly broad executive order.”

Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham said “Trump’s order went into effect with little to no consultation with the Departments of State, Defense, Justice, and Homeland Security. 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 from seeking refuge in the country they risked their lives to help. 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 Muslims. This executive order may help terrorist recruitment.”

Colorado representatives Scott Tipton and Doug Lamborn are noncommittal. Only Ken Buck supports it. People who live in their congressional districts and want to know where they stand on this matter are calling their offices and sending emails.
At least four judges have overturned parts of the order. Acting Attorney General Sally Q. Yates ordered the Justice Department on Monday not to defend President Trump’s executive order on immigration in court and was immediately fired. Sen. Chris Murphy said he would introduce legislation to overturn Trump’s order based on the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act banning discrimination on the basis of national origin. He hopes many Republicans will also support it.

The ACLU received 6 times as much money via online donations this weekend as it usually receives in a whole year.

If you’re concerned about the Muslim travel ban, find out about Muslim groups and various legal defense funds suing Trump. You can phone Senators Michael Bennett and Cory Gardner and let them know what you think about Senator Murphy’s bill.