On Wednesday, President Trump lived up to his campaign promise and signed an executive order to build a wall along the border of Mexico. He also revealed plans to block Syrian refugees from entering the United States and halt the acceptance of refugees from across the globe.
However, nestled within an eight-page draft of the forthcoming order that was acquired by The New York Times, a paragraph can be found that suggests the order will block individuals who possess characteristics that resemble, well, President Trump.
The excerpt reads:
“In order to protect Americans, we must ensure that those admitted to this country do not bear hostile attitudes toward our country and its founding principles. We cannot, and should not, admit into our country those who do not support the U.S. Constitution, or those who would place violent religious edicts over American law. In addition, the United States should not admit those who engage in acts of bigotry and hatred (including “honor” killings, other forms of violence against women, or the persecution of those who practice other religions) or those who would oppress members of one race, one gender, or sexual orientation.”
You can find a screenshot of the excerpt below:
Whoops.
President Trump has famously spewed racist and sexist rhetoric, openly bragged about sexual assault, championed policies that would limit the reproductive rights of women, appointed a Vice President who has a history of supporting legislation that would oppress LGBT citizens, and advocated for an “extreme vetting” system that would ostracize individuals based on their religion.
While it may be considered a technicality, one must wonder: Did President Trump intend to block himself?
While we can only hope that President Trump takes time to read documents before signing them, his reputation for being opposed to fruitless activities such as reading proves that we cannot be certain.
The country will have no choice but to wait and see if a revision will be made so that the executive order does not prevent Trump from entering his own country.
Stay tuned.
Gabrielle Dunkley is the author of “How To Explain A Donald Trump Presidency To Future Children Of Color” Her writing on the intersection of race, politics, and social justice can be found here.
