Has President Trump Abandoned MAGA?

President Donald Trump's statement at the Mexican border  implies he no longer believes he can make the United States great again.  Or, perhaps he doesn't know how a Great America would act in such a situation.

Trump said: "Our country is full, our area is full, the sector is full, can’t take you anymore. I’m sorry, can’t happen, so turn around -- that’s the way it is,”   Trump's statement  is pathetic.   He sounds  like he is whining.  He spoke like the head of a weak powerless nation who doesn't expect any improvement in the future.

The president  of a Great America would try to take advantage of the presence of the people at the border to build a wall to keep criminals from using the Mexican border.  He might declare a humanitarian emergency and hire the border people to build The Wall.  He would  give them an opportunity to prove they want to work by offering them jobs building the wall.   Instead of whining about the number  of would be immigrants, he would use the number of "refugees" to justify using emergency powers to protect them from economic distress.

Part of the funding for the program should come from money earmarked for the countries the border people come from.     Instead of rewarding the sanctuary cities by increasing their population just before the census that determines how much federal funding they receive President Trump should use part of the funds that go to local governments to pay the wall builders. 

The people at the border probably don't understand our badly outdated immigration laws and procedures.  They are  at the border  because they have been told they can find a better life here.  They to find a better life because they believe The United States of America is  a great nation.   Does President Donald Trump?

A Great Nation Would Hire Immigrants to Build The Wall

President Donald Trump  should start acting like the head of a great nation in dealing with the large number of jobless immigrants on the border.   The people coming to the Mexican border are essentially saying they think the United States is a great nation which can provide jobs their own countries cannot.  A Great Nation helps people in other nations when it can.   The United States under President Harry Truman was a great nation because it helped west European nations recover from the devastation their war had caused. 

The United States cannot provide jobs to everyone in the world, but it does have a public works project for the Mexican border that could provide jobs for the immigrants on the border.  Hiring the border immigrants to construct The Wall would allow construction in a short period of time.   Constructing The Wall would provide immigrants the jobs they need to support their families without taking jobs from those who are already living here.  Companies selling goods and services to Wall workers might even be able to add employees.   Having the immigrants construct The Wall might be the only way to avoid a humanitarian crisis because other potential  approaches are unlikely to be  able to create enough jobs for them in time to help.  If the United States can provide jobs building The Wall to jobless immigrants, it would be immoral not to hire them.  A Great Nation determines what needs to be done and does it.  

President Trump might have to switch to  a more labot intensive type of wall construction to reduce the cost of materials.   He could hire the immigrants now even though there would be a delay before they could begin working on The Wall.  That time could be used to teach them some basic English and to construct housing.  They would also receive training in how to build The Wall.   After building The Wall they would be available to work on infrastructure projects.

As an historian I recognize that sustained economic growth has involved an increasing population.  Except for the baby boomer era the population increase has come from immigration.    When the United States limited immigration in the 1920's the limits acted like a lid on the economy and the economy imploded.  New immigrants arrive with few possessions so they purchase more goods than established residents.  Immigrant families provide even more economic stimulation because parents need to replace clothes and toys the children have outgrown  

I don't know how the  immigrants view President Trump.   The fact that they are coming here looking for jobs implies they think of him the way Dorothy thought of the wonderful Wizard of Oz.   Is President Trump just smoke and mirrors or is he the leader of a great nation that helps those in need?  The leader of a Great Nation would do everything he can to deal with the crisis on the border.