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When Donald Trump launched his campaign he said; “ When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. They're not sending you. They're not sending yo

When Donald Trump launched his campaign he said; “ When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. They're not sending you. They're not sending you. They're sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing those problems with us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.” How else is one to take this? He said some are good people implying the majority are not despite evidence to the contrary.

briantakita 6y ago
Trump was referring to the Drug, Weapons, & Human trafficking that was occurring due to the border policy at the time. This illicit trafficking and violence against civilians & journalists is well documented in many sources.
- NotSammyHagar 6y ago
  That doesn't accurately describe Trump's comments. This wasn't some onetime only type of comment. Remember when he said a US judge couldn't rule on a case where Trump was losing, because the judge was of hispanic origin. That's another racist comment. Trump has continually made these types of comments, made references to shithole countries. You can't just dismiss that with a claim that he was saying something else, because his comments were part of a long standing sequence.
  - alphabettsy 6y ago
    Exactly. Trump apologists like to pretend like there isn’t a pattern of these statements and treat each of them as a one off and they often add context that doesn’t quite fit.
  - briantakita 6y ago
    It does accurately describe Trump's comment. The DEA, ICE, & FBI have documented cases of criminal activity across the border. The left often editorializes his comments however his supporters understand what was meant, and no, it's not a racist dog whistle. You brought up a non-sequitor, re Judge Curiel. He has provided legal representation for a hispanic-supremacist organization named La Raza (meaning "the race" in Spanish), which has a public political opinion on matters such as the wall on the southern border. Perhaps Trump should have mentioned the group "La Raza", however the point stands that Judge Curiel has racial-supremacist political affiliations, was in-explicitly hostile in the lawsuit, & Trump called it out as a theory. https://thenewamerican.com/judge-in-trump-university-case-tied-to-radical-la-raza-organization/ https://thenewamerican.com/judge-in-trump-university-case-ti... For many, the "Orange Man Bad" & "all white people are racist" narrative will probably kick in & they will reject what I'm saying outright because it does not fit their narrative; however this interpretation better fits Occam's razor, considering that Trump has also worked with certain people of all ethnicities in a harmonious fashion, while having rocky relationships with certain people from all ethnicities. The differences have to do with political worldview rather than ethnicity. Unfortunately, the political left has a habit of editorializing worldviews according to race, so other explanations are rendered moot according to the worldview of the political left, which views the world according to race.
AntiImperialist 6y ago
He was specifically talking about Mexicans crossing the border illegally. Are you saying majority of people who cross the border illegally are good people? Most "good people" don't have to cross the border illegally. They can get a U.S. visa and never leave. The people who will definitely not get a U.S. visa to do that is those have a criminal record in their own country, so their only option is to cross the border illegally.
- pjc50 6y ago
  Very few people can get US visas without work sponsorship. The green cards are rationed, aren't they? Similarly, there is little proof that a significant fraction of the people crossing the border have criminal records for things other than immigration law.
  - AntiImperialist 6y ago
    You don't need a long term visa to come in legally. You only need one to stay legally long-term.
    - pjc50 6y ago
      Well, yes. That's the difference between a tourist and an immigrant. Working requires visas. Being a legal immigrant is heavily rationed.
      - AntiImperialist 6y ago
        I agree with that. Now, let's get back to what Trump said. Right after he said what you quoted in that speech, he said: "I speak to border guards and they tell us what we're getting. And it only makes common sense. It only makes common sense. They're sending us not the right people." He's constantly repeating how good the Mexicans and Japanese and everyone else is... (as opposed to the American leaders back then)... but the best ones among the Mexicans are not the ones coming in to the U.S. by crossing the border illegally. If you look at the context, he is clearly saying that Mexico has great people in general, the leaders are smarter and they have some terrible people who they're sending across the border illegally. His opponents, which were all of the media back then, because he was neither liked by either party, attacked him for it. It was even a part of the attack strategy by Jeb Bush's campaign because he has a Mexican wife. They did it by taking the quote out of context, as anybody would do. If I was a political strategist, I would happily do the same. It was a easy hand to play and would potentially sway voters away from him. Since the election is over, I'm assuming you're not one of Media Matters bots and I think, like a lot of people, you genuinely believe that those remarks were what the media told you they were... which is why I'm having this conversation. Have a nice day!
rayiner 6y ago
He was talking about people crossing the border illegally: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2015/06/16/full-text-donald-trump-announces-a-presidential-bid/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2015/06... The part you quoted is sandwiched between two statements that make that clear. Right before, he says: > When do we beat Mexico at the border? Right after the part you quoted, he says: > But I speak to border guards and they tell us what we're getting. And it only makes common sense. It only makes common sense. They're sending us not the right people. The reference to what “border guards” are “telling him” makes quite clear he’s characterizing their descriptions of illegal border crossers. That is how Factcheck.org interpreted the statement (see above) as well. There is a fair criticism of Trump here—most people who immigrate illegally are “good people” (other than the fact they broke the law in crossing the border). On the other side, there is a truth to his point. We have MS-13 operating in Northern Virginia now where I grew up. They don’t arise there organically.

briantakita 6y ago

Trump was referring to the Drug, Weapons, & Human trafficking that was occurring due to the border policy at the time. This illicit trafficking and violence against civilians & journalists is well documented in many sources.

NotSammyHagar 6y ago
That doesn't accurately describe Trump's comments. This wasn't some onetime only type of comment. Remember when he said a US judge couldn't rule on a case where Trump was losing, because the judge was of hispanic origin. That's another racist comment. Trump has continually made these types of comments, made references to shithole countries. You can't just dismiss that with a claim that he was saying something else, because his comments were part of a long standing sequence.
- alphabettsy 6y ago
  Exactly. Trump apologists like to pretend like there isn’t a pattern of these statements and treat each of them as a one off and they often add context that doesn’t quite fit.
- briantakita 6y ago
  It does accurately describe Trump's comment. The DEA, ICE, & FBI have documented cases of criminal activity across the border. The left often editorializes his comments however his supporters understand what was meant, and no, it's not a racist dog whistle. You brought up a non-sequitor, re Judge Curiel. He has provided legal representation for a hispanic-supremacist organization named La Raza (meaning "the race" in Spanish), which has a public political opinion on matters such as the wall on the southern border. Perhaps Trump should have mentioned the group "La Raza", however the point stands that Judge Curiel has racial-supremacist political affiliations, was in-explicitly hostile in the lawsuit, & Trump called it out as a theory. https://thenewamerican.com/judge-in-trump-university-case-tied-to-radical-la-raza-organization/ https://thenewamerican.com/judge-in-trump-university-case-ti... For many, the "Orange Man Bad" & "all white people are racist" narrative will probably kick in & they will reject what I'm saying outright because it does not fit their narrative; however this interpretation better fits Occam's razor, considering that Trump has also worked with certain people of all ethnicities in a harmonious fashion, while having rocky relationships with certain people from all ethnicities. The differences have to do with political worldview rather than ethnicity. Unfortunately, the political left has a habit of editorializing worldviews according to race, so other explanations are rendered moot according to the worldview of the political left, which views the world according to race.

AntiImperialist 6y ago

He was specifically talking about Mexicans crossing the border illegally. Are you saying majority of people who cross the border illegally are good people? Most "good people" don't have to cross the border illegally. They can get a U.S. visa and never leave. The people who will definitely not get a U.S. visa to do that is those have a criminal record in their own country, so their only option is to cross the border illegally.

pjc50 6y ago
Very few people can get US visas without work sponsorship. The green cards are rationed, aren't they? Similarly, there is little proof that a significant fraction of the people crossing the border have criminal records for things other than immigration law.
- AntiImperialist 6y ago
  You don't need a long term visa to come in legally. You only need one to stay legally long-term.
  - pjc50 6y ago
    Well, yes. That's the difference between a tourist and an immigrant. Working requires visas. Being a legal immigrant is heavily rationed.
    - AntiImperialist 6y ago
      I agree with that. Now, let's get back to what Trump said. Right after he said what you quoted in that speech, he said: "I speak to border guards and they tell us what we're getting. And it only makes common sense. It only makes common sense. They're sending us not the right people." He's constantly repeating how good the Mexicans and Japanese and everyone else is... (as opposed to the American leaders back then)... but the best ones among the Mexicans are not the ones coming in to the U.S. by crossing the border illegally. If you look at the context, he is clearly saying that Mexico has great people in general, the leaders are smarter and they have some terrible people who they're sending across the border illegally. His opponents, which were all of the media back then, because he was neither liked by either party, attacked him for it. It was even a part of the attack strategy by Jeb Bush's campaign because he has a Mexican wife. They did it by taking the quote out of context, as anybody would do. If I was a political strategist, I would happily do the same. It was a easy hand to play and would potentially sway voters away from him. Since the election is over, I'm assuming you're not one of Media Matters bots and I think, like a lot of people, you genuinely believe that those remarks were what the media told you they were... which is why I'm having this conversation. Have a nice day!

rayiner 6y ago

He was talking about people crossing the border illegally: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2015/06/16/full-text-donald-trump-announces-a-presidential-bid/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2015/06... The part you quoted is sandwiched between two statements that make that clear. Right before, he says: > When do we beat Mexico at the border? Right after the part you quoted, he says: > But I speak to border guards and they tell us what we're getting. And it only makes common sense. It only makes common sense. They're sending us not the right people. The reference to what “border guards” are “telling him” makes quite clear he’s characterizing their descriptions of illegal border crossers. That is how Factcheck.org interpreted the statement (see above) as well. There is a fair criticism of Trump here—most people who immigrate illegally are “good people” (other than the fact they broke the law in crossing the border). On the other side, there is a truth to his point. We have MS-13 operating in Northern Virginia now where I grew up. They don’t arise there organically.