My Version of the “Art of the Deal”

President-elect Donald Trump said that he was going to deport all of the illegal aliens who have managed to infiltrate our southern border over the last four years. While just about everyone will agree with arresting and jailing/deporting those illegals who are criminals (Venezuelan gangs occupying apartment buildings in Colorado or members of MS-13), it is going to be much more difficult to uproot and deport an illegal woman with small kids. What might start out as something that most Americans agree with could easily morph into something that will not go over well with a lot of Americans, especially with the mainstream media basically handing out crying towels with their opinion pieces.
When this quasi-dilemma presents itself, as it assuredly will, what should President Trump do? Now most of you will probably find me advising the man who authored “The Art of the Deal,” is quite a stretch … but here goes.
As an aside, before I get to my proposed deal … many, many years ago I had a boss, Vic V., who had a wise dictum: “Never give something up without getting something in return.” I have often thought that his approach was smart and practical. Could Vic V.’s adage be applied here?
First, a basic question needs to be asked: “Why did Biden/Harris/Democrats encourage millions of illegals to come across the border?”
In my opinion, the answer is twofold:
First, they want all of these illegals to eventually become citizens and then vote for Democrats.
Second, when the next census comes, they know that everyone, not just citizens, will be counted. So when a state like California allows millions of illegals to come in to their state, their numbers for the census will go way up and thus California will get more representation.
Therefore, in my version of ‘the art of the deal;’ the Republicans should propose the following legislation with a guarantee that President Trump will sign it into law.
1. All illegals will need to obtain a certificate of residency within the next calendar year. From then on any illegal individual caught without a certificate will be immediately expelled from the U.S. To obtain such a certificate both fingerprints and a photo will be required.
2. In exchange for letting some selected illegals remain in the U.S. starting in 2026 every voter will need a voter ID with both a fingerprint and a picture (the same as the voter ID used in Mexico) or a Real I.D. which requires a valid passport.
3. In addition, for the next census and for all of the censuses from then on, only valid U.S citizens will be counted – noncitizens will not be counted.
Of course, the Democrats in the Senate and the House will oppose such legislation. Thus from then on when a young mother with two children is to be deported, the blame will fall on the Democrats who refused to vote for allowing them to stay in the country as noncitizens residents.
If the Dems are recalcitrant, then the following will be the final compromise … throw in citizenship for DACA individuals. Even though these individuals are not citizens, most Americans feel pity for them. They were brought to the U.S. by their parents and are basically individuals without a country. If the Dems still refuse, then President Trump can point out that he and the Republicans wanted to allow DACA individuals to become citizens, but as with the illegal mothers and their children, the Dems have refused.
I think that although unhappy about it, the Dems will have to sign on to this new piece of legislation. We’ll see.
11/8/24