‘Good Luck With That’: Obama Mocks Trump’s Latest ‘Half Baked’ Plan to Make Mexico Pay for His Wall
GOP Frontrunner Now Claims He’ll Pay for Wall by Taking Holding Hostage Private Payments Sent to Mexico – Obama Proves Trump’s Plan Would Actually Force More Illegal Immigration
President Barack Obama Tuesday mocked Donald Trump‘s latest plan to get Mexico to pay for his wall on the U.S. Southern border, calling it “half-baked,” and concluding, “good luck with that.” The President’s remarks were made at the end of a press conference he called to discuss his administration’s move to combat inversion, a financial tactic corporations use that – on paper – allow them to “move” to foreign countries to avoid paying taxes in the U.S.
The final question came from a reporter who began her question by asking, “Mr. President the Republican frontrunner,” at which point Pres. Obama responded, “Oh no…”
She finished up her question by giving an overview of Donald Trump’s latest plan to get Mexico to pay for his wall, essentially by holding hostage legal payments from private individuals to friends and family in Mexico, a common practice.
The Washington Post reports Trump’s “proposal would jeopardize a stream of cash that many economists say is vital for Mexico’s struggling economy. But the feasibility of Trump’s plan is unclear both legally and politically, and it would test the bounds of a president’s executive powers in seeking to pressure another country.”
President Obama seemed to agree, mocking Trump, and noted some foreign leaders have denounced “some of the wackier proposals” Trump has made. He labeled both Trump’s and Sen. Ted Cruz’s immigration proposals “draconian.”Â
“The implications with respect to ending remittances, many of which by the way are from legal immigrants and from individuals who are sending money back to their families, are enormous,†the President said. “First of all, they’re impractical.â€
The President the explained how Trump’s proposal would actually make illegal immigration worse – not better.
“The notion that we’re going to track every Western Union bit of money that’s being sent to Mexico, you know, good luck with that. Then we’ve got the implications for the Mexican economy, which in turn, if it’s collapsing actually sends more immigrants north because they can’t find jobs back in Mexico.â€
“But this is just one more example of something that is not thought through and is primarily put forward for political consumption,†Pres. Obama concluded.
Watch:
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Image: Screenshot via White House/YouTube
Hat tip: David Edwards at Raw Story
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