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DACA: Jeff Sessions Implies DREAMers Bring Crime and Violence to America (Remarks – Full Text)

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Falsely Calls DACA ‘Unilateral Executive Amnesty’

Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ remarks announcing the end of DACA were a salute to the nativism and white nationalism that runs rampant and deep in the Trump administration.

They also included blatantly false allegations.

No doubt they will be just as useful to attorneys when they sue the administration for ending the program that protects 800,000 undocumented immigrants from deportation, just as Trump’s remarks on Muslims were cited by judges to block his Muslim ban.

Below are Sessions’ full remarks, but first a few excerpts.

Right up front, in the second paragraph, Sessions says that DACA recipients are allowed “participation in the social security program.” That’s astonishingly misleading. While they are allowed to obtain a social security card and have to pay social security taxes as does any other person who works legally, they are not entitled to any social security benefits. Period.

Sessions also falsely calls DACA “unilateral executive amnesty.” Enrollees are not granted amnesty, nor is anything “unilateral.” They have to apply every two years and pay a $495 fee each time. There is zero path to citizenship. And they can be deported the moment they commit a crime.

Which brings up the next point. 

More than 20 times Sessions uses the word “law” (and five times he uses the word “illegal” in one form or another.)

DACA enrollees have to undergo a thorough background check. Yet in his remarks, Sessions implies they bring “crime, violence and even terrorism” to our shores.

In context, bolding ours:

We are a people of compassion and we are a people of law. But there is nothing compassionate about the failure to enforce immigration laws. 

Enforcing the law saves lives, protects communities and taxpayers, and prevents human suffering. Failure to enforce the laws in the past has put our nation at risk of crime, violence and even terrorism.

The compassionate thing is to end the lawlessness, enforce our laws, and, if Congress chooses to make changes to those laws, to do so through the process set forth by our Founders in a way that advances the interest of the nation.

It’s remarkably dishonest.

Below, Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ remarks, in full, via Politico:

Good morning. I am here today to announce that the program known as DACA that was effectuated under the Obama Administration is being rescinded.

The DACA program was implemented in 2012 and essentially provided a legal status for recipients for a renewable two-year term, work authorization and other benefits, including participation in the social security program, to 800,000 mostly-adult illegal aliens.

This policy was implemented unilaterally to great controversy and legal concern after Congress rejected legislative proposals to extend similar benefits on numerous occasions to this same group of illegal aliens.

In other words, the executive branch, through DACA, deliberately sought to achieve what the legislative branch specifically refused to authorize on multiple occasions. Such an open-ended circumvention of immigration laws was an unconstitutional exercise of authority by the Executive Branch.

The effect of this unilateral executive amnesty, among other things, contributed to a surge of unaccompanied minors on the southern border that yielded terrible humanitarian consequences. It also denied jobs to hundreds of thousands of Americans by allowing those same jobs to go to illegal aliens.

We inherited from our Founders—and have advanced—an unsurpassed legal heritage, which is the foundation of our freedom, safety, and prosperity.

As the Attorney General, it is my duty to ensure that the laws of the United States are enforced and that the Constitutional order is upheld.

No greater good can be done for the overall health and well-being of our Republic, than preserving and strengthening the impartial rule of law. Societies where the rule of law is treasured are societies that tend to flourish and succeed.

Societies where the rule of law is subject to political whims and personal biases tend to become societies afflicted by corruption, poverty, and human suffering.

To have a lawful system of immigration that serves the national interest, we cannot admit everyone who would like to come here. That is an open border policy and the American people have rightly rejected it.

Therefore, the nation must set and enforce a limit on how many immigrants we admit each year and that means all can not be accepted.

This does not mean they are bad people or that our nation disrespects or demeans them in any way. It means we are properly enforcing our laws as Congress has passed them.

It is with these principles and duties in mind, and in light of imminent litigation, that we reviewed the Obama Administration’s DACA policy.

Our collective wisdom is that the policy is vulnerable to the same legal and constitutional challenges that the courts recognized with respect to the DAPA program, which was enjoined on a nationwide basis in a decision affirmed by the Fifth Circuit.

The Fifth Circuit specifically concluded that DACA had not been implemented in a fashion that allowed sufficient discretion, and that DAPA was “foreclosed by Congress’s careful plan.”

In other words, it was inconsistent with the Constitution’s separation of powers. That decision was affirmed by the Supreme Court by an equally divided vote.

If we were to keep the Obama Administration’s executive amnesty policy, the likeliest outcome is that it would be enjoined just as was DAPA. The Department of Justice has advised the President and the Department of Homeland Security that DHS should begin an orderly, lawful wind down, including the cancellation of the memo that authorized this program.

Acting Secretary Duke has chosen, appropriately, to initiate a wind down process. This will enable DHS to conduct an orderly change and fulfill the desire of this administration to create a time period for Congress to act—should it so choose. We firmly believe this is the responsible path.

Simply put, if we are to further our goal of strengthening the constitutional order and the rule of law in America, the Department of Justice cannot defend this type of overreach.

George Washington University Law School Professor Jonathan Turley in testimony before the House Judiciary Committee was clear about the enormous constitutional infirmities raised by these policies.

He said: “In ordering this blanket exception, President Obama was nullifying part of a law that he simply disagreed with.….If a president can claim sweeping discretion to suspend key federal laws, the entire legislative process becomes little more than a pretense…The circumvention of the legislative process not only undermines the authority of this branch but destabilizes the tripartite system as a whole.”

Ending the previous Administration’s disrespect for the legislative process is an important first step. All immigration policies should serve the interests of the people of the United States—lawful immigrant and native born alike.

Congress should carefully and thoughtfully pursue the types of reforms that are right for the American people. Our nation is comprised of good and decent people who want their government’s leaders to fulfill their promises and advance an immigration policy that serves the national interest.

We are a people of compassion and we are a people of law. But there is nothing compassionate about the failure to enforce immigration laws.

Enforcing the law saves lives, protects communities and taxpayers, and prevents human suffering. Failure to enforce the laws in the past has put our nation at risk of crime, violence and even terrorism.

The compassionate thing is to end the lawlessness, enforce our laws, and, if Congress chooses to make changes to those laws, to do so through the process set forth by our Founders in a way that advances the interest of the nation.

That is what the President has promised to do and has delivered to the American people.

Under President Trump’s leadership, this administration has made great progress in the last few months toward establishing a lawful and constitutional immigration system. This makes us safer and more secure.

It will further economically the lives of millions who are struggling. And it will enable our country to more effectively teach new immigrants about our system of government and assimilate them to the cultural understandings that support it.

The substantial progress in reducing illegal immigration at our border seen in recent months is almost entirely the product of the leadership of President Trump and his inspired federal immigration officers. But the problem is not solved. And without more action, we could see illegality rise again rather than be eliminated.

As a candidate, and now in office, President Trump has offered specific ideas and legislative solutions that will protect American workers, increase wages and salaries, defend our national security, ensure the public safety, and increase the general well-being of the American people.

He has worked closely with many members of Congress, including in the introduction of the RAISE Act, which would produce enormous benefits for our country. This is how our democratic process works.

There are many powerful interest groups in this country and every one of them has a constitutional right to advocate their views and represent whomever they choose.

But the Department of Justice does not represent any narrow interest or any subset of the American people. We represent all of the American people and protect the integrity of our Constitution. That is our charge.

We at Department of Justice are proud and honored to work to advance this vision for America and to do our best each day to ensure the safety and security of the American people.

Thank you.

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News

Canadians Slash US Travel as Prime Minister Says ‘Old’ Relationship With America Is ‘Over’

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March 27, 2025

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The Canadian Prime Minister and the Canadian people are expressing anger and frustration with Donald Trump, following months of attacks, and now threatened as well as actual double-digit and even triple-digit tariffs, by the U.S. President on America’s northern neighbor—one of its oldest and closest allies, both economically and geographically.

Canada’s new Prime Minister, liberal Mark Carney, has been in office for nearly two weeks but has yet to speak with President Trump. He did, however, deliver a speech on Thursday announcing that the U.S is “no longer a reliable partner”—and that the “old” Canadian-U.S. relationship has ended.

“The old relationship we had with the United States based on deepening integration of our economies and tight security and military cooperations is over,” Prime Minister Carney, a banker and economist, announced (video below).

“What exactly the United States does next is unclear,” he said, suggesting Trump might further increase tariffs. “But what is clear, what is clear is that we, as Canadians, have agency, we have power. We are masters in our own home.”

READ MORE: ‘Political Protection Racket’: Bondi Blasted for Shrugging Off Security Breach Investigation

“We can control our destiny. We can give ourselves much more than any foreign government, including the United States, can ever take away. We can deal with this crisis best by building our strength right here at home.”

“It will take hard work. It will take steady and focused determination from governments, from businesses, from labor, from Canadians,” the PM continued. “We will need to dramatically reduce our reliance on the United States. We will need to pivot our trade relationship elsewhere, and we will need to do things previously thought impossible at speeds we haven’t seen in generations.”

As Prime Minister Carney delivered his remarks, spreading across social media was news of a massive drop in planned trips from Canada into the United States.

OAG, which provides digital flight information, intelligence, and analytics for the aviation industry, published a report on Wednesday revealing a “striking decline” and “sharp drop” in airline flight bookings from Canada to America.

The report states that “bookings are down by over 70% in every month through to the end of September. This sharp drop suggests that travellers are holding off on making reservations, likely due to ongoing uncertainty surrounding the broader trade dispute.”

READ MORE: ‘No Adult Supervision’: Concern Escalates as Trump Increasingly Appears Out of Touch

OAG also warns that “the traditional ‘snowbird’ market from Canada to the US could be badly impacted next year if the situation doesn’t improve quickly.”

Canadians have been vocal about their anger at the United States and at its president.

“You’ve elected a fool, a liar and a narcissist,” a Canadian tourist told the owners of Hotel Thaxter when they “emailed to cancel a wintertime reservation at the downtown Portsmouth inn,” the Portsmouth Herald reported last week. “The visitor, a frequent Portsmouth tourist from over the northern border, left a scathing review of President Donald Trump amid tensions between the U.S. government and Canada, including a trade and tariff war.”

“Because of the absurd decision of your stupid president to impose tariffs on your closest and most trusted neighbor, Canada,” the email said, “I have no choice but to cancel my stay at your hotel.”

“My wife and I have been going to Portsmouth for the past 10 years and we would have (loved) to discover it in the winter. But we won’t return as long as that despicable human being is in power,” the decade-long visitor exclaimed.

Meanwhile, many were stunned by the Prime Minister’s remarks.

“This is painful, and saddening, and embarrassing. I feel like we’re losing a member of the family – and for no good reason other than that some Americans wanted another season of the worst reality TV show in history,” commented The Atlantic’s Tom Nichols.

Trump has targeted and attacked Canada for nearly six months.

In December, before even being sworn in to office, Trump trotted out his “51st state governor” nickname for then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Trump has repeatedly mocked “Governor” Trudeau, and then threatened tariffs, which have since been implemented.

Trump has also repeatedly talked about annexing Canada, via various means.

Watch the video below or at this link.

READ MORE: Passwords, Contact Info for Top Trump NatSec Officials ‘Publicly’ Available: Report

 

Image via Reuters

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News

‘Political Protection Racket’: Bondi Blasted for Shrugging Off Security Breach Investigation

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6 hours ago

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March 27, 2025

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Attorney General Pam Bondi is facing sharp criticism after strongly suggesting she will not authorize a criminal investigation into a major national security breach involving 18 top national security and defense officials from the Trump administration. Critics have pointed to her recent confirmation hearing, during which she vowed to keep the U.S. Department of Justice free from political influence.

Asked whether the Justice Department is investigating the Signalgate scandal, and if not, why not, the Attorney General claimed the information shared was “not classified”—in direct contradiction to the judgment of numerous national security and military experts.

‘Well, first, um, it was sensitive information, not classified, and inadvertently released and what we should be talking about is it was a very successful mission, she said, attempting to move the focus to the Yemen bombing. “Our world is now safer because of that mission. We’re not gonna comment any further on that.”

But Bondi then moved to attack top Democrats.

READ MORE: ‘No Adult Supervision’: Concern Escalates as Trump Increasingly Appears Out of Touch

“If you want to talk about classified information, talk about what was at Hillary Clinton’s home that she was trying to bleach bit, talk about the, that classified documents in Joe Biden’s garage that Hunter Biden had access to, she said, perpetrating right-wing misinformation about the former U.S. Secretary of State and presidential nominee, and re-introducing the Biden classified document issue, which was fully investigated by the Department of Justice.

“This was not classified information, and we are very pleased with the results of that operation and that the entire world is safer because of it,” Bondi re-iterated.

The New York Times, reporting on the Attorney General’s remarks, noted that the Justice Department “opened investigations into Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Biden in those instances, but neither ultimately faced criminal charges. She did not mention the prosecution of Mr. Trump over his handling of classified documents after his first term in office — a case which was ultimately abandoned when he won a second term.”

But the Times also noted that “Dating back to at least the Reagan administration, the government has considered the details of ‘military plans, weapons, or operations’ to be classified.”

U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) is calling for a special counsel to investigate.

After noting that DOJ investigated Clinton and Biden, he added:

“Bondi sees the Justice Department as a political arm of Trump’s White House, she won’t do her job. That’s why we need a special counsel,” he wrote, adding, “Defense officials say Hegseth likely shared classified info on Signal. DOJ has to investigate this too.”

“Bringing up Hillary Clinton is not the own you think it is,” Congressman Beyer continued. “Republicans made her testify for 11 hours on her handling of classified information. I was there. Now the same Republicans are bending themselves into pretzels to justify what Hegseth did. They think you are stupid.”

Investigative journalist Roger Sollenberger remarked, “For what it’s worth, Joe Biden’s administration directed a Trump-appointed Republican to independently investigate Joe Biden for potentially mishandling classified information.”

READ MORE: Passwords, Contact Info for Top Trump NatSec Officials ‘Publicly’ Available: Report

Sollenberger also chastised Bondi: “Openly political attorney general running an openly political protection racket in an openly politicized Justice Department after sworn Senate confirmation testimony that she would keep politics out of it.”

Calling Bondi’s remarks “Pathetic,” Political Science professor William Muck noted: “This is why a wall between the Attorney General and the president is so fundamental. Bondi most certainly knows the information was classified and warrants an investigation, but is unwilling to do her job because she fears it will upset the president.”

Watch the video below or at this link.

READ MORE: ‘Liar’ Hegseth Faces ‘Immediate’ Resignation Demand From Growing List of Democrats

Image via Reuters

 

 

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OPINION

‘No Adult Supervision’: Concern Escalates as Trump Increasingly Appears Out of Touch

Published

8 hours ago

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March 27, 2025

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Concerns are mounting over President Donald Trump’s ability, willingness, or even interest in engaging with the most pressing issues facing the country, as he increasingly—and casually—admits to being unaware of critical matters. His repeated declarations of ignorance, often delivered without hesitation or concern, have deepened alarm among critics who warn of a dangerous void in informed leadership in the Oval Office.

Late Wednesday afternoon, a reporter asked President Trump, “Have you been briefed about the soldiers in Lithuania? Who are missing?”

The Commander-in-Chief, appearing both uninformed and unconcerned, simply replied, “No I haven’t.” And moved on to take a question from another reporter.

The four soldiers went missing on Tuesday during a training mission in Lithuania, near the border of Belarus, a staunch ally of Russia. On Wednesday, as Axios reported, their Hercules armored vehicle was found submerged. Hours before Trump was asked, NATO and numerous media outlets had reported the soldiers were dead, only to walk that back later. They currently remain missing.

But President Trump said he was unaware of any of this.

“Is Trump just totally out of the loop?” asked journalist Matthew Yglesias. “Why wasn’t he briefed on the soldiers in Lithuania?”

READ MORE: Passwords, Contact Info for Top Trump NatSec Officials ‘Publicly’ Available: Report

Declaring President Trump “clueless” on “basic intel,” The New Republic on Thursday morning noted that “the armymen were known to be missing as early as Tuesday at 4:45 p.m., the Lithuanian military said, so why Trump was still unaware of the situation more than 24 hours later is unclear.”

Also Wednesday afternoon, President Trump was asked about his Secretary of Defense’s involvement in Signalgate. Pete Hegseth has been identified as the one who shared classified information in an insecure channel—seen as the greatest violation within the entire scandal. But the President appeared unaware of his Defense Secretary’s role in the massive nation security breach when asked by a reporter.

“Hegseth is doing a great job. He had nothing to do this. Hegseth? How do you bring Hegseth into it? He had nothing to do with it. Look, it’s all a witch hunt,” Trump told the reporter. He then went on to try to blame Signal, saying he thought it could be “defective.”

Attorney and former Biden White House senior presidential speechwriter Dan Cluchey, responded to the video of Trump’s remarks on Hegseth and Signal.

“This is stronger evidence of cognitive decline than anything Joe Biden has ever said in his life, ever,” he wrote, and warned: “Something tells me the press will breeze right past it.”

READ MORE: ‘Liar’ Hegseth Faces ‘Immediate’ Resignation Demand From Growing List of Democrats

Journalist James Surowiecki observed, Trump is “so checked out of his job that he doesn’t even know Hegseth needlessly disclosed the weapons packages and times of the attack on the Houthis.”

On Monday, Trump had told reporters when asked about the Signal scandal, “I don’t know anything about it.” Appearing as if he had not been briefed, he then asked a reporter for more information about it.

“Trump initially told reporters he was not aware that the highly sensitive information had been shared, 2 1/2 hours after it was reported. He later appeared to joke about the breach,” the Associated Press reported.

The Signal texts that The Atlantic had published also reveal the President’s apparent lack of awareness, on numerous fronts.

On Wednesday, asked by a reporter if he believed the information shared in the Signal chat was not classified, the Commander-in-Chief told reporters, “That’s what I’ve heard. I don’t know. I’m not sure, you have to ask the various people involved.”

The White House has repeatedly insisted it was not classified, but countless experts, including lawmakers, say it was classified.

Vice President JD Vance in the texts says, “I am not sure the president is aware how inconsistent this [military strike] is with his message on Europe right now.”

The Washington Post, citing a person with knowledge of Vance’s intentions, reported on Wednesday that “Vance wanted to ensure that Trump had been given all the facts about the potential attack, including that European nations stood to benefit more from it than the U.S.” That would suggest the Commander-in-Chief was not aware of “all the facts.”

Also of concern is that the 18 participants in the Signal chat appeared to be unsure of the President’s directive.

Calling him “President Bystander,” MSNBC’s Steve Benen writes, “Trump appears out of the loop in his own White House.”

Pointing to the Signal texts, Benen says one text “chain featured the White House’s Stephen Miller adding, in apparent reference to the attack plan, ‘As I heard it, the president was clear: green light.'”

“The problems should be obvious,” Benen added. “Vance was uncertain about Trump’s knowledge of the relevant details, and one of the president’s right-hand loyalists added an ‘as I heard it’ qualifier to the commander in chief’s directive about a deadly military operation abroad.”

The Commander-in-Chief appears to have been uninvolved in important portions of the planning of the military strike. Based on the Signal texts, it appears likely that he was absent from key portions of the decision making process.

Jared Ryan Sears, who writes The Pragmatic Humanist, offered this observation.

“Trump didn’t know about the Signal group chat or that a reporter was included. Trump says he didn’t sign the authorization to use the Enemy Alien Act to deport people without due process. His signature was on the document. Trump didn’t know that US service members went missing during a training exercise in Lithuania,” he noted. “What kind of leader knows nothing about what his administration is doing, what he himself is doing, and what is happening with the military he is in charge of?”

Attorney, Republican, and former U.S. Representative Barbara Comstock on Wednesday shared her concerns via social media.

“There is no adult supervision at the White House. Grandpa does not know what is going on except on the Golf Chanel or if someone takes a bad picture of him. Where’s Melania? Does he have a COS or caretaker?”

Watch the videos above or at this link.

READ MORE: ‘Quite a Bit of Perjury’: Texts Shatter Trump Admin’s ‘Bungled Coverup’ of Classified Leak

 

Image via Reuters 

 

 

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