Before the 2018 midterm elections, President Trump cited reports of a migrant caravan traveling to the U.S. from Central America to claim that the southern border was facing a national-security crisis.
Trump warned of a coming “invasion” and claimed that the caravan had been infiltrated by gang members.
To bolster his claim, Trump released a commercial that interspersed footage of Hispanic migrants with clips of scary-looking convicted cop-killers who had nothing whatsoever to do with the caravan.
The ad ended with an urgent call to action: Stop the caravan. Vote Republican.
In a final maneuver before the election, Trump dispatched U.S. troops to the border. The president insisted that the operation was necessary to keep America safe—but within weeks the troops were quietly called back; the “crisis” having apparently ended once the votes were cast.
I have to wonder: If Trump is willing to militarize the border to pick up a few extra seats in the midterms, what will he do this year when his reelection is on the line?
I just heard on VPR that he wants to eliminate competitive bidding for his Border Wall to “streamline the process” and build more of it before the election.
