Inside the Beltway: Why Democrats fear the Trump wall

NEWS AND OPINION:

Why should the U.S. build a better wall on the southern border? House Majority Whip Steve Scalise offered a clear and candid rationale during a Fox News appearance this week, telling host Mark Levin that 10 known terrorists are captured each day trying to breach the border. U.S. Customs and Border Protections also informed Congress that 3,029 people were apprehended in one day this month — deeming the occurrence a crisis.

Meanwhile, 21 percent of all potential migrants — an astonishing 158 million people — would like to come live in America if they could, according to a Gallup analysis, which found that the U.S. has remained the No. 1 destination for the last decade.

There is a viable rationale for border improvement. The wall, however, has become a showcase for President Trump’s foes, who wrap their opposition in humanitarian concerns — even though they have walls and barriers of every description around their own homes.

Talk radio kingpin Rush Limbaugh points out that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi are part of this group — and appear motivated by political concerns rather than moral calling.

“They could never, ever sign on to and assist in the funding and construction of a wall. You know why? Because walls work. These people that we’re talking about put walls around their homes and their estates. They know that walls work, and that’s precisely why there isn’t going to be one on the southern border, because if there ever is a wall, guess what? We finally will have control over who gets into this country and who doesn’t,” Mr. Limbaugh told his 14 million listeners.

“The wall is the single greatest obstruction to the future of the Democrat Party. They do not want a wall. They will not support a wall. A wall would bring about the end of the Democrat Party. They’ll argue about money, government shutdowns. But they can’t survive as a party if that wall is ever built. That’s their permanent underclass that would not be permitted to enter the country,” he continued.

Yes, it’s a political thing.

“No matter what they say, no matter how understanding they appear to be in conversations about border security, they cannot afford there to be a wall. It would bring an immediate end to their primary constituency, which is the great unwashed and permanent underclass,” Mr. Limbaugh noted. “This is what President Trump’s up against. Now, Trump wants to build a wall to save America, the culture, and basically to enforce existing federal law. All he wants to do is enforce the law. It’s why he wants to enforce the law the Democrats can’t permit. As far as they’re concerned, Donald Trump is trying to make sure that future Democrats don’t get to register to vote.”

IF AMERICANS WROTE THE POLLS

For some reason, the hashtag #Goodpollquestions was in the top-10 trending topics on Twitter for many hours recently. Thousands were only too happy to suggest their own questions and conduct their own polls as well.

Without further ado, a tiny sampling of the questions the public would ask, verbatim as they appeared:

Cats or dogs? To be or not to be, that is the question. Do you own a MAGA hat? Are we there yet? “Star Wars” or “Star Trek”? How much were you paid for your vote? On a scale of 1 to 10, how good is this question? What’s your favorite pole, North or South?

THE SPECTRE OF POLITICAL DIVISION

It is rare that Republicans and Democrats agree. But the two battling factions do agree on one thing: they are troubled by stark political division.

A Fox News poll finds that 78 percent of Americans are now “concerned” about the polarized nation; that includes 75 percent of Republicans, 72 percent of independents and 82 percent of Democrats. “Clinton voters” and Democratic women, in fact, appear to have the most concern of all, with 85 and 84 percent, respectively, saying they are concerned. The least concerned were Republican women (71 percent), and “white men, no degree” (70 percent).

According to other data in the poll, Americans are more concerned about political strife that they are about climate change, opioid addiction, the national economy, race relations, gun laws, sexual harassment, illegal immigration and natural disasters.

MR. KURTZ REMEMBERS

Fox News media analyst Howard Kurtz has revealed that President Trump canceled the annual White House Christmas Party for journalists, a rarefied event in the nation’s capital.

“The annual Christmas-season gathering was a significant perk for those covering the White House, as well as other Washington reporters, anchors and commentators, and New York media executives would regularly fly in for the occasion. At its peak, the invitation-only soirees grew so large that there were two back-to-back events, one for broadcast outlets and one for print organizations. Journalists who attended the events, which featured a catered buffet of lamb chops, crab claws and elaborate desserts, got to roam the decorated mansion with a spouse or other family member, a friend or a colleague, adding to the invitation’s allure,” wrote Mr. Kurtz, upon breaking the big news.

“But the biggest fringe-benefit was the picture-taking sessions, in which the president and first lady would patiently pose with guests and briefly chat with them in front of a Christmas tree, with the White House sending out the photos — copies of which were invariably sent home to mom. This would take a couple of hours, with long lines snaking across the building’s first floor. Bill Clinton even posed for pictures with journalists days after he was impeached,” the analyst noted.

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POLL DU JOUR

• 43 percent of Americans say that President Trump should be “impeached and removed from office”; 7 percent of Republicans, 36 percent of independents and 80 percent of Democrats agree.

• 34 percent of men and 51 percent of women also agree.

• 50 percent overall say Mr. Trump should not be impeached and removed from office; 91 percent of Republicans, 55 percent of independents and 12 percent of Democrats agree.

• 59 percent of men and 41 percent of women also agree.

• 8 percent overall are undecided; 2 percent of Republicans, 9 percent of independents and 8 percent of Democrats agree.

• 7 percent of men and 8 percent of women are also undecided.

Source: A CNN/SSRS poll of 1,015 U.S. adults conducted Dec. 6-9.

• Kindly follow Jennifer Harper on Twitter @HarperBulletin.