Acting U.S. Attorney General Sally Yates knew it was her job to say no to Trump’s executive order on immigration, so she did her job, which she then quickly lost. White House spokesman Sean Spicer, on the other hand, obediently made himself look foolish and contemptible in order to stay employed.
Are you a Sally or a Sean? In these times, you should ask yourself that. The question might well be sprung on you, and you might not want to react spontaneously and end up regretting it.
I’m thinking of those who voted for Trump, probably on the basis of “I’m all right, Jack” and suddenly they weren’t. I’m thinking of Sarmad and Ghassan Assali of Allentown, Penn., a Syrian-born couple who had lived in the U.S. for decades and whose six Syrian relatives, all with visas and green cards, were turned away after they landed in Philadelphia on Saturday.
What shocked them was that they had voted for Trump. “I understand he wants to make America safe,” Sarmad Assali said. “We’re all [in] with this. I definitely want to be in a safe place. But people need us.” And then Trump stayed true to his word on immigration.
I’m also thinking of Iranian-born Canadian Kasra Nejatian, once a senior adviser to former Conservative Immigration Minister Jason Kenney. Having renounced his Iranian citizenship, Nejatian is now a cross-border Canadian businessman stuck in the U.S., afraid he won’t get back into the U.S. if he visits Canada.
“I am a conservative on immigration issues,” he wrote for Maclean’s this week. “I believe in strong immigration laws and protected borders. Those people on TV chanting death to America, death to the West; they aren’t kidding. They mean it. But for the life of me, I can’t understand how not allowing me to enter the United States helps fight those people.”
I sympathize, always have.
But essentially President Trump, who judges people Betexper by their appearance and where they were born, pre-asked voters like this what kind of people they were, morally. And they answered “very conservative” with the proviso “as long as it doesn’t damage us personally.”
Sally and Sean were asked quickly and responded at speed. The Assalis and Nejatian had years to consider.
Do you see now why you should give your vote, your moral stance, a good hard think? As the great Russian-American writer and refugee Gary Shteyngart said Tuesday, “Some people just love illiberalism, until it bites them in the ass.”
Living next door to the U.S. — “the world’s longest undefended border” now has a sinister ring — means that Canada is about to be bitten by a shaggy old beast, who looks like a muskox abandoned by the herd. His teeth are strangely bright and white. Will they pierce the ankle skin or open an artery? It depends on how well Prime Minister Trudeau is able to handle President Bannon/Trump, whoever’s actually running the show, and it is a show.
Those who demand Trudeau stand tall should advise him how that can be done. The Democratic Party can scarcely bring itself to raise a trembling hand in committee and make squeaking noises. Even the Angry Pajamas in the CBC comment sections, sad creatures, don’t dare show their face or use their real name as they spew hate against immigrants. Sure, your name is really “Anthony Montana.” These people are secret Seans.
As I write this, Spicer has just said there is no travel “ban” and that it is a misrepresentation to use that word. Told that Trump himself used the word in a tweet, Spicer said he was just using the word “the media” used. In other words, everything you say bounces off Trump and reflects back on you, rubber, glue, etc.
Bannon may be vicious and Trump unwell but they couldn’t function without an army of Seans.
Is there any way for Canada to obstruct America’s dark path without paying a price? I hope so. I wish Canada to take a moral stand as little Britain did not.
Are we Sally or are we Sean?
If it were to cost Canadians their freedom, jobs, border access, digital privacy and growing diversity, we might wish to become Sean Sally or Sally Sean.
But if you said you were a Sean and voted accordingly, don’t suddenly turn into a Sally when the spotlight finds you and singles you out. Don’t pretend. It convinces no one.
hmallick@thestar.ca
hmallick@thestar.ca
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