This week seems to have barely begun and yet – does it seem to anyone other than me that we have had enough headlines for weeks.
President Trump has been busy in his first dozen days after taking the oath of office. I believe he has taken some meaningful positive action and made other moves which cause me great concern. Kind of reminds me of the playground game we played way back in the day – he has taken 4 scissor steps forward and several baby steps backward.
I am especially concerned about the Presidents immigration ban and the way it was implemented. What was he thinking about? Who did he consult? Were the consequences of this action, both intended and unintended, carefully considered?
In the aftermath of this action I am grateful for the wisdom and guidance from the faith community as well as counsel from leaders in business (especially the tech industry), education, homeland security and defense.
Elected officials in both parties have raised voices of concern including all of our Kansas congressional delegation. Senator Jerry Moran and Representative Kevin Yoder responded quickly.
Senator Moran said “ While I support thorough vetting, I do not support restricting the rights of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents Furthermore, far-reaching national security policy should always be devised in consultation with Congress and relevant government agencies.”
Representative Kevin Yoder said his office will work with constituents who, as lawful permanent residents of the United States, are unfairly detained under the executive order. Yoder said he supports pausing refugee resettlement in the U.S. but opposes more expansive restrictions.
Yoder stated further that “President Trump and the White House must work with the State Department and (Department of Homeland Security) to ensure that green card holders and valid visa recipients who have already gone through vetting don’t get swept up by this order because it is interpreted too broadly.”
The higher education community in Kansas has also expressed concern.
K-States president Richard Myers, who was also chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Republican President George W. Bush, said in a statement that Kansas State has reached out to all international students and scholars with travel advice while the ban is in place.
“K-State deeply values the contributions of our international family members and regrets the disruption this situation is causing in their lives. As a public research university with global connections, we are concerned about the detrimental effects of this policy on those pursuing academic studies and research.” said Myers.
A spokesman for prominent Kansas businessman Charles Koch said he opposed President Trump’s controversial ban on immigrants from predominantly Muslim countries.
In a statement he said “We believe it is possible to keep Americans safe without excluding people who wish to come here to contribute and pursue a better life for their families. The travel ban is the wrong approach and will likely be counterproductive,”
I understand there is disagreement regarding this issue but I believe the President has stubbed his toe on this one. Donald J. Trump is our President. He is my President and I wish for his success. There is not a President in history who has not acknowledged they made mistakes while serving in the most powerful office in the world.
I believe we must all be willing to find ways to work together and I hope President Trump will be caring and careful. We will all be best served when he finds the capacity to learn from his, and others, success as well as missteps.
