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People talk a lot about running government like a business, and about the importance of common sense in politics. But over the years, I’ve found that those who advocate such approaches in theory are often most resistant to applying them in reality. Here’s a case in point: 1/7
If you’re in business, & someone comes to you seeking an investment in their company or wanting you to buy their product, you listen to their proposal and then you investigate. But what do you do when you discover that their pitch was built upon lies & exaggerations? 2/7
Their numbers were fabricated. Their claims had no validity. The product they’re pitching has been tried elsewhere and failed to produce the outcomes they promise. Also, experts tell you that you have far cheaper and more effective options. What do you do if that happens? 3/7
I ask because that’s basically where we stand on the Trump wall. Almost all of the White House claims about the wall have been proved false. The WH suggests thousands of terrorists have tried to cross our southern border; in reality, no terrorist has ever entered from Mexico. 4/7
Also, most drugs enter the US through ports of entry, according to gov't data, not through open country. Also, most illegal immigrants come via airports. Also, walls can be easily evaded. Also, electronic sensors and drones are much more cost-effective. And on and on and on. 5/7
In business, if you discover that someone pitching to you is telling you a raft of lies, do you buy their product anyway? Or do you come to the common-sense realization that if their best sales pitch is built on BS, then the product that they’re selling you must be garbage? 6/7
In this case Trump has pretty much given up arguing the wall case on merits. His new message is basically a Mafia threat: “YOU HAVE TO GIVE ME THIS WALL BECAUSE I WANT IT, DAMMIT AND I'LL HURT YOU BAD IF YOU DON'T!” In your life, do you succumb to that kind of demand? Not me. 7/7
