The Silence of the Canaries
Trump
has normalized xenophobia
Dec 01, 2025
We hear a lot about the canaries in the coal mine these
days. But we were reminded last week that dead canaries are littered all around
us. We never imagined that death could undo so many.1
Happy Monday.
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Last week, Donald Trump observed Thanksgiving with a
nakedly racist rant that was unhinged even by Trumpian standards (more
about that below). Reacting to the shooting of two National
Guardsmen in Washington DC, Trump announced a “permanent pause” in immigration from poorer countries.
Trump’s animus quickly became policy. The administration paused all visas for Afghans, and then closed
the door on all asylum decisions, “until we can ensure
that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible.”
But that hardly captures the virulent malice of his
Thanksgiving diatribe.
Just days after he called for the death penalty for
prominent Democrats, Trump called the governor of Minnesota “severely retarded”
and railed against immigrants from Third World countries.
He threatened to “denaturalize” migrants who had become
citizens and endorsed the far-right policy of “remigration”— as he lashed out
at Afghans and (for some unfathomable reason) Somalis.
But Trump’s ban has been met by virtual crickets from the
GOP; and his tirade has all but vanished from the news cycle.
**
This was not always the case.
In December 2015, Trump called for “a total and complete
shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s
representatives can figure out what is going on.”
Ten years ago, there were still elected Republicans who
pushed back: “Donald Trump’s Muslim ban plan plunges Republican party
into chaos.”
Republican presidential
candidate Donald Trump was disowned by his own party’s top leadership on
Tuesday and faced calls to drop his White House bid as the world reacted with
outrage to his plan for a ban on Muslims entering the
United States.
“This is not conservatism,” Speaker Paul Ryan declared.
“What was proposed yesterday is not what this party stands for. And more
importantly, it’s not what this country stands for.” Mitt Romney, the 2012
Republican nominee for president, backed Ryan, his former running mate, adding
on Twitter: “On Muslims, @realDonaldTrump fired before aiming...@SpeakerRyan is
on target.”
There was, in fact, a chorus of denunciation.
Mitch McConnell, the Senate Majority Leader, called the
idea “completely and totally inconsistent with American values.” In that
distant (and more innocent) time, a pre-fluffing Lindsey Graham was withering
in his criticism, calling the proposal “un-American” and accusing Trump of
“helping the enemy of this nation” by aiding in Islamic State recruitment.
Marco Rubio called the proposal “impulsive and reckless,” saying it “violates
the Constitution” and “is not the best way to face this threat.” Future Trump
chief of staff Reince Priebus, who was then chairman of the RNC, also denounced
Trump’s Muslim ban, saying: “I don’t agree. We need to aggressively take on
radical Islamic terrorism but not at the expense of our American values.”
In 2015, Former VP Dick Cheney was beginning his long-term
break with Trump.
“Well, I think this whole notion that somehow we need to
say no more Muslims and just ban a whole religion goes against everything we
stand for and believe in,” Cheney told conservative radio
host Hugh Hewitt. “I mean, religious freedom’s been a very important part of
our history.”
**
Even in 2017, there was some (more muted) pushback when
Trump said that there were “very fine people on both sides” at a
Charlottesville rally where white nationalists chanted “Jews will not replace
us.”
Before he placed his conscience in cold-storage, Lindsey
Graham (again) issued a statement saying Trump’s words were “dividing
Americans, not healing them” and that he took a “step backward by again
suggesting there is moral equivalency”. Paul Ryan (still Speaker
of the House) emphasized there could be “no moral ambiguity” and that “white
supremacy is repulsive”. GOP Senator Cory Gardner from Colorado tweeted, “Mr.
President, we must call evil by its name. These were white supremacists, and
this was domestic terrorism”. Senate leader McConnell again pushed back,
issuing a statement declaring “there are no such thing as ‘very fine people’
among white supremacists, neo-Nazis and the KKK”. Romney also pushed back
against the president, saying that “whether he intended to or not, what he
communicated caused racists to rejoice, minorities to weep, and the vast heart
of America to mourn,” and suggested Trump should apologize. Even Marco Rubio
tweeted that Trump “can’t allow #WhiteSupremacists to share only part of
blame”.
But the chorus —- and the GOP conscience — was already
fading.2 One
by one the canaries were being asphyxiated.
In 2016, there was widespread outrage when Trump bragged
about grabbing women by the pussy, but having accepted that, the GOP fell
silent as Trump was found liable for sexual assault and was convicted of
felonies for paying off a porn star.
A similar silence descended around his obsession with the
Big Lie about the 2020 election, his role in fomenting a seditious conspiracy
to attack the Capitol, and his increasingly violent rhetoric about political
opponents.
Consider:
When was the last time anybody mentioned that Trump
once explicitly called for the Constitution to be suspended so
he could be restored to power? Just three years ago, he posted:
A Massive Fraud of this
type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules,
regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution.
This was not a one-off. As Mike Pence’s former chief of
staff, Marc Short noted on Meet the Press, Trump’s attack
on the Constitution was consistent with “what he asked the vice president to do
two years ago, when rioters were attacking the Capitol and he asked the vice
president to overturn the election results.”
Days later, Trump doubled down, firing off a declaration
that: “UNPRECEDENTED FRAUD REQUIRES UNPRECEDENTED CURE!”
In other words, Goddam right I orchestrated a coup
to overthrow the Constitution — and I’ll do it again!
On Earth 2.0 (a rational and totally imaginary world), this
would be the clearest, easiest, most obvious moment for Republicans to rid
themselves of this troublesome and deranged demagogue.
Prominent Republicans would deliver major speeches
rejecting (1) sedition, (2) collaboration with Nazis, and (3) the former
president’s call to terminate the Constitution, so he can be reinstated.
“No honest person can now deny that Trump is an enemy of
the Constitution,” Liz Cheney tweeted. Her fellow J6 Committee
member, Adam Kinzinger called out his fellow Republicans: “With the former
President calling to throw aside the constitution,” he said, “not a single conservative can
legitimately support him, and not a single supporter can be called a
conservative. This is insane. Trump hates the Constitution.”
But here was the headline of the day: “Top Republicans stay silent on Trump’s call to
terminate the Constitution.”
Because, of course. And check out this
pathetic dingleberry: “Trump’s call to suspend Constitution not a 2024
deal-breaker, leading House Republican says.”
**
Which brings us to Trump’s squalid Thanksgiving Day rant….
Trump’s Thanksgiving Rant: Annotated
Let’s walk through the president’s social media post.
TRUMP: A very Happy Thanksgiving salutation to all of our
Great American Citizens and Patriots who have been so nice in allowing our
Country to be divided, disrupted, carved up, murdered, beaten, mugged, and
laughed at, along with certain other foolish countries throughout the World,
for being “Politically Correct,” and just plain STUPID, when it comes to
Immigration.
The holiday-inspired
insults are a feature of Trump’s messages to the nation. But he followed it
with a Stephen-Miller-style attack on immigration
The official United States Foreign population stands at 53
million people (Census), most of which are on welfare, from failed nations, or
from prisons, mental institutions, gangs, or drug cartels. They and their
children are supported through massive payments from Patriotic American
Citizens…
A strong body of recent
research finds that immigration is, on balance, a net positive for U.S.
economic growth and labor‑force expansion: several analyses estimate
lower GDP growth if immigration falls (e.g., a 0.3–1.0 percentage‑point
reduction in 2025 across studies) and attribute sizable contributions to job
and output gains.
See also: How Does Immigration Affect the U.S. Economy? | Council
on Foreign Relations
And:
TRUMP: They put up with what has happened to our Country,
but it’s eating them alive to do so! A migrant earning $30,000 with a green
card will get roughly $50,000 in yearly benefits for their family.
The claim that a migrant
earning $30,000 with a green card will get roughly $50,000 in yearly benefits
for their family is false. Legal immigrants are barred
mainly from most federal welfare programs for their first five years. The
Biden administration has sought to expand ways for migrants to come to the U.S.
legally, including a program for migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and
Venezuela who have American sponsors. Unauthorized migrants aren’t eligible for
many types of federal aid, although some states have extended social service
programs to include them.
TRUMP: This refugee burden is the leading cause of social
dysfunction in America, something that did not exist after World War II (Failed
schools, high crime, urban decay, overcrowded hospitals, housing shortages, and
large deficits, etc.).
The statement that “this
refugee burden is the leading cause of social dysfunction in America, something
that did not exist after World War II (Failed schools, high crime, urban decay,
overcrowded hospitals, housing shortages, and large deficits, etc.)” is not supported by evidence. Experts agree
that increased immigration leads to higher housing demand, but evidence does
not support the idea that immigrants are a primary driver of high housing
costs. The main factor affecting housing affordability is a home shortage
caused by years of underbuilding and restrictive zoning. An interest rate surge
exacerbated the problem. The number of immigrants illegally in the U.S. is less
than half the number cited by Trump, and although increased immigration leads
to higher housing demand, evidence does not support the idea that immigrants
are a primary reason for surging housing costs.
TRUMP: As an example, hundreds of thousands of refugees
from Somalia are completely taking over the once great State of Minnesota.
Somalian gangs are roving the streets looking for “prey” as our wonderful
people stay locked in their apartments and houses hoping against hope that they
will be left alone.
Trump has built his
political career on attacking dark-skinned migrants — from his 2015 comment
about Mexican “rapists” to last year’s attack on Haitians. Here Trump veers off
to attack another specific group of brown-skinned migrants.
“As far as demonizing
our Somali community, maybe, he could help us on some things,” [Minnesota
Governor Tim Walz told host Kristen Welker on NBC’s “Meet
the Press.” “Demonizing an entire community, folks who are in the professions,
educators, artists, doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs, they bring the diversity
and the energy to a place like Minnesota.”
TRUMP: The seriously retarded Governor of Minnesota, Tim
Walz, does nothing, either through fear, incompetence, or both…
Trump’s use of the word
“retarded” sparked a significant national backlash, including from one Indiana Republican who revolted on Trump’s
gerrymandering push over the slur. But few other Republicans
bothered to comment.
TRUMP: “while the worst “Congressman/woman” in our Country,
Ilhan Omar, always wrapped in her swaddling hijab, and who probably came into
the U.S.A. illegally in that you are not allowed to marry your brother, does
nothing but hatefully complain about our Country, its Constitution, and how
“badly” she is treated, when her place of origin is a decadent, backward, and
crime ridden nation, [in the past past Trump has referred to “shit-hole
countries] which is essentially not even a country for lack of Government,
Military, Police, schools, etc.
Why
Omar? Why do you think? She has been a longtime
obsession for Trump, whose supporters chanted “send her back.”
Nota
bene: This is not the first time that the MAGA right has
tied Omar to Afghan refugees. Back in 2021, Charlie Kirk claimed that Biden
intentionally let Afghanistan fall because he “wants a couple hundred thousand
more Ilhan Omars to come into America to change the body politic permanently.”
(Omar is Somali, not Afghan, but they were all pretty much the same to Kirk.)
TRUMP: Even as we have progressed technologically,
Immigration Policy has eroded those gains and living conditions for many. I
will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the
U.S. system to fully recover, terminate all of the millions of Biden illegal
admissions, including those signed by Sleepy Joe Biden’s Autopen,..
A clear echo of his
original Muslim ban but now including migrants who legally entered the country.
TRUMP: …and remove anyone who is not a net asset to the
United States, or is incapable of loving our Country, end all Federal benefits
and subsidies to noncitizens of our Country, denaturalize migrants who
undermine domestic tranquility, and deport any Foreign National who is a public
charge, security risk, or non-compatible with Western Civilization.
Note the sweeping
grounds for stripping naturalized citizens of their US citizenship.3 “Undermine
national tranquility”? “Non-compatible with Western Civilization”?
WTAF?
TRUMP: These goals will be pursued with the aim of
achieving a major reduction in illegal and disruptive populations, including
those admitted through an unauthorized and illegal Autopen approval process.
So not just “illegal.”
Again, he does not define “disruptive”. Does it include social media posts
critical of the Administration? Or participation in protests that are otherwise
protected by the First Amendment?
TRUMP: Only REVERSE MIGRATION can fully cure this
situation. Other than that, HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL, except those that hate,
steal, murder, and destroy everything that America stands for — You won’t be
here for long!
His embrace of
“remigration” went from rant to official policy a matter of hours…
“The stakes have never
been higher, and the goal has never been more clear: Remigration now,” the
Department of homeland Security posted on X.
What is “remigration,”
you ask? Via Wikipedia:
“Remigration
is a European far-right concept of ethnic
cleansing[1] via the
mass deportation of non-white minority
populations, especially immigrants and sometimes including those born in Europe
and holding European citizenship, to their place of racial ancestry.[2][3]
“Originating
in Europe, the concept has spread to the United States and other countries, and
it is popular especially within the Identitarian movement.[4][5]
“Some
proponents of remigration suggest excluding some persons with non-European background from such a mass
deportation, based on a varyingly defined degree of assimilation into European
culture.”
The reaction from elected Republicans? Zip. Bupkus.
Crickets.
**
Exit take: As recently as a few years ago, there would have
been Republican voices denouncing Trump’s bizarre and unAmerican attacks on
immigrants. Those voices were the canaries in the coal mine. Their silence now
tells us what has been lost.
