Make Trump an offer he can't refuse: the wall for the registry date

For Trump, "The Wall" has always been a bullshit issue: a symbol of "America First" white supremacy triumphant, and not at all a measure with any practical significance.

Why of no significance? Because the wall is already there. Some 702 miles, 1,130 kilometers, of physical barriers first proposed under Democrat President Jimmy Carter that began to be built under Democrat Bill Clinton.

It was called a "fence" mostly because calling it a wall when the commie one in Berlin was still a recent memory would have been a bad PR move.

But Trump does want to call it a "wall," I guess to prove he's just as mean as Stalin used to be. And replacing a few segments of existing metal spikes with metal spikes covered by concrete. Why? My guess is that is would be easier to engrave "TRUMP" in gold letters on a concrete surface, you know, for photo ops.

What Trump really wants is not a construction project, but to create a wall of racism, but for that reason, every dollar Congress approves for his phony physical wall is another brick in Trump's wall of bigotry and discrimination.

This is how legalization was done in the 1930s
and how it should be done now -- just register

Unless, of course, the money is solely for painting "TRUMP" in gold letters, because it is accompanied by a sweeping measure of acceptance and welcome for immigrants and their communities.

That's where "the date" comes in.

What date? The registry date.

WTF is a registry date and what good is it? I'll let the official U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services web site answer:

Aliens who have continuously resided in the United States since January 1, 1972, are of good moral character, and are not inadmissible, are eligible to adjust to legal permanent resident status under the registry provision. Before the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 amended the date, aliens had to have been in the country continuously since June 30, 1948, to qualify.

From back in the day when most people who had come to the United States were European, and the 1920s anti-immigrant hysteria had subsided, there is a provision in immigration law that says, basically, if you have been living permanently in the United States since a certain date, let the government know and you will be recognized as a permanent resident.

It is a simple, direct and effective mechanism for  mass legalization of immigrants based on the iron-clad logic that those who have been residing permanently in the United States are in fact permanent residents thereof.

So I think we should make Trump and offer he can't refuse: sign the change in the registry date and we'll give you the wall.

But if Trump doesn't want to, is there any way to stop him from refusing?

As of January 3, the Democrats have a majority in the House. Simply decide that nothing gets to the floor, goes to the Senate or gets to the President for his signature that does not include a sentence to the effect of: "The registry date is changed to January 20, 2017."

Nothing. Zero. Zip. No military spending. No disaster relief. No mother's day proclamation. Like, nada.

And why that date? I think January 20, 2017 --the day Trump became president-- would be a nice gesture of gratitude, allowing The Donald to add "no one is better at amnesty for illegal aliens" to the list of things that no one is better at than him. If he wants, he can even call it by its true name: justice for the undocumented.

--José G. Pérez