Trump Is Threatening to End Trade Deal with Mexico over Migrant Caravan

The one thing Trump cares more about than money is, apparently, immigration. Thursday morning, the President threatened to end a recent trade deal with Mexico unless it stops a migrant caravan en route to the United States’ southern border. The trade deal in question won’t even be sent to Congress for ratification until next year. His executive declaration went live on Twitter, of course.

He tweets: “In addition to stopping all payments to these countries, which seem to have almost no control over their population, I must, in the strongest of terms, ask Mexico to stop this onslaught.”

Trump’s war-like trade strategies are hitting an entirely new low, along with any shred of diplomacy he may have had hidden away. He calls the migrants “CRIMINALS,” though in their home countries, the migrants say they face gang threats and violence. These people simply want better for their families. Yet his xenophobic assumptions continue unabated.

If Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras are unable to stop the caravan, Trump says he’ll call on the military to “CLOSE THE SOUTHERN BORDER.” Much like his wall idea, that border solution likely isn’t feasible. The military is forbidden from deploying for domestic civilian duty, unless it’s at a U.S. base, as the Washington Post points out.

And, of course, Trump blames the Democrats for weak immigration laws. He wraps up the final executive tweet with the line, “All Democrats fault for weak laws!” It’s worth reminding the President that his own party has controlled all arms of the government since his inauguration. The few immigration strategies Republicans have employed are not only psychological torture, but also outright ineffective, as more families pour into the States. WaPo reports that September saw the highest number of families arrested in one month, at over 16,000. It’s an 80 percent increase from July.