Disorder and the Immigration Order

http://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/30/opinion/disorder-and-the-immigration-order.html

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To the Editor:

Re “Trump Modifies Ban on Migrants as Outcry Grows” (front page, Jan. 30):

I’m appalled at the utter ineptitude demonstrated by President Trump and his team in the chaotic development and rollout of his immigration order. This is the man who claimed he’d run government like a business and vaunted his management expertise. Only now do we ruefully understand he was apparently referring to his one-man-in-charge Trump enterprise and not the well-run American companies viewed as exemplars of sound management.

By blindsiding so many stakeholders, from travelers in the air to immigration officers to Congress to entire countries, President Trump makes it appear that his purpose was primarily to portray himself as a man of action getting his way by fiat. That’s hardly the way to run a democratic government that works efficiently and effectively for its citizens.

PAT POSTON

Kings Mountain, N.C.

To the Editor:

Re “Trashing America’s Ideals and Security” (editorial, Jan. 30):

What was the rush? Our vetting of immigrants has kept us safe for over 15 years, since Sept. 11, 2001. The vetting is extreme, taking years for many who want to come here. And the vetting policies have been fine-tuned over the years.

Now, all of a sudden, because it plays on people’s fears, President Trump decided that as of Jan. 27 we had to stop immigration from Muslim countries where he does not do business? Was there reason to think we were in imminent danger? Not that we have heard! Mr. Trump just used his pen to upend lives and give great P.R. to jihadist recruiters who have been saying all along that the United States is at war with Islam.

CAROL F. ROYE

Pleasantville, N.Y.

To the Editor:

I am surprised by the negative reaction to President Trump’s ban on travel and immigration from countries with ties to terrorism. Of course, it is inevitable that there will be those travelers who will be caught in the cross hairs of an order for which they were not prepared. Nonetheless, every country has the right to protect itself, and right now the United States must effectively deal with the growing threats of terrorism from the countries on the ban list. This situation requires a different policy than our peacetime protocol for welcoming immigrants and visitors.

Another way to look at this is that the burden does not lie with the United States, but with the countries with ties to terrorism. If they wish for their citizens to be welcomed abroad, then those governments need to eliminate terrorism within their borders. If not, then they will have to face the inevitable rejection from foreign governments whose first and foremost responsibility is to protect their citizens.

I am most grateful that President Trump is taking the necessary action to protect our country.

SIGNE WILSON

Santa Barbara, Calif.

To the Editor:

“Visceral Fear, Dubious Cure” (news analysis, Jan. 29) says of the executive order on immigration: “Many experts believe the order’s unintended consequences will make the threat worse.”

One of the unintended consequences is changing the role played by immigrants living in the United States, such as me. While traveling to our countries of origin, we act as freelance ambassadors for America. I have been trying to spread American values in Poland for 30 years. I had moral grounds to do it because I lived in a country that, I believed, boasted diversity, human rights and tolerance — a country that tried to learn from its mistakes. Today, for the first time, I no longer feel this way.

Now, for the first time, I am joining protests in the United States. It seems as if the reason I left Poland in the first place — oppressive injustice — has caught up with me here.

KATARZYNA WANDYCZ MORENO

Brooklyn