Only Surprising Aspect of News that NBPC Endorsed Trump is that it Took Them This Long to Endorse
The news that the National Border Patrol Council (NBPC) has endorsed Republican frontrunner Donald Trump generated a flurry of attention yesterday. Yet the only surprising thing about yesterday’s announcement is that it took the National Border Patrol Council this long to endorse the most anti-immigrant presidential candidate in American history. In fact, the NBPC union is a dedicated ally of the anti-immigrant movement and their statement endorsing Trump reads as if ripped from the pages of an anti-immigrant manifesto.
In a report issued last year, the Center for New Community documented the close relationships and outright collusion between anti-immigrant groups and Border Patrol agents, including the National Border Patrol Council members. According to the “Blurring Borders” report, one glaring example of the secretive (and sometimes not-so-secretive) relationship between border agents and far-right groups was the string of protests in Murrieta, CA, during the 2014 child refugee crisis:
“A group of about 50 protesters, organized by leaders with ties to white nationalists, and extreme far-right groups, stood in the street waving American flags and chanting phrases such as ‘Go back home!’ and ‘We don’t want you here!’ to immigrants aboard the buses.
But, how exactly did these anti-immigrant activists know where these buses were going?
The answer lies in the long-standing relationships between employees of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the leaders of the organized anti-immigrant movement. The Murrieta protests are only one ugly example.
One organizer of the Murrieta protests told supporters he had received information from ‘a senior border patrol source in San Diego’ in advance of the transfer of the families to the Murrieta facilities.”
The report details further disturbing connections between border patrol and immigration agents and extremist groups, including some groups with white supremacist connections. In response to the CNC report, Mark Potok of the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) said, “Do we really want law enforcement agents colluding with people who seek a European-American majority? Do we really want our law enforcement officers cooperating with people who are friends with hate groups who call all Latino people ‘dumb’ and circulate conspiracy theories about Jewish power?”
As a result, it’s not the least bit surprising that the NBPC would back Trump – a candidate running an openly nativist campaign that includes promises to build a wall with Mexico and expel 11 million immigrants within 18-24 months.
- Read the CNC “Blurring Borders” report: http://imagine2050.newcomm.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Blurring-Borders.pdf
