Tag: Trump a small man

Spin, hyperbole and deception: How Trump claimed credit for an Obama veterans achievement

Washington Post logo

President Trump has told mistruths about the 2014 VA Choice Act more than 156 times, seeking to deny the contributions of rivals including Barack Obama and John McCain.

The first time President Trump claimed false credit for the Veterans Access, Choice and Accountability Act — which President Barack Obama signed into law in 2014 — was on June 6, 2018. That day, as Trump signed the Mission Act, a modest update to the bipartisan VA Choice legislation, he seemed to conflate the two.

“So it’s now my great honor to sign the VA Mission Act, or as we all know it, the Choice Act, and to make Veterans Choice the permanent law of our great country,” the president said, standing in the Rose Garden. “And nobody deserves it more than our veterans.”

In the coming weeks, Trump began systematically erasing from the legislation’s history not just Obama but also the late senator John McCain (R-Ariz.), who not only co-sponsored the VA Choice Act but also was so instrumental in passing the Mission Act that he is one of three senators for whom the act is officially named.

That didn’t stop Trump from falsely claiming — as he did at a tank factory in Lima, Ohio, in March 2019 — that McCain, his frequent political rival, failed to make any progress on the VA Choice Act. Continue reading.

DHS Bans New Yorkers From Global Entry Applications, Punishing State For Sanctuary Laws

The move came after President Trump railed against so-called “sanctuary cities” during his State of the Union address.

The Department of Homeland Security banned New Yorkers from taking part in trusted traveler programs, including the popular Global Entry, on Wednesday, a retaliatory move the agency’s chief said came after state lawmakers enacted protections for undocumented immigrants.

Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf said Wednesday on Fox News that, effective immediately, all New Yorkers would be barred from enrolling or re-enrolling in the programs, which are meant to expedite entry into the United States for low-risk travelers. The programs, including Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI and FAST, have millions of members nationwide and are often touted at airports as a means to bypass long customs and border protection lines.

Wolf sent a letter to state officials explaining that the agency had taken the step after New York passed its so-called Green Light Law, which allows undocumented residents to obtain a driver’s license. The measure also prohibits personal information held by the Department of Motor Vehicles to be used by DHS or its agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection.