Thread: John Kelly Fights With White House Over Kobach Appointment, Travel Ban

(Older article)

Is Trump’s Pick for Homeland Security a Trojan Horse?

By Ed Kilgore




Observers fearful of the Trump administration’s intentions in the array of important issues (like immigration and terrorism) in the purview of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security were probably relieved when word came down the next secretary of DHS would be retired Marine General John Kelly. Yes, Kelly is often described as a “border hawk,” and he also pleased conservatives by resisting the closing of the Guantanamo Bay interrogation facility. But he was also a top military aide to two Obama defense secretaries, and had indicated he was open to service in either a Trump or Clinton administration.


Perhaps most important, Kelly is not Kris Kobach, the fiery crusader against immigration “amnesty,” alleged voter fraud, and nefarious Muslim plots to rob Americans of their priceless heritage of freedom. The name of the Kansas secretary of State, who is a big-time national celebrity among hard-core conservatives, had often been mentioned in connection with the DHS gig.


But before anyone starts celebrating over Kobach’s continued confinement in Topeka, it might be wise to pay attention to some intel the Washington Examiner provided earlier this week:

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach and retired Marine Gen. John Kelly are likely to be tapped for secretary and deputy secretary of homeland security, according to a top transition official familiar with the president-elect’s current thinking, but the source would not reveal which of the two men is favored for the top post and which is likely to be deputy secretary.

If that is correct, it is entirely possible Team Trump decided to make the less controversial Kelly — who faces a much easier Senate confirmation — the figurehead at the top of DHS, while installing Kobach as his deputy with special responsibilities for immigration and anti-terrorism policy. And there is also the option of placing Kobach at the Justice Department with authority over enforcement of immigration and voting laws. Crediting the upcoming administration with a “moderate” cabinet appointment might be accurate but also misleading.

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/12/is-trumps-pick-for-homeland-security-a-trojan-horse.html

Originally Posted by GeorgiaPeach

(Older article)

Is Trump’s Pick for Homeland Security a Trojan Horse?

By Ed Kilgore




Observers fearful of the Trump administration’s intentions in the array of important issues (like immigration and terrorism) in the purview of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security were probably relieved when word came down the next secretary of DHS would be retired Marine General John Kelly. Yes, Kelly is often described as a “border hawk,” and he also pleased conservatives by resisting the closing of the Guantanamo Bay interrogation facility. But he was also a top military aide to two Obama defense secretaries, and had indicated he was open to service in either a Trump or Clinton administration.


Perhaps most important, Kelly is not Kris Kobach, the fiery crusader against immigration “amnesty,” alleged voter fraud, and nefarious Muslim plots to rob Americans of their priceless heritage of freedom. The name of the Kansas secretary of State, who is a big-time national celebrity among hard-core conservatives, had often been mentioned in connection with the DHS gig.


But before anyone starts celebrating over Kobach’s continued confinement in Topeka, it might be wise to pay attention to some intel the Washington Examiner provided earlier this week:

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach and retired Marine Gen. John Kelly are likely to be tapped for secretary and deputy secretary of homeland security, according to a top transition official familiar with the president-elect’s current thinking, but the source would not reveal which of the two men is favored for the top post and which is likely to be deputy secretary.

If that is correct, it is entirely possible Team Trump decided to make the less controversial Kelly — who faces a much easier Senate confirmation — the figurehead at the top of DHS, while installing Kobach as his deputy with special responsibilities for immigration and anti-terrorism policy. And there is also the option of placing Kobach at the Justice Department with authority over enforcement of immigration and voting laws. Crediting the upcoming administration with a “moderate” cabinet appointment might be accurate but also misleading.

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/12/is-trumps-pick-for-homeland-security-a-trojan-horse.html

Yep, we were all hoping it would go this way. However, it has become obvious that Kelly convinced Trump to keep Kobach out of the DHS. It would be nice to know why Kelly disapproves of Kobach. Could it be because he (Kelly) is not fully on board with the full enforcement of our immigration laws where interior enforcement is concerned? I guess our support of Kelly was premature. Furthermore, I guess this also explains why Kelly breezed through the confirmation process with no resistance from the Democrats.

And there is also the option of placing Kobach at the Justice Department with authority over enforcement of immigration and voting laws.

To me this could be an even better role for Kobach, because as Deputy of DHS, there is a lot of budget and internal administrative management involved in the job. We'll see. But I was glad to see the White House fighting for a big post for Kobach.

Originally Posted by Judy

To me this could be an even better role for Kobach, because as Deputy of DHS, there is a lot of budget and internal administrative management involved in the job. We'll see. But I was glad to see the White House fighting for a big post for Kobach.

I disagree. I think Kobach would have been the perfect choice to deal with "budget and internal administrative management" issues. To me it looks like Kelly doesn't see eye to eye with Kobach on immigration enforcement. My biggest question is, where do they differ?

IMO, this should be very concerning to us all.

This is a great disappointment. The only reason John Kelly would oppose the appointment of Kris Kobach as Deputy of DHS is because Kelly opposes the crackdown on illegal immigration Americans want that propelled Trump and Kelly into power!

By blocking Kris Kobach for DHS, John Kelly just put his foot out to trip the entire movement that swept Trump into power so historically!

By fighting to place an Obama minion followed by a Bush minion in as his deputy indicates John Kelly's desire to return to or stick with the pro-amnesty policies of the past and thus deprive Americans of the change we seek on immigration issues.

It is very clear now that John Kelly was a huge mistake for DHS.

William Gheen
President of ALIPAC
www.alipac.us

Sad to recognize that President Trump took orders from General John Kelly. Before General Kelly was nominated he should have been asked if working with Kris Kobach was a problem.

Kelly is not on my favorite's list. He appears to have issues with the refugee situation, too.

Kobach advised Trump's transition team and is known for pushing anti-immigration policies. He was the architect of measures in Arizona and Alabama that let law enforcement officers stop anyone they believed might be an undocumented immigrant

This is a false statement so I question the rest of the article. I hope that the rest is not true either.

There is a DHS press conference on now. Sounding very good so far. Lets don't jump to conclusions before we hear from Kelly and the DHS team in place right now.

Originally Posted by GeorgiaPeach

Sad to recognize that President Trump took orders from General John Kelly. Before General Kelly was nominated he should have been asked if working with Kris Kobach was a problem.

Kelly is not on my favorite's list. He appears to have issues with the refugee situation, too.

Right, right, and right!

General Kelly acknowledges that other people know more about immigration than he does at this time.

General Kelly turns to Kevin McAleenan to answer many of the questions. He is acting head of CBP.

General Kelly says that over one billion Muslims have access to the United States.