As migrants of all colours brace for a variety of sub optimal consequences of living in America, Donald Trump, the self-proclaimed Hemingway of Twitter, has hit bullseye with his voters by framing the issue in a single phrase as “merit based immigration” and taking the high ground on national security no matter how much his critics want to paint his uncompromising stand as muddled or ruthless.
Trump made the threat of the ‘outsider’ his single most potent drumbeat on the campaign and here it is again, on the frontlines of American politics, shutting down the government last week and with enough ammo to do an encore three weeks later. On paper, the government shutdown is over but fact is that it’s only on pause. Before we know it, US politics will be back to the brink and immigration is the single topic that will make it that way.