“I was a stranger and you welcomed me” (Matthew 25:35)
Kristi Noem likes to dress up as an actual ICE Agent for cosplay so I’m surprised her vicious, cruel Christmas ads didn’t have her dressed up as Mrs. Grinch wearing an ICE vest. We all know her true audience was Trump but I’m betting she didn’t count on the blowback from all the other people who saw another demonstration of Trump’s “The cruelty is the point” attitude about immigrants and deportation. She’s been getting her self-righteous butt handed to her and California Governor Gavin Newsom’s quoting Matthew was a perfect response.
Of course, as this article from The Daily Beast tells us Newsom wasn’t the only one with a response online that skewered ICE Barbie. The blowback, the online blowtorching of Noem and ICE started immediately. She was probably figuring MAGAs would start chiming in with supportive comments and drown out any criticism before it got going. It wound up working the other way around! Oops.
Noem decided to spread holiday cheer not in shooting puppies in the face instead of bringing them out to the kids in Christmas style but in ‘celebrating’ deportations. As if we didn’t need yet another reminder of the whole ‘The CRUELTY is the point’ theme that Trump wants to shart all over the country. She kicked it off in classic Noem style with the message:
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, 54, boasted that federal agents were stepping up removals “for the holidays,” with a “holiday deal” offering a free flight and $1,000 to those who self-deport.
Alas, she was just getting warmed up. We got treated to ICE agents decked out in tactical gear with some Santa hats (Trump will probably rip her because they didn’t have MAGA on them!) for more memery. The official DHS account posted on Xitter a pic of said agents also festooned with Christmas lights and the caption YOU’RE GOING HO HO HOME. If Noem and the rest of Team Trump think that’s funny they need to forget about trying to take over for current comedians on late night shows.
It’s sick. Vile. Disgusting and as UN-Christian as one can get. Even worse it comes wrapped in Noem’s version of a Christmas Bow. That’s why Newsom’s response tweet shown in the title pic was the perfect response. It makes it kind of hard for Noem and those who might want to post ‘attagirl’ tweets to put out more of this reindeer excrement. There were as you would expect some responses from other political and church leaders taking Noem to task:
Faith-based groups said the mash-up of Christmas cheer and deportation crossed a line. “It’s deeply troubling to see AI-generated images paired with a Christmas message to advance anti-immigrant rhetoric,” Jeremy Weitz of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network told Axios, calling the approach “antithetical” to Advent and Christmas.
There’s plenty more in the linked article including a statement from a former Director of ICE who is disgusted by this. I sure as hell am. I became agnostic decades ago but still celebrate Christmas. In part to remember my mom who died Christmas 1975. She LOVED Christmas and frankly went nuts. Not just presents for us kids but tons of baking that I’d learn people eagerly awaited each year. But she always emphasized to me as I grew old enough to understand the season was about hope and renewal. Of seeing the world with better eyes and that helping others, especially those in need was the point.
Not to Trump, ICE Barbie and the thugs in tactical gear wearing ICE labeled vests who are so ASHAMED of what they do the cover their faces. Or, even if they like what they do don’t want their friends, and fellow churchgoers to know about their daily cruelty. Newsom’s response tweet was classy and on-point. Less classy but also on point is this one:
Being agnostic I don’t know there’s a hell but like the Dripped Out Trade Unionist tweet says all of these assholes are headed there if there is.
Friends, I know everyone begs you for money. I promise, among all those asking for spare change, we are the smallest and the hardest working. We’re a group of old, disabled people, except for one writer in his mid-50s. The rest of us are in our sixties and seventies, and this is a labor of love. All we’re asking for is the chance to keep telling the truth about Trump and help ensure democracy survives. If you can help, please do. Thank you. Ursula
Her comments crossed the line? Wow. That’s what it took! She shot her puppy. She’s head of HS. Citizens are being arrested. No rule of law and this is what it took!? Wow again, those “christians” keeps showing us who they really are.
I can’t wait for the treason trials of these SOB’s. The champagne will be flowing, Dumpy will be pushing posies and all the big dudes in jail named Bubba will be licking their chops for fresh meat.