NYT: Trump proposed shooting at the feet of illegal immigrants and digging a moat with alligators at the border

Excerpts from the book of journalists Michael Shear and Julie Hirschfeld Davis, published by the New York Times on 1 in October, describe a hectic week inside the Trump administration in March this year when the president ordered staff to close the US border with Mexico.

Фото: Depositphotos

According to reports New York TimesPresident Donald Trump privately spoke of “reinforcing the border wall with a moat filled with snakes or alligators, prompting assistants to look for cost estimates. He wanted the wall to be electrified, with spikes at the top that could pierce human flesh, ”the book quotes the passage.

He stepped back after assistants told Trump that his public offer to shoot migrants if they throw stones at soldiers was illegal. But later, the president proposed "shooting at the feet of migrants to slow them down."

“That’s also not allowed, (the staff) told him,” the excerpt reads.

The article, published Tuesday, was adapted from the book Border Wars: Inside Trump's Assault on Immigration, which will be published in full on October 8.

The article is based on interviews with more than a dozen White House administration officials who were granted anonymity. They all described a "mad week of presidential rage" that included "round-the-clock staff panic and far more turmoil in the White House than at any other time," according to the Times.

On the subject: US authorities begin to deport migrants back to Mexico

Accompanying his words with profanity, Trump shouted: “You make me an idiot!” I won the election with this promise. It is my problem". All this happened during the meeting, which was attended by White House Assistant Stephen Miller, former Head of the Department of Homeland Security Kirsten Nielsen, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, then Head of Customs and Border Guard Kevin Makalinan, Acting Head of the White House Office Mick Mulvaney, and Advisor and son-in-law of President Jared Kushner.

The comments appeared at about the same time that the president publicly threatened to close the border, saying that he would do so if "Mexico does not deal with this." Trump later moved away from this threat.

“The president was frustrated, and I think he took this moment to hit the reset button,” Thomas Homan, who was acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, told the publication. “The President wanted this to be fixed quickly.”

The excerpt from the book includes details: Trump, for example, “berated” Nielsen for being “ineffective and, worse, at least in his mind, not tough enough” on migrants.

During a briefing on the need for a new legal right to shoot down drones, Trump reportedly told Nielsen: “You didn't hear me the first time, honey. Kill them. Honey, just shoot them out of the sky, okay?”

On the subject: Supreme court tightens asylum rules for US immigrants

“[Trump] was happiest a few months earlier when U.S. border officials fired tear gas into Mexico to try to stop migrants from entering the United States,” the Times writes.

Democrats hastened to express their indignation after the published excerpt.

Rep. Alexandria-Ocacio Cortes said that “cruelty has always been the main theme” of the president. Rep. Eric Swwell wrote on Twitter that Trump’s actions usually fall into “one of three options: cruel, childish, or corrupt.”

Read also on ForumDaily:

US authorities begin to deport migrants back to Mexico

Trump Administration to Record Decline in Refugee Acceptance

14 million illegal immigrants cost US taxpayers $ 130 billion

The merit of the Trump administration: the number of illegal immigrants on the US border is reduced

Do you want more important and interesting news about life in the USA and immigration to America? — support us donate! Also subscribe to our page Facebook. Select the “Priority in display” option and read us first. Also, don't forget to subscribe to our РєР ° РЅР ° Р »РІ Telegram  and Instagram- there is a lot of interesting things there. And join thousands of readers ForumDaily New York — there you will find a lot of interesting and positive information about life in the metropolis.