We’re not entirely sure what to make of this AP story after having read it. It includes plenty of heart-wrenching quotes from those who’ve been affected, and it’s getting passed around a whole lot Thursday. But is it a major scandal or not?
AP NewsBreak: The U.S. Army has moved in recent weeks to discharge dozens of immigrant recruits and reservists who enlisted through a program that promised them a path to citizenship. https://t.co/OFMawYeMRm
— The Associated Press (@AP) July 5, 2018
Like we said, the tweet managed to stir up plenty of outrage.
Naked racism is what animates this administration.
"There were so many tears in my eyes that my hands couldn't move fast enough to wipe them away, I was devastated, because I love the U.S. and was so honored to be able to serve this great country. https://t.co/FyfVBQwQ2u
— The Warax. (@iAmTheWarax) July 6, 2018
And it does sound horrible. Service in the U.S. military should be a path to citizenship. But is the AP’s tweet reflective of what’s actually going on? A lot have their doubts.
https://twitter.com/neontaster/status/1015008647368400898
https://twitter.com/bethanyshondark/status/1015010752514744320
https://twitter.com/instapundit/status/1015026832595476480
This is an old story. The recruits are mostly delaying their own enlistment, playing the system. Others have washed out at boot camp, or failed background checks.
— Area Man (@lheal) July 6, 2018
Per article, total days served by those affected: zero. Nobody had even one day of boot camp.
— tom hynes (@tom_hynes) July 6, 2018
I was outraged by this headline, but decided to hold off commenting until I learned more. Now talking to several knowledgeable people re this program who are pointing to important caveats that suggest waiting on the details before getting outraged is the right thing to do. https://t.co/Px1uqoBJTR
— (((AG))) (@AG_Conservative) July 6, 2018
1) I am told that a background check has always been an essential element in this program. The article itself admits the people being released have failed that check.
2) As they have not even started basic training, they aren’t really being discharged.
— (((AG))) (@AG_Conservative) July 6, 2018
3) also told that the program has faced issues recently w/ abuse by those who sign up just for short periods to get stats via honorable discharge since there is no time requirement for service.
4) Apparently, w/ background issue, there is a rising gang problem among recruits.
— (((AG))) (@AG_Conservative) July 6, 2018
Now of course if they are actually kicking out people who were willing to serve this country honorably, that is outrageous and should be reviewed in a case by case basis, but some of these cuts may be warranted for reasons stated above.
— (((AG))) (@AG_Conservative) July 6, 2018
On the other hand, if this is the AP taking reasonable actions by the military and twisting them into some nefarious anti-immigrant plot, it’s yet another example of a string of media failures recently where creating outrage seems to be prioritized over the truth and context.
— (((AG))) (@AG_Conservative) July 6, 2018
One more note: Apparently the whole reason for the added background scrutiny for recruits of the MAVNI program was that the Obama admin wrongly tried to combine it with DACA to give Dreamers a path to citizenship: https://t.co/z03lfttmRi
— (((AG))) (@AG_Conservative) July 6, 2018
You should note the very same expert extensively quoted in the AP article specifically said that it was the Obama admin’s decision to pair the program with DACA “sounded the death knell for the program”. pic.twitter.com/TPr1FHF8Gu
— (((AG))) (@AG_Conservative) July 6, 2018
More: There was a complete freeze in new recruiting for the MANVI program after enhanced security checks became a requirement in the fall of 2016 (under the Obama administration)https://t.co/bkqquwFP51
— (((AG))) (@AG_Conservative) July 6, 2018
Hmm…
https://twitter.com/CathyYoung63/status/1015016527848984576
Ok.
The program was suspended in 2014 because Obama decided to include illegal aliens.https://t.co/jD9BqsoEnS
And it was basically killed in 2016 because of backlogs caused by letting them in couldn't be worked out.https://t.co/mAPGp59Xoj
This is the residual aftermath.
— Drew McCoy (@_Drew_McCoy_) July 6, 2018
How to get the program back to its roots is an important idea but let's not pretend this is new or simply because Trump hates immigrants.
— Drew McCoy (@_Drew_McCoy_) July 6, 2018
Yep. More to the story. We'll be hearing more about this.
Also…lesson 1,526,643 re why the hard work of finding consensus and passing LAWS is necessary for avoiding so much heartburn instead of this executive order nonsense https://t.co/7Tts1cnp9O
— Rebeccah Heinrichs (@RLHeinrichs) July 6, 2018
I’d like to see if there’s a reason for this outside immigration policy, like SF86 red flags.
There’s ~70k non-citizens serving in the military, and Army in particular has had some recruiting trouble. They need people. Suspect there may be more to this https://t.co/h6M3bSASm0
— John Noonan (@noonanjo) July 5, 2018
Here’s former Marine and deputy editor at The Daily Caller News Foundation Dave Brooks:
Without commenting on the removals, the @AP is framing this wrong. You aren't discharged if you haven't been to basic training. That's not a discharge. You also aren't a reservist until you pass training. These people were cut before training, and this reporting is misleading https://t.co/5Hb6nAR1zT
— Dave Brooks (@Dave_M_Brooks) July 5, 2018
This would lead one to believe that these people were kicked out of the military, which isn't true
— Dave Brooks (@Dave_M_Brooks) July 5, 2018
Also, the Army isn't commenting on this because they are being sued, but there are many good reasons you can be cut before basic training — fraudulent enlistment, medical reasons, being arrested, etc.
— Dave Brooks (@Dave_M_Brooks) July 5, 2018
Finally, this has been talked about and publications have ran this BS line for over a year now, which makes me think @AP's error is willful. At least NPR tried to be even handed pic.twitter.com/DpSr03ASA9
— Dave Brooks (@Dave_M_Brooks) July 6, 2018
P.S. This is gaslighting. And by looking at Twitter (even "conservative" Twitter), it's working
— Dave Brooks (@Dave_M_Brooks) July 6, 2018
https://twitter.com/JohnMor910/status/1015025790847766529
What do you say, AP?
Editor’s note: This post has been updated with additional tweets.
Related:
Associated Press corrects big error in #MemoDay piece Brit Hume calls 'breathtakingly slanted' https://t.co/1VOgG3ijYm
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) February 4, 2018