The Dark Underbelly of the US Justice System
John Culberson, $32,900; Henry Cuellar – $32,400; John Cornyn, $10,000. These are the contributions from private prison company GEO Group who operates immigrant detention centers all over Texas. Let’s be clear here – GEO is a private contractor that runs federal prisons and detention centers for profit. How do they profit? By keeping bodies behind bars and spending as little as possible on their welfare. Abrogating its responsibility to look after the welfare of those in federal custody is one of the most disgusting policy decisions made by our government. It’s a human rights violation and it’s immoral. Also, it started long before Trump infested the White House, but he’s accelerated conversions of big box stores into prisons at an alarming rate.
In the meantime, politicians (Republican for the most part) have blocked prison and immigration reform or opposed the outlawing of this practice. The reason? Millions of dollars filling the pockets of jerk-offs like those named above. Cuellar is an anomaly among Dems; he vehemently opposed president Obama’s efforts to reform the immigration system and is unpredictable in his public statements. He’s certainly not helpful. Culberson and Cornyn, however are blocking the door to ANY humane or just solution.
The proliferation of new Desert Sands Trump Tent Resorts and Trump Big Box Internationals have finally awoken Republicans in Congress. Even Ted Cruz took a few minutes off from running for president in 3 years to wring his hands and declare he’s going to introduce legislation to fix a problem that was completely caused by Trump’s poor decision to take the advice of his in-house white supremacists.
In the meantime, the border crisis worsens. Innocent lives are being permanently damaged and it’s going on before our very eyes even as I type these words.
If you’d like to tell these politicians what you think of them taking dirty private prisons for profit money, here are their phone numbers:
John Cornyn – 202-224-2934
John Culberson – 202-225-2571
Henry Cuellar – 202-225-1640
In the “what’s new” department, maybe GEO Group is cheap on the spectrum of pay for play, or those Texas pay for play recipients can be bought on the cheap. Albeit, doubt there’s anyone in Texas who can be bought cheaper than Louie Gohmert.
As you have noted, El Jefe profiting from prisons has always been a disgusting policy. Taking children hostage, breaking up families, and terrorizing babies takes it to a level that “zero tolerance” for Dotard45 should be the goal.
The message to those involved and Donnie should be a simple one: either Dotard45 picks up a phone or a pen to reverse this evil policy, or irreversible impeaching proceedings begin. Today is not soon enough. Get crackin’ boys.
1The prisoners are a source of cheap labor. The work in fields and raise pigs They get paid pennies if at all.
2Even the threat of beginning impeachment proceedings might be enough to get that sniveling child abuser to back down and call off this child snatching plan.
3That will be my new message to my senators and reps.
El Jefe, these private prisons also run businesses (like call centers), using prison labor. The inmates are paid cents on the dollar for their work.
The feds pay them for these operations, they feed the inmates very poorly and pocket the difference, then they benefit off the inmate powered business.
We have the highest incarceration rate in the world. Modern day slavery.
4And I want to know which airline was transporting those little ones taken from their parents at the border and dropping them off in places like New York City. I just can’t see big name commercial airlines doing this inasmuch as they have some big rules about unescorted children, especially under a certain age. Might these transports have been chartered aircraft, maybe even cargo carriers? And even then I want to know how the owners and pilots of these planes can cleanse their immortal souls of the stain of aiding and abetting kidnapping. Is there really that much money on this planet that would make them feel good about what they were doing?
5@Maggie,
So do I. Once I know who they are I won’t buying flights and any services/products from their ad sponsors. I hope so many people storm the airlines twitter and FB accounts that they will rethink their participation as accomplices to kidnapping and illegally transporting minors across state lines.
I, like you, Maggie, want to know when the people who participate directly in this state abetted abuse of kids are going to say “No more”. And I hope they are recording it and taking photos.
6left out word “be”…Oops
7Well, Trump has rescinded his order. Till the next time a white supremacist grabs his ear.
He did an executive order. Just as if he was actually DOING something. All he had to do, of course, was rescind his previous order but that would not have fit his narrative of “It’s all THEIR FAULT! [Democrats. Congress. Whoever he can point his itty-bitty finger at.]
Anyway, the government will stop tearing families apart — something it hadn’t done since the 1860’s. That’s something at least.
As to the ongoing Big Box Prison Stores. That’s a battle still to fight but I doubt we’ll get any real change till AT LEAST November 6.
8Oh and btw: as to reuniting the 2,000 plus children who have already been taken from their parents back with them, that’s a whole nother kettle of fish.
Stay tuned and keep screaming. THAT is what got this latest executive order signed.
9American Airlines has said they will no longer transport border kids. Sounds like they got the message.
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2018/6/20/1773795/-American-Airlines-to-stop-transporting-border-kids-We-bring-families-together-not-apart
10Cuellar ‘represents’ my district, he’s a DINO who is far too cozy with the Rescummies; why he’s like that I don’t know because the district is heavily Hispanic Democratic, but it indicates that Texas Hispanics are not near as D-leaning as most think.
Despite these latest immigration related atrocities, don’t y’all lose sight of all the other vile things that the Rethugs are busily doing very effectively.
Things like gutting Medicare, Social Security, Medicaid, opening our oceans and waters to massive pollution risks, further ticking off our allies, crippling more financial, SEC, FCC and EPA protections, and on and on.
And yet the noon TV news had as a lede story Trump magnanimously addressing the border baby, toddler, and youth abductions and disappearances via Executive Order, making it sound as if he’s riding to their rescue.
I’ve mentioned this criminality before:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forced_disappearance
“In international human rights law, a forced disappearance (or enforced disappearance) occurs when a person is secretly abducted or imprisoned by a state or political organization or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organization, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the person’s fate and whereabouts, with the intent of placing the victim outside the protection of the law.[1]
According to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, which came into force on 1 July 2002, when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed at any civilian population, a “forced disappearance” qualifies as a crime against humanity and, thus, ***is not subject to a statute of limitations***.”
And like the “Dirty War” in Argentina, babies and toddlers were stolen:
11https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forced_disappearance#Argentina
So SOBOTUS has rescinded his previous detention and disappearance orders (in part), and will be putting this class of migrant families into three existing South Texas ‘family detention centers’ (which have been filled for years).
12One of them isn’t far away from me. The town I’m near had a faction that was attempting to get one of these detention centers built here, luckily the ones who didn’t want it won out.
Never thought I would see it happen but the entire elected Republican core in both legislative bodies told Trump Hell No on the abduction of children of illegal immigrants. And Trump had to back down. Maybe if they like the taste of backbone they might keep on keeping on when it comes to Dear Leader and his “policies”. His poll numbers across the board have tanned and his disapproval rating is ini the nosebleed area.Thats something else I thought I would never see. This includes those people in bios 1/3 base who were offended by the policy. There was enough of them to make a hairpin dent in that base.
13I called all three and got very different responses:
14Cornyn – recording saying to leave your comment. Translation – he or staff have no time to talk to lowly voters
Culberson – actual male speaker – but very belligerent (I was polite). Attitude was “don’t try to tell us what to do” and tried to “mansplain to the stupid voter about how wise his boss was in doing what he did
Cuellar – actual female speaker. Very polite. Could be a difference in male vs. female staffer talking to a woman – but also could be a reflection of office attitude