Local leaders react to POTUS’ Travel Ban

President Donald Trump has banned travel from seven predominantly Muslim countries.

The executive order has caused protests at airports all over the world. Some of our local leaders are also sharing their thoughts on the ban.

Chairwoman of the Bonneville County Democrats, Miranda Marquit, weighed in on the ban being considered “discrimination.”

She cited the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965.

“We’re not supposed to be putting a ban against people coming from specific countries. Whatever you want to call it, whatever label you want to put on it, the bottom line is this sort of ban is frankly against our values as Americans,” Marquit said.

Stephanie Mickelsen, president of the Bonneville County Republican Women, said one Trump’s biggest responsibilities as president is to protect the American people.

“I think what he was trying to do in this order was to take a breather, take a pause, if you will, and take the time to look at what the policies are so that he could make Americans safe. Do I agree of how he did it maybe? Not necessarily but I think that the stopping to say ‘Let’s look at people who we have coming in with the current immigration laws’ was probably the right thing to do,” Mickelsen said.

Both leaders agree this will not affect the Gem State as much as it would other states.

However, Marquit said Idaho already is not as welcoming to refugees and immigrants as it could be. She worries this ban will not help with the view of immigrants.

“I do think that it will likely inflame more feelings in that we have against immigrants and that we have against people of other nationalities,” Marquit said.

“I don’t think it will make a huge impact to Idaho. I think that a lot of immigrants tend to flock to the bigger cities, where they’ll have communities of people like them. If you go to New York, they’ll have a community of Russian people, they have a community of Jewish people, they have different communities,” Mickelsen said.

Mickelsen added that from Republican women’s standpoint, compassion is important.

“We have to remember that in a lot of those countries, where he put that ban in place, there are a lot of women and children that are treated as property. That women have no rights and we have to be compassionate enough with our immigration policy that we that we take into account, the safety-first for our citizens and then do what we can do on a compassionate, humanitarian level,” Mickelsen said.