About a half hour ago, I watched Fareed Zakaria on CNN explain that the executive action by President Trump which temporarily bars entrance to the USA for people from a few countries where terrorism is prevalent is unconstitutional because it violates the First Amendment to the Constitution. Zakaria told the viewers that the order bars people on the basis of their religion, and that clearly violates the Constitution.
There is a slight problem with Zakaria's analysis. IT"S TOTALLY WRONG!!!
First, people who are not US citizens do not have constitutional rights when they are outside the USA. This is well established law. In other words, a Frenchman walking down the streets of Paris has no rights under the American Constitution. An Iranian student in Teheran who wants to come to New York has no rights under the American Constitution. The Supreme Court has made clear in repeated rulings that people trying to enter the USA (other than American citizens) do NOT have any constitutional rights.
Second, the Supreme Court has also made clear that the federal government has much greater power in dealing with people seeking entry to the USA than in essentially any other context. The people at customs can search you and your bags without any reason or even any basis for suspicion. Such searches would require a reasonable basis for suspicion and perhaps even a warrant at any other place in the USA.
Third, Trump's order does not bar people based upon religion. People from Iraq are temporarily barred be they Muslim, Yazidi, Druse, or any other religion.
So Zakaria is totally wrong in every aspect of his analysis. Still, CNN puts him on the air to spout his fake nonsense. Are the reporters and editors at CNN really that ignorant? Do they really know nothing about the facts here? Right now, I would have say that the likely answer is YES.
There is a slight problem with Zakaria's analysis. IT"S TOTALLY WRONG!!!
First, people who are not US citizens do not have constitutional rights when they are outside the USA. This is well established law. In other words, a Frenchman walking down the streets of Paris has no rights under the American Constitution. An Iranian student in Teheran who wants to come to New York has no rights under the American Constitution. The Supreme Court has made clear in repeated rulings that people trying to enter the USA (other than American citizens) do NOT have any constitutional rights.
Second, the Supreme Court has also made clear that the federal government has much greater power in dealing with people seeking entry to the USA than in essentially any other context. The people at customs can search you and your bags without any reason or even any basis for suspicion. Such searches would require a reasonable basis for suspicion and perhaps even a warrant at any other place in the USA.
Third, Trump's order does not bar people based upon religion. People from Iraq are temporarily barred be they Muslim, Yazidi, Druse, or any other religion.
So Zakaria is totally wrong in every aspect of his analysis. Still, CNN puts him on the air to spout his fake nonsense. Are the reporters and editors at CNN really that ignorant? Do they really know nothing about the facts here? Right now, I would have say that the likely answer is YES.
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