New York Governor Andrew Cuomo recently appeared on MSNBC’s “Politics Nation” with Al Sharpton, and had a few thoughts regarding presidential candidate Donald Trump’s remarks on immigration. After opining that Trump has a “very strong instinct for entertainment” and is simply pandering to Republicans, Cuomo said of Trump’s supporters, “This says more about the audience than [it does about] the entertainer.”
The governor then went on to add that “if I believed in deportation, [Trump would] have a real problem if he’s a resident of the state of New York.” [Emphasis added]
Wait, what? If he believed in deportation? You mean he doesn’t? Also, is Cuomo saying he would consider deporting an alien, much less an American citizen, on the grounds that the person made a statement he finds distasteful? Does he not believe in the First Amendment?
But I’m getting ahead of myself. Is Cuomo actually unaware that states lack the authority to deport anyone? That’s a power enjoyed exclusively by the federal government.
The governor unwittingly packed an awful lot into that short sentence that demonstrates an ignorance of the law on many levels.
Apart from all that, Cuomo’s intemperate comments echo similar statements he’s made in the past about those he disagrees with politically. Last year he told Second Amendment supporters, believers in traditional marriage, and those who are pro-life that they “have no place in the state of New York.”
Howard Portnoy contributed to this report, an altered version of which is cross-posted at the Mental Recession.
