New Orleans        The United States under Trump and MAGA is becoming not just a rouge nation, but also an island unto itself, making travel domestically fraught for both natives and immigrants, and building walls at our borders both physically and financially.  I’m not even talking about unilateral military actions, which have pushed away allies and others.  I’m talking about travel of any kind.

Of course, now there are lines and delays at airport security checkpoints run by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) because of the budgetary stalemate in Congress, as Democrats refuse to support some parts of Homeland Security funding in order to get accountability from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) division and Republicans remain stubborn and steadfast as well.  Lines in Houston are taking four hours.  Lines in New Orleans on Sunday’s and Monday’s snake out into the street and down to the baggage level.  Workers are getting partial to zero pay during the shutdown and in some cases have action.  Families that have been stranded on spring break trips aren’t happy with either side.

That’s only the topline of the story in addition to Trump trying to insert ICE as militarized hall monitors.  It turns out that TSA has also been coordinating with ICE to alert them when immigrants come through the line, if there is an outstanding judicial court order.  ICE can then arrest them for deportation.  This is probably no surprise.  I have found TSA workers in general in my frequent flying experience to be friendly and helpful, so I was sorry to read about this other side of their work.

Everything about travel by foreign friends and visitors has also become immeasurably harder.  Getting and keeping a visa is now something that can’t be taken for granted.  That’s the case for those from the lucky, favored countries by the administration.  The State Department this week added more than a dozen other countries on the list that are not allowed to travel bringing the total of countries now barred to 50.  A huge number of these countries are located in Africa and fit Trump’s prejudice as being “shithole” nations.

There’s a loophole for these 50, so maybe when I say they are barred it’s not 100% correct.  Citizens from these countries can apply for a visa if they post a bond that can range from $5000 to $15000, although I’m not sure how State determines this for each country and individual.  The bond is vacated and returned if the visa is denied.  If the visa is approved and the traveler returns, as promised, back to their home country, then it is also voided.  Of course, if overstayed, then its cashed.  The new list of countries added includes Cambodia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Grenada, Lesotho, Mauritius, Mongolia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Seychelles, and Tunisia.  I’m clueless to explain why this list represents new security concerns or other problems for the USA.

Then of course there’s the wall being built with billions on the southern border of the US with Mexico running willy-nilly through public lands, protected wildlife areas, and anything else in its way.  Additionally, there and elsewhere the US is now forcing asylum seekers to stay put wherever they are in order to keep them out of the country.

Freedom of movement has been a special right that the United States has always advocated.  One of the selling points for creation and continuance of the European Union has been the ability for residents there to travel seamlessly between countries for work and pleasure.  The US is paying a price for Trump’s attempt to make the country a fortress nation.  Canadian tourism has plummeted.  New York City reports significant declines.  Foreign student enrollment has capsized.  All of these restrictions have hurt US business as well as our reputation.

Besides hate and prejudice, it’s hard to see the point of all of this.  These walls will be hard to take down in the future.  Repairing domestic and global goodwill will be even harder.