Allow your enemy to lead you where you want to go and where you want him to be. No, this is not a Sun Tsu quote. But it sounds like something he might have said. One of his minor disciples is Donald Trump. This one has an uncanny knack of letting his enemies waste all their firepower proclaiming him a monster (which the people already either fervently believe or equally fervently do not believe). He then concedes the prized ground that his enemies spent their blood for. Only then do they realize that he suckered them, once again. They are in the swamp and he occupies the high ground.
Consider this. The Executive Order (if it is not judicially barred) will require families to remain intact. But, out of an abundance of caution, and in order to prevent child trafficking, the veracity of each family claim will have to be verified by more than just a personal affidavit. In the absence of convincing documentation, DNA tests will be required. And that will set the cat amongst the pigeons. Fake parents will now be in jeopardy of getting more than an immigration charge. And even if a family passes muster they will not be released, and will be fully documented and identified for further processing including incarceration in some sort of camp.
Trump’s critics have handed him a way of strengthening the bureaucratic border, and forcing the abolition of the Flores 20 day rule. He is able to shuck off their cavils about his heartlessness. And he gets to expose their insouciance about child trafficking. Their one remaining redoubt will be the vain wish that the southern border will not be a border but a welcome center for any migrant, trafficker or criminal who can make the journey. All other borders will still guard fortress America against all potential invaders. A plainly ludicrous proposal, but one that will be proposed with a straight face that only a serious dose of botox could achieve.
I’m not claiming that he is playing 3-D chess, just that his enemies still think the game is checkers.