Most of us with a heart and soul are heartbroken over the news that a 20-year-old Iowa woman has died at the hands of someone who grabbed her, took her into a field and killed her.
Her name was Mollie Tibbetts. She was jogging along a rural road when she disappeared.
Now we have a suspect — Cristhian Bahena Rivera –who happens to be an undocumented immigrant from Mexico. I am steeling myself for what I expect to be the maximum politicization of this tragic event. The Politicizer in Chief, Donald J. Trump, is likely to lead the “I told you so” chorus that cries out for the immediate arrest and deportation of all such immigrants.
I do not want that to happen. Sadly, I fear that it will occur. Indeed, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott put out a message immediately upon the arrest of the suspect that Texas was correct to out law “sanctuary cities,” where illegal immigrants have been protected against arrest and potential deportation. That’s fine, governor. How about putting a lid on politicking further upon the grief of a stricken family?
Do you think the president of the United States will show discretion? I rather doubt it … strongly!
It’s the nature of the climate in this era of demonization. One man allegedly commits a crime and we are likely now to assign nefarious motives to others just like him who have come into this country without proper documentation.
I prefer simply to grieve for Mollie Tibbetts.
And let the criminal justice system take care of Cristhian Rivera.