"Border security is the primary element of national security." - emptywheel

"Border security is the primary element of national security. Not one important element. The primary one. That's an insane assertion, of course. The military, the economy, real terrorism (including far right terrorism), cybersecurity, sovereign democracy all take a back seat to whatever Stephen Miller flunky had final control over the edit of the NSS, who wrote down something insane, prioritizing the border over all else."

"The story might be better staged as a Coen Brothers buddy movie featuring Stephen Miller, channeling Dr. Strangelove, looking for any opportunity to push harder against immigration, preferably in the form of bombing, even if it contributes to the root cause of drug trafficking and immigration, while Marco Rubio pursues the most stale kind of Cuban-American politics. The story is so rambling, presumably because the subject and the insanity requires it, that I will attempt to map it."

The sentence "Border security is the primary element of national security" appears on page 11 of the National Security Strategy. The statement elevates border security above other major national-security concerns, including the military, the economy, terrorism, cybersecurity, and sovereign democracy. The phrasing reflects apparent influence from Stephen Miller and has been labeled an "insane assertion" for sidelining other priorities. The current emphasis on Venezuela-related policy coincided with a February deal in which Marco Rubio arranged with Nayib Bukele to deport 300 people and the United States would pay nearly $5 million. The policy dynamic is portrayed as chaotic and politically driven.

Read at emptywheel