John Oliver makes a brutal closing argument about Trump and immigration for the midterms


President Trump, to the chagrin of a handful of House Republicans, has made immigration his closing salvo for the midterms, stoking terror and sending up to 15,000 troops to counter a slow-moving caravan of Central American migrants. On Sunday's Last Week Tonight, John Oliver accepted Trump's challenge to make Tuesday's election about Trump and immigration — but not on "hypotheticals," like birthright citizenship or U.S. troop deployments. He focused on family separation.
After Trump ended that policy following a national uproar, "the story kind of faded from the headlines," Oliver said. But new government reports show that while the policy "seemed malicious and chaotic at the time, at every step, it was even worse than you might assume."
The enactment of the policy was unpardonably sloppy, the motives baldly racist, and the whole thing tragically unnecessary, Oliver said. "Contrary to what you might think, most of the parents who were separated from their kids were charged, pled guilty, and served their sentence, all fairly quickly." And the vast majority of asylum seekers show up for their court hearings. Trump and his allies still argue that family separation was a necessary evil, but "we don't have to do any of it," he said. "There is not a war, and the only reason people keep talking like there is one is to give themselves permission to make the choices they want to be forced to make." He showed a real-life example of how family separation traumatized one mother and son. "Yeah, we did that — and not because we had to, but because we chose to," Oliver said. "And horrifically, we may actually be about to do it again."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
So sure, let's make Tuesday about Trump and immigration, Oliver said. "Because family separation is perhaps the most emblematic moment of his presidency so far: It was cruel, sloppy, needless, racist, and ultimately exactly what we should have expected." There is NSFW language and heartbreak. Watch below. Peter Weber
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
June 25 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Wednesday's cartoons include war on a loop, the New York City mayoral race, and one almighty F-bomb
-
How generative AI is changing the way we write and speak
In The Spotlight ChatGPT and other large language model tools are quietly influencing which words we use
-
How long can Nato keep Donald Trump happy?
Today's Big Question Military alliance pulls out all the stops to woo US president on his peacemaker victory lap
-
A long weekend in Zürich
The Week Recommends The vibrant Swiss city is far more than just a banking hub
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wife
speed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play
-
Giant schnauzer wins top prize at Westminster show
Speed Read Monty won best in show at the 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show
-
Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar take top Grammys
Speed Read Beyoncé took home album of the year for 'Cowboy Carter' and Kendrick Lamar's diss track 'Not Like Us' won five awards
-
The Louvre is giving 'Mona Lisa' her own room
Speed Read The world's most-visited art museum is getting a major renovation
-
Honda and Nissan in merger talks
Speed Read The companies are currently Japan's second and third-biggest automakers, respectively
-
Taylor Swift wraps up record-shattering Eras tour
Speed Read The pop star finally ended her long-running tour in Vancouver, Canada