What Happens When We Run Out of Brown People?

A bait-and-switch is unfolding at the highest levels of our government, and millions of Americans are buying into it, hook, line, and sinker.

The bait? A nationwide obsession with illegal immigration.

The switch? The creation of the largest federal law enforcement agency in U.S. history. With the recent “Billionaire Bailout Bill” signed into law, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will be larger and better funded than the FBI, DEA, ATF, U.S. Marshals, and Bureau of Prisons combined. As a domestic standing army, ICE’s budget exceeds that of most militaries worldwide. Countries maintain militaries to defend themselves against foreign enemies. The ICE army, by contrast, targets perceived enemies on American soil.

To process the people ICE is snatching off our streets, private corporations are racing to cash in by building massive detention centers to hold America’s newest domestic prisoners. CoreCivic and the GEO Group are preparing to imprison the 3,000 people per day that ICE plans to snatch off our streets. Multiple reports confirm that conditions in these facilities are horrifying: overcrowded, unsanitary, and lacking medical care. Since January, six people have died in ICE custody. Human rights groups increasingly warn that the U.S. is operating modern-day concentration camps.

Do we really need a well-funded militarized force and a sprawling network of prisons just to handle undocumented immigration?

Even if you accept the need to detain and deport undocumented immigrants, the scale of ICE’s expansion makes no sense unless you understand its true purpose. It’s not about immigration at all. Think about it: once the administration runs out of brown people to target, that vast network of prisons, along with Trump’s standing domestic army, will still be in place, ready for action. Standing back and standing by, as Trump would say.

Trump inadvertently revealed ICE’s true purpose recently at a campaign event in Iowa on July 3. He started by talking about how Democrats hate him. His response revealed more than he realized. “But I hate them, too. You know that? I really do, I hate them. I cannot stand them, because I really believe they hate our country.”

And there you have it. The expansion of ICE is not about immigration policy. It’s about enemies. And Trump is openly telling us who he plans to target: Dissenters. Protesters. Journalists. Teachers. Union leaders. Democrats. You. Me.

That’s the switch. Hatred for immigrants was the perfect bait. It was a means to an end. With a massive prison infrastructure and an army of political goons at his disposal, Trump will shift his focus toward new targets: Americans who refuse to get in line with his goals. These Americans will face a well-funded internal army that gained battlefield experience by rounding up and “disappearing” brown people.

Strap in, America. The road ahead is rough, and the guardrails have been blown away. Stand up now, or bow down later.