Deportation Is No Joke

A petition to deport Canadian-born singer Justin Bieber over his recent arrest has attracted well over 100,000 signatures, which is “the required threshold for an official review and response from the executive office.” Christopher Flavelle, also Canadian, hates these sort of stunts:

Americans, could you stop making summary deportation the default remedy for people you decide you don’t like? In what universe does it make sense for somebody to be deported just because 100,000 people sign a petition? The same universe where a Democratic administration deports a record 400,000 people a year to look tough on enforcement, in the hopes of persuading Republicans to agree to immigration reform, that’s where. Please stop treating us as props for whatever populist whimsy catches your flitting glance.