Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I, too, regret President Trump's executive order relating to immigrants and refugees, and I certainly think it is a retrograde step in terms of promoting solidarity with some of the world's most vulnerable people. However, there were no protests against the Obama Administration's already mean and ungenerous approach to the admission of Syrian refugees, if the United States is compared with other countries. It is the right of the US Government to decide who it lets into its country, even if we do not like its decisions. If we were not willing to put US preclearance in issue over the fact the United States already allows capital punishment and continues to be enthusiastic about it, I do not think that we should be so in this instance either. It seems to me that there is an element of selective compassion about the responses across the board. There will be things that Donald Trump will do that will horrify us. There will be things that he will do that we will agree with. We must be mindful of our position and our need to be consistent.

To turn to a matter that we can influence in this House, ba bhreá liomsa dá dtiocfadh an tAire, an Teachta Heather Humphreys, isteach sa Teach chun plé a dhéanamh linn ar an seasamh atá ag an Rialtas i leith na Gaeilge.