General Discussion

Without that, they shouldn't have been given boarding passes by whatever airline they flew in on. Even I have to do that as a legal resident of Germany. It's a little over the top, I find, but that is what is on form asked of all passengers who list another county of residence, even US citizens. If I don't do it, I don't get the boarding pass. It's completely stupid. I could give the address of a local Starbucks, and the form would be accepted.

That having been said, if they can establish the financial wherewithal to stay five weeks in Hawai'i, then the CBP staff should have let them in. It's not like two teenage girls from Germany constitute a clear and present danger. Detaining them for days in a detention facility is by far the greater offense than their oversight when filling out the online form, which the airline should have reminded them of prior to even issuing a boarding pass in the first place. It is reasonable to conclude that terrorists were indeed present at their arrival, but they were not civilian German teenagers. Rather, they were the ones wearing U.S. CBP uniforms.

When this makes national headlines in Germany (give it about 8 minutes for the internet, another four hours for the TV news), the number of western Europeans still willing to book summer trips to the USA this summer should drop by another hundred thousand. There go a few million more in sales tax, hotel occupancy tax, and payroll taxes on salaries for service jobs. Republicans and the economy, again.

It's so good to know that the Republicans are looking out for our economy. That is, if watching it slip beneath the surface of the quicksand can be interpreted to be "looking out for our economy." Before posting, I will take a brief look. If there is anything yet in the German online news.

OK, THAT took all of ten seconds!

Zwei deutsche Teenager-Mädchen nach Hawaii-Einreise inhaftiert und deportiert
US-Einreise wird zum Albtraum: Zwei junge Deutsche landen statt am Strand im Gefängnis. Ihr Fall zeigt die verschärften Einreisekontrollen unter der Trump-Regierung und führt zu angepassten Reisewarnungen für die USA.

Two German teenage girls arrested and deported after entering Hawai'i.
US-trip became a nightmare: two young Germans, instead of landing on the beach, landed in jail. Their case demonstrates the stricter immigration controls under the Trump administration, and leads to appropriate travel warnings for the USA.