Overtargeting is a communication strategy that political parties use to ensure the target population complies.

During COVID, governments required universal vaccination, even though the primary benefits (preventing ER visits) were for elders and the immunocompromised. The goal was to make elders think, "If even healthy people need this, I better get mine quickly." This tactic worked and probably did saved lives (we will never know), but at the cost of widespread distrust in vaccine recommendations.

The Trump administration is doing the same with immigrants. By overtargeting — jailing and deporting people for saying the wrong thing (and tattoos) — they get everybody else to fear for their actions and fall in line, regardless of whether they have done anything wrong or not. It's the same story all over again.

Overtargeting is a lie. And just like any lie, it exchanges short-term results for long-term trust. Once you break that trust, there is no easy way back.

Personally, I don't feel very safe criticizing the administration right now — a feeling I never thought possible in this country.