Posted on 11/07/2012 12:35:45 PM PST by Bratch
I think Chuck Todd has this right, and not just because of last night’s poor showing for Republicans among Hispanics. In looking at the daunting issues facing the lame-duck 112th Congress and the incoming 113th, comprehensive immigration reform might be a comparative slam-dunk:
After Tuesday night’s re-election victory for President Barack Obama, MSNBC’s Chuck Todd predicted that one of the president’s agenda items — one promise he never managed to fulfill in his first term — would breeze into law. ”Immigration reform,” he said, will get “80 to 90 votes in the Senate.” Since the election night results showed Republicans unable to attract Latino voters, he said, “Republicans will run, not walk, in trying to support that now.”
The question isn’t whether Republicans will rush to back some version of comprehensive immigration reform. There have always been enough Republican votes in the Senate to pass a reform plan. A Republican President came close to passing a version of it in 2007 but got demagogued by Democrats and halted by conservatives in the Senate who thought it gave too much away. Had Obama chosen to propose immigration reform in 2009, ahead of ObamaCare and particularly if he had allowed Republicans more of a bipartisan role in shaping a stimulus package both sides wanted in one form or another, Obama could easily have passed immigration on his terms three years ago.
Now, immigration reform looks like low-hanging fruit compared to the crises that face our political class now. The lame-duck Congress has to undo sequestration and deal with Taxmageddon. The next Congress has to figure out how to deal with massive deficits and unfunded entitlement liabilities that will crush the American economy within a decade without serious reform. On those issues, there is substantial philosophical and ideological hostility. In comparison, there are only a few issues keeping immigration reform from being passed, nearly none of which are ideological, and most of which are either technical or matters of prioritization.
I’d expect this to get taken up in early 2013 and pass by the summer, with substantial compromise on both sides. It may be the only real bipartisanship we see next year.
My congressman better hold the line on illegal immigration.
Sure, alienate more of the base. And the rinos in the senate will go along.
There are enough idiot RINOs that will grant citizenship to hard core Marxist thugs under the absurd notion that it will win them some votes.
If amnesty passes, this country is finished forever.
RINO’s, libertarians and conservatives and Christians need to part the ways. We have nothing in common any more.
Liberaltarians are the natural enemy of conservatives and the Libtarians should all die in a massive cultic suicide for all I care.
Let the RINO’s start their own party.
The GOP is dead.
reform???? how about freakin enforcement of our current laws, standards and practices for LEGAL immigration????
If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. Open the borders and let ‘em all come in. When stuff starts blowing up, head for the hills.
Who will be left for the angry old white men to vote for?
Yes, this is probably true. Republicans will probably cave on this thinking it will help them win Hispanic votes. It won’t. Hispanics are voting Democrat because a high percentage of them are poor and rely on government. They want free stuff. Period. It isn’t really any more complicated than that.
Should we be more mindful how we speak on issues of immigration? Yes. Should we make every effort to reach out to Hispanics so we don’t lose them by massive margins like we do now? Absolutely. But this nut is going to be tough to crack. The problem is they support big government social welfare programs. We could literally spearhead immigration reform and it wouldn’t help much since that is not why they don’t support the GOP.
I thought amnesty had already become law after Obama’s Executive Order Dream Act.
Exactly: And he is right. Republicans will back whatever Obama tosses at them ,because most of them are democrats in disguise anyway and the rest have no balls.
Neither party is worth supporting.
Right, just like failing to oppose “affirmative action” brought all those blacks into the GOP. Their problem was not opposing reverse discrimination in its infancy 40 years ago. Would have brought alot of Anglos into the party decades earlier. Same with immigration, should have kept the quotas instead of allowing the disruption of demographics. Now we are reaping the ill effects, not just politically but the inevitable riots and terrorist acts and continued whining from these groups.
If the Republican Party caves on illegals, we are finished as a country.
Just imagine 10-20 million illegals here plus chain migration, we would be committing national suicide.
70% of all legal and illegal Latin American immigrants are dependent on the welfare state.
If conservatives want to turn the US into a 3rd world country, this is the quickest and surest way to do it.
And if anybody believes that naturalizing all these illegals will be somehow good for the GOP has a loose screw in his head.
The fact is the GOP lost in multiple states that are almost purely White and hardly any illegals or Hispanics, so losing had nothing or little to do with the Latino vote.
I thought amnesty had already become law after Obama’s Executive Order Dream Act.
71% of Hispanics and 74% of Asian’s voted for Obama. GOP strategist Mike Murphy said in October 2011 that if you re-ran the 1980 election using today’s demographics, Reagan would win...but barely.
Demographics is destiny...
Your Post #10 is spot-on.
Classic over-the-barrel situation. The GOP has two choices:
1. Ignore the Hispanics’ demands to give blanket amnesty to illegals, and continue to see them flock to the dems by 75%... or...
2. Appease the Hispanics’ demands to give blanket amnesty to illegals and continue to see them... and the erstwhile illegals... flock to the dems by 70%.
We are truly screwed, here. The point of no return has been passed.
I guess bleeding out from slitting their wrists isn’t going fast enough, so they’ll just blow their brains out instead.
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