The Truth Found a Voice in Rick Perry

September 23, 2011 | Vanity

[Cincinatus' Wife]

THE TRUTH FOUND A VOICE IN RICK PERRY

FoxNews-Google GOP Primary Debate [September 22, 2011] Gov. Rick Perry: [snip] ………If you say that we should not educate children who have come into our state for no other reason than that they've been brought there, through no fault of their own, I don't think you have a heart. We need to be educating these children because they will become a drag on our society. I think that's what Texans wanted to do. Out of 181 members of the Texas legislature, when this issue came up -- only four dissenting votes. This was a state issue. Texas voted on it. And I still support it greatly. [end] Texas Gov. Rick Perry responding to a question by Chris Wallace

Gov. Rick Perry has stated (for years) that the U.S. border with Mexico must be sealed. He has requested assistance (many people on the ground and drones in the air for Intel – he has studied how this is done in Israel). As Governor of Texas, he has been rebuked in person by the current president, who refuses his pleas for the Federal government to do its duty and provide the necessary means by which to seal our country’s international border with Mexico. The governor’s written requests go unheeded.

Texas spends hundreds of millions of dollars of state money to defend its border with Mexico. An elite Texas Ranger unit, put together by Perry, is working to hold the line on our border. Rick Perry has stated that fences do work in urban areas but are not effective, let alone feasible, along the 2000 mile Mexico - U.S. border (1200 miles in Texas alone). The Federal government ignores this problem, while at the same time blaming and punishing border governors when they try to protect their states. People in other states, without understanding the facts, blame border governors when this federally manufactured problem spreads into their states.

President Obama believes security is just fine on the border (better in fact than before he took office) and frankly, he’s following past examples where foreigners are allowed to cross into the U.S., where those with work visas are allowed to slip into U.S. society without any earnest, federal or court action to prevent it, where states are not allowed to ask children their legal status before attending school, where healthcare is accessible to everyone and where federal “social justice” programs have been put into place, thus beginning the progressive process of teaching new generations that it is “normal” to be dependent on government largess. [funded by those “more fortunate” Americans]

Then, periodically, another couple of generations are proclaimed by the federal government to be in the U.S. legally, by magnanimously proclaiming, “You can come out of the dark now and stay.” [sign up here for your Democratic Party voter card]

Rick Perry, as president, wants to finally seal the border and stop the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs – stop those vile cartels who traffic in human beings and drugs, and secure a dangerous, porous entry used by terrorists seeking to destroy America. The current administration is willfully enabling those who prefer border security remain as it is, those who characteristically (for self interest) want to avoid addressing and dealing with these problems.

Undeniably, Governor Perry is the GOP candidate most familiar with this issue and the problems associated with it. Texas has a long and rich history with Mexico. Mexico is the number one trading partner with America. Many U.S. citizens have Mexican ancestors who are proud Texans and Americans, many who have, are, and are willing to fight for America. Hispanics are the largest minority living in the United States. They have a high birth rate and are a major minority voting demographic. This didn’t happen because Texas shares over 1200 miles of international border with Mexico. The current magnitude of the problem, along with the number of the illegals in Texas and the United States, has everything to do with historic and current Federal inaction.

The Federal government looks to the states and tells them to “deal with it.” So state governments and their citizens have to “deal with” crime and a fast growing, uneducated population that puts a huge strain on state and federal resources. The resulting fall out for state government is, “you’re damned if you do and "you’re damned if you don’t." Gov. Perry and the Texas Legislature have accepted the criticism for taking the “damned if we do” path because they’re “dealing with it” first hand and Texans understand that "we're damned if we don't." These children are here, their potential and future has been put on our watch -- it is a practical and human decision and as Rick Perry said, “You don’t have a heart if you don’t.”

In 2001 the Texas Legislature voted in an Act (signed by Gov. Rick Perry) allowing children brought to the U.S. illegally (basically stateless people) by their parents, who complete 3 years of high school in Texas (graduate and want to attend college) to apply for U.S. citizenship and pay instate tuition. Their “anchor baby” siblings have this right by virtue of the 14th Amendment (that gave citizenship to children of slaves – slavery was abolished by the 13th Amendment). If the country wants to abolish “anchor babies,” a majority of states need to vote for a change to the U.S. Constitution. The Texas education program is called the Texas Dream Act. The Texas Dream Act is not the same as the rejected Federal Dream Act proposed by the U.S. Senate because that federal legislation in totality and reality was an immigration bill.

The purpose of the Texas Dream Act is to have successful, educated citizens contributing toward a strong economy -- not unemployed or underemployed school dropouts who place a huge drain on our system [and begin generational poverty in their communities]. As past Federal actions have repeatedly shown Texas, illegal immigrants most likely will be allowed to stay. So the smart thing to do is allow them to pay instate tuition and be contributing citizens versus benefits receiving citizens. Gov. Mitt Romney does not agree with this and in fact rejected this approach in Massachusetts.

The truth found a voice in Rick Perry. Gov. Perry has said and believes that Conservative Ascendancy is how we will bring America back from the brink. Besides getting Americans working again we need to show them the value of conservatism and how those values encourage and support strong families and a free country.

Last night former Gov. Mitt Romney sounded like a “Snidley Whiplash-Simon Legree” character, while Gov. Rick Perry was “Dudley do right” looking after “Little Orphan Annie.” How do you think Barack Obama will (or won't) play these sound bites in his re-election bid for 4 more years?

Mitt Romney wants the status quo, which continues to feed the pipeline of generational, programmed victims -- driving trapped and dependent people into the arms of the growing army of the Democratic “fight for social justice” Party. Rick Perry wants to change the status quo and bring more voters into freedom – businesses owners, entrepreneurs eager to join the Republican Conservative Ascendancy Party – no matter what their last name or color, or gender or faith. And the border must be sealed first in order to do this.

Do the math. Rush Limbaugh has. Rush, like Gov. Perry, wants everyone to succeed (not secede). Rush, like Rick Perry, knows we’re at the crossroads that will decided the future path of the United States (and the world). Will it be Perpetual Dependency or Conservative Ascendancy? Democratic Party leaders are herding us into warring camps hoping to take us on the road to socialism. The states must take back power from the Federal government and get this country back on the road to free market capitalism.

This isn’t a Sound Bite issue.

“Nice try” Mitt.

[Tribune7]

Every state has different tuition rates for out-of-state students.

It's because the families of non-residents don't pay the state taxes that subsidize the higher education system.

[muawiyah]

There are a lot of theories about why states give instate rates. At the same time were you aware that Texas universities are authorized to take the rates away if you end up taking too long to graduate OR if your grades sink.

They punish slower students with higher rates. Now what the devil theory is that one?

[Sun]

“And once we reward them even more for breaking the law there will be no border and no sovereignty left.”

And, because of their votes, Democrats will have control of our government for the rest of our lives.

[Cboldt]

The law passed under HB 1403 was revised, and section 54.052 of the Texas Education Code no longer contains the "file an affidavit" language you cited.

See http://www.thecb.state.tx.us/reports/PDF/1528.PDF for a brief discussion of this, and the reason for changing the Texas law.

The same provision you noted, relating to an affidavit, now appears at section 54.053(3) of the Texas Education Code.

54.053. INFORMATION REQUIRED TO ESTABLISH RESIDENT STATUS.

A person shall submit the following information to an institution of higher education to establish resident status under this subchapter: ...

(3) if the person applies for resident status under Section 54.052(a)(3):
(A) a statement of the dates and length of time the person has resided in this state, as relevant to establish resident status under this subchapter; and
(B) if the person is not a citizen or permanent resident of the United States, an affidavit stating that the person will apply to become a permanent resident of the United States as soon as the person becomes eligible to apply.

Amended by Acts 2005, 79th Leg., ch. 888, S: 3, eff. Sept. 1, 2005.

Also, See Tex. Att'y Gen. Op. No. GA-0732 (2009) for the Texas AG's legal opinion on the conflict between the Texas law and the federal law. The below blockquote is from the Summary section of the report.

However, the terms "postsecondary education benefit" and "residence" are not defined in the federal law. In addition, no Texas or federal court has construed these terms or considered the substantive application of the federal law to a statute similar to the Texas statutes. Thus, while a federal or state court in Texas, following the reasoning of an intermediate California state appellate court decision, could find that 8 U.S.C. 1623 preempts Education Code sections 54.052(a)(3) and 54.053(3) to the extent of the conflict with the federal law, given the paucity of judicial precedent, this office cannot predict with certainty that a court would so find. ...

The United States Supreme Court has "approved bona fide residency requirements in the field of public education." Martinez v. Bynum, 461 U.S. 321, 326-27 (1983). Additionally, the Court has recognized "that a State has a legitimate interest in protecting and preserving the quality of its colleges and universities and the right of its own bona fide residents to attend such institutions on a preferential tuition basis." Vlandis v. Kline, 412 U.S. 441, 452-53 (1973). "This 'legitimate interest' permits a 'State [to] establish such reasonable criteria for in-state status as to make virtually certain that students who are not, in fact, bona fide residents of the State, but who have come there solely for educational purposes, cannot take advantage of the in-state rates.'" Bynum, 461 U.S. at 327 (quoting Vlandis, 412 U.S. at 453-54).

Accordingly, a federal or state court in Texas would likely conclude that Education Code sections 54.052(a)(3) and 54.053(3) do not facially violate the federal Equal Protection Clause because the statutory prerequisites for in-state tuition are reasonable requirements that serve Texas's legitimate or substantial interest in assuring that only bona fide residents that graduate from Texas high schools or receive the diploma equivalent from this state are eligible for in-state tuition. However, no court has addressed whether a statute similar to the Texas statutes conforms to the mandates of the Equal Protection Clause.

The point you are making still stands, but you were using dated (and no longer existing) authority as a basis.

[Kartographer]

Those sentence work just fine together. They milk the cow for free milk any cow. It just happens we have the best cow around. If Canada was on one side and we were on the other they do to Canada just what they are doing here if Canada would let them.

[Razz Barry]

PLEASE ANSWER! DO YOU THINK I AM HEARTLESS TOO? DO YOU LIKE PERRY INSULT PEOPLE WHO DO NOT AGREE WITH YOU?

No, and sometimes.

Those I believe heartless are; all three branches of our government, those who hired the illegals, and the illegals themselves. None of them care what they have done to us and our country. They don't care that they have taken away our birthright. It does not bother them that the decedents of those killed fighting for this country have been pushed aside for people who broke our laws. People who insult us by not speaking the language of the documents written by our founders.

Yes, I have insulted people who don't agree with me, especially on this issue. It's the least I can do for my kinsman who fought to make this country GREAT. The least I can do for those who died on foreign soil so I could be free. My insulting them is a lot less than they deserve.

When I think of all those who died defending our country, I ask myself, "Would they have risked their lives had they known their government would force their posterity to be subservient to foreign invaders?"

[kabar]

If you want to be silly, be my guest. Building a fence or physical barrier does not change national borders.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Yes. The power vacuum in Rome allowed for its demise.

Sort of like the U.S. today, as Obama puts us out to dry in front of the rest of the world, while at the same time cripples our economy.

[gogogodzilla]

I don’t believe in a fence... I believe in a minefield. Does that make me a RINO?

I also believe that mmost illegals would self-deport themselves if we ended all their benefits. No welfare, no Medicare/MedicAid, no foodstamps, NOTHING.

But the logic here is that a fence is the ONLY true way to deal with this issue... and anyone that doesn’t agree is a illegal-loving RINO scumbag.

Which means that we must continue to give benefits to illegals to be true Conservatives.

And I say BULL!

[hocndoc]

Texan children and adults live on this side of the river that forms our 1200 mile border with Mexico. I personally would do everything I could to prevent mining my back yard - let”s do yours first.

Illegal aliens do not legally get welfare,Medicare,Medicaid, or foodstamps in Texas. We give them emergency medical care and K-12 educations with free meals, because the Feds force us to. I’ll bet your home town and state does too.

[fluffdaddy]

The idea that any Republican candidate would be better than Obama is one of the many idiocies Gingrich has perpetrated lately. Mitt Romney would be worse than Obama, much worse. A Romney presidency would mean both parties were committed to maintaining the progessive status quo. Romney would be Obama without the escape hatch of an opposition party agitating or a change of direction. He would be Obama with no prospect that the next election might bring relief.

Newt Gingrich is not going to be on the Republican ticket and neither is Herman Cain. They certainly aren't going to be on a ticket together since they're both from Georgia and can't both get Georgia's electoral votes. Newt is utterly undisciplined. He's good at spinning off ideas but he has no capacity for separating the good ones from the bad ones. “Right-wing social engineering” alone is disqualifying, and lets not even talk about Dede Scozzafava or Nancy Pelosi and global warming. Newt is a valuable member of the chattering class, but he has no business running for President and he won't get very far. Herman Cain just doesn't have a presidential resume. That may not be fair. It doesn't matter. He will never break out of single digits.

You just aren't grappling with reality here in a number of respects. There is no alternative to Perry and the immigration issue is both substantively and politically immaterial.

Immigration is substantively immaterial because it doesn't distinguish Perry from any other candidate. Perry has a soft spot for illegals. So does every other member of the political class. This is one thing all the players agree on. Nobody with a shot at the White House in either party would deal with our illegal immigration problem more aggressively than Rick Perry would. You won't see serious action from any of them.

Politically, immigration is immaterial because it doesn't move enough votes to count. How many times to the immigration zealots have to be disappointed at the polls before they get the message. Almost nobody cares.

Those of us expecting this issue to hamper Perry are going to be disappointed, yet again.

Let's deal with reality. We either have to find a serious alternative or reconcile ourselves to Perry. There is no third option.

[listenhillary]

The river is the border. Does the fence go on our side of the river or Mexico’s side of the river. Or put the fence in the middle of the river?

I didn’t think I was being silly. Just looking at doing the actual placement of the fence and who gets cut off from the water.

Who should get cut off from water. The USA or Mexico?

[WFTR]

I read what you wrote in your commentary, and what you said was ridiculous. As long as we give people an incentive to come to this country illegally, they will come. The federal government could do a better job of keeping them out of our country, but that's no excuse for Rick Perry adding to the incentives for people to break the law. As long as Rick Perry is adding to the incentives for people to break the law, he's part of the problem and not part of the solution.

The real issue is that Rick Perry just isn't much of a conservative. I guess for people who measure conservatism by being bombastic and inarticulate, he's a conservative, but for those of us who look for someone who will advance policies and causes that will move the country in the right direction, Rick Perry doesn't have the right stuff. You can be as snippy and sarcastic as you want, but you aren't making him into a conservative. If he has a strong enough Congress behind him, he may not be a bad president, but Obama will have to fall even farther before Rick Perry can win the general election.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Gov. Rick Perry has already engaged and won battles against:

Big Education!

Big Law Suit Abuse!

Big EPA green regulations!

Perry Doctrine: "We Stand with our Allies"

[no-to-illegals]

You see, that is the whole point, they did not break the law.

Have always looked forward to this type of view. I fully understand your opinion and point of view though, in the view of the law and Rule of Law your understanding is invalid. These persons were brought into this nation by their parents. The parents came illegally as did their children. I realize it is difficult for some to understand and have given up (mostly) on arguments due to my view; the American people will decide when they (the American people) decide. Do not desire to argue with you, though some people have finally seen what is taking place is an invasion and a loss of taxpayer funds to those who broke our laws and are rewarded. Breaks my heart for the taxpayers who are robbed by rewarding the lawbreakers with the taxpayers' money, and this is what is currently fashionable with politicians seeking to remove your money to reward someone undeserving. Why not give your money to legals and citizens? Are the legals and citizens less deserving?

[Tribune7]

At the same time were you aware that Texas universities are authorized to take the rates away if you end up taking too long to graduate OR if your grades sink.

I was not. Good for Texas!

[no-to-illegals]

Guess many people believe in rewarding bad behavior and law breakers. This is true of politicians who reward people who are not citizens with citizens’ money. While it would be best and perfect to not reward anyone, but rather instead cause those here legally and citizens to be responsible for themselves, the politicians continue with the game of pitting one group against another group; Choosing winners and losers. That method is not the method of the Founders. Few will read, fewer will know the truth.

[Tribune7]

If Obama is re-elected this country is going to be Mexico.

Actually it would be more like Venezuela.

[Georgia Girl 2]

Well if you are so invested in a Perry presidency then I suggest you have a little one on one with him and tell him its a bad idea to call your own base heartless. And he needs to know that instate tuition for illegals is a non starter with conservatives. He turned a lot of people off Thurs night.

[catfish1957]

Yep, I was leaning Perry until this gaffe. He sure can have a good heart with our tax dollars. What a dip.

Here's hoping and praying for a DeMint candidacy.