Sabertooth, as you and I have already discussed, immigration appears to be your key issue. It's not for many other people, though.
You brought up a host of issues, and I didn't feel that the point was well-taken that they are all examples of conservative accomplishments by President Bush, though many certainly are. I mentioned several, Illegal Aliens and enforcement of our immigration laws being one. While many may not find that to be a pressing issue, many clearly do. That's why the topic is getting so much play, not only on this thread, and in this forum, but on talk radio, in the news, and in the country at large. As mentioned, the President's immigration proposal is already DOA in the House.
So? Illegal Aliens are now a hot button issue this election, and the President is the one that's made it so, with his highly unpopular Amnesty proposal. That's not going to change between now and November. But if the Democrats were able to wrest control of either chamber of Congress or the White House, without doubt they would pass a bona fide blanket amnesty so fast it would make our heads spin.
First: no, they wouldn't pass a "blanket Amnesty," no one would, though they'd likely pass a worse Amnesty than President Bush is proposing. The term "Blanket Amnesty" is never anything more than a red herring. It means "Amnesty without restriction," and even the Democrats would have restrictions. Second: by proposing his own Amnesty and striking a highly divisive chord in the GOP, President Bush has empowered the Democrats. He's the source of the problem, not the people he's angered. America's vociferous and widespread opposition should not have been a surprise, and the semantic contortions the President has engaged to deny his Amnesty is an Amnesty are evidence it wasn't a surprise. To whatever degree his Amnesty proposal hinders GOP turnout in November, President Bush will be the person most responsible for that. They would be aided by John McCain, J. D. Hayworth, and several other border state Republicans, which means they would have an excellent change of getting it past both the House and Senate. There is where efforts to kill any form of amnesty should be focused.
Sorry, no deal. Congress must also be addressed, but Amnesty should be opposed wherever it's advanced, and right now, President Bush is by far the most powerful proponent of Amnesty for Illegal Aliens.
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