Immigration Rising on Bush's To-Do List

LA Times ^ | July 24, 2005 | By Peter Wallsten and Nicole Gaouette

[SC33]

Immigration Rising on Bush's To-Do List The White House wants to build a coalition to court Latinos and marginalize hard-liners. By Peter Wallsten and Nicole Gaouette, Times Staff Writers WASHINGTON — Worried that the tone of the immigration debate is pushing Latinos away from the Republican Party, the White House is working with political strategists to create a broad coalition of business groups and immigrant advocates to back a plan President Bush could promote in Congress and to minority voters in the 2006 elections.

[taxed2death]

"Immigration Rising on Bush's To-Do List The White House wants to build a coalition to court Latinos and marginalize hard-liners."

Change "Hard-liners" to conservatives and ya sound about right.

[dob]

Yup - this is pure insanity. The base came through for Bush, and now he wants to kick us in the teeth. He should rename this effort the "GSI" or "GOP Suicide Initiative".

[chris1]

Exactly. If the RATS put up a genuine anti-ILLEGAL immigration person who was in favor of the war on terror, he/she would win hands down.

[chris1]

No kidding. After waiting in line and going through so much red tape, they are told that it is ok for these criminal bums to hop the line and get everything anyway.

[chris1]

"They just couldn't (aka wouldn't) believe that their 9/11 President would betray them even though there was plenty of evidence to the contrary to show them what he really was all along and what he was really all about."

Its amazing how dense GWB can be on this issue consdering his statements of freedom for Iraq and the arab world!

[afnamvet]

Corporations and advocacy groups with a direct interest in immigration — including those who need skilled high-tech workers, farm laborers and university teaching assistants — are being aggressively targeted for membership. Those being courted include Microsoft Corp., Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and groups representing academic institutions, restaurants, hotels, landscaping firms, hospitals and nurses.

It's all about greed.

The LA Slimes insists on using the word immigration. It's illegal immigration that is the main issue here.

Finally. the President and this congress have a golden opportunity to ensure that all of our borders are secured. Failing to do this hinges on treason in a time of war.

[SC33]

exactly right. www.latinoamericans.org

[Reaganwuzthebest]

As for the global train it's right on the track with the Democrats firing the engine and the Republican engineer at the throttle.

Both parties do seem to favor these insane globalist policies at the moment I agree. Unless we can elect more congressman like Tancredo in the next few years I don't see any turning back from it.

[KC_for_Freedom]

Here is the key quote from the article you provided: She notes that another volatile issue for Latino voters, Prop. 187 was heavily supported by Latinos, 52 percent to 42 percent two months before the vote. But 77 percent of Latinos voted against it.

Now, does it really make sense that the poll showed 52% support but lost with 77% voting against? Note too that prop 187 passed with about two thirds of the electorate. Thus a vast number of hispanics joined the democratic party, the party that supported services for illegals.

You raise the correct issue, what should Bush/Rove do? If there is an attack with terrorists using the mexican entrance pathways, Bush will justifiably be blamed, by his people and the democrat controlled media. Thus, if you are going to be stigmatized anyway, why not just come out in favor of putting the Guard on the border and closing it?

With the issue of potential terrorism hanging over your head, and with elections decided by only a few swing states, such as New Mexico (which has a large integrated hispanic vote), what steps do you take viz a viz illegal immigration? Can you do better than making a massive effort to close the border and letting your political enemies demonize you while your base applauds and are themself demonized for this?

Bush has proposed allowing the workers in with controls such as identification taken. (He calles this a guest worker program, and we know from experience that these workers eventually gain permanent status.) I believe it would be better to have them in country with Identification on file than have them in coutry illegally. I also agree with conservatives that the border should be closed. If the Bush plan would effectively close the border (while at the same time letting ID'ed immigrants through I suspect this would acheive the ends of haveing no illegals getting through and at the same time satisfying the left and the right with plenty of workers.

As I said, the 52-42 poll was probably a poll among citizen and or permanent resident hispanics, who would have been split on the issue. They are split because while they realize that stopping illegal immigration will help them it will also hinder friends and family from entering and finding support. This same dynamic prevents many hispanics from working with the legal system to rid their community of gang influence, often allowing gang members to board in their homes while they roam about. I would love to see the border issue addressed, but our 50 50 split keeps this from happening. I blame the left for this stalemate, because they have so effectively used the PC and multicultural buttons to stigmatize republicans of all stripes. Perhaps the minutmen and other public initiatives are the only thing that people can do while this stalemate plays out. (BTW, this not discussed issues reminds me a lot of the slavery issue that was avoided by our government for so many years before the Civil War.)

[dob]

What can be done is simple: Push back and fight - there is a large domestic opinion, and a huge conservative majority for halting illegal immigration. This is an issue to beat the Dems over the head with - not to be defensive about.

[KC_for_Freedom]

Send this advice to Karl Rove. But don't be surprised if he and Bush do not act on it. It is not a clear issue, even thoug both of us would like it to be. As stated in Alien Nation, we have never had a clear debate on the issue, it has all been contorted with PC speach and multicultural bias.

[dob]

Aye, I don't expect them to act on it. That's why it's so important that the base (read: Freepers, and others) makes noise - preferably of the contribution-witholding kind. (That's usually what gets attention of a politician)

[markedman]

What a whore Bush is. I always felt that he was one deep down inside. He performed well after 9/11 but he's so out of touch with America and what ails it. I guess that's what happens when Republicans are willing to settle for the lesser of evils.

[Lessingham]

This is why I voted for Peroutka. Bush needs to know we're being invaded. In my hometown in southern California I've seen all kinds of exhibitions of Mexican nationalism from Mexican flags flying (no American flag accompanying them), Hecho en Mexico stickers on cars, Mexico painted in big letters painted on an underpass, the ubiquitous urinating kid - only wearing a sombrero and doing his thing on "La Migra", and there was even a storefront that for a while had a large painting of Mexican flag covering up 90% of a U.S. flag. Very offensive stuff. There are many other examples of this sort of thing elsewhere. We've got a very serious problem with Mexican irredentism and nationalism in the U.S., and the problem is getting worse by the day.