[Wolfie]

A non-starter, realistically speaking. The Pubbies need the Hispanic vote to win, and if that means selling out to illegals, so be it.

[Tzimisce]

Well he's not going to get the ever increasingly important illegal immigrant vote....

[TLI]

The Pubbies need the Hispanic vote to win, and if that means selling out to illegals, so be it.

Withhold your vote and have it counted as well. Vote Constitution party, it shows BOTH parties the votes they COULD have had.

[inquest]

The Pubbies need the Hispanic vote to win

The majority of whom support better border security.

The rest of whom will probably vote Dem anyway.

[mbraynard]

That is a popular misconception. Hispanics who can vote are just as supportive of strict immigration policies as anyone else.

[Aetius]

Eventually that will be true, thanks to our largely accidental and mostly unwanted policy of unending mass immigration, but it still isn't quite so now.

Florida is the only state where the Hispanic vote may have played an important part in recent Republican victories. Losing the latino vote badly in California hurts, but so does the poor showing with whites in the state. Same goes for Illinois and New York. GOP dominance in Texas is due to routinely winning over 70% of the white vote. That won't continue to guarantee success much longer, though, as whites lost majority status in Texas this past year, and as the electorate catches up, Dem prospects will improve in the Lone Star state. And in many of the narrowly-blue states (Penn, Wisconsin, Minnesota), the GOP would have won had it done a bit better with white voters.

So yes, the GOP has dug itself into a hole because even if immigration levels were cut tomorrow, the pro-Democrat latino population would continue to grow rapidly over the next few decades. But right now the GOP could still win w/o pandering to Hispanics, as they are destined to lose any such attempt against the Democrats, who mastered pandering a long time ago.

[fallujah-nuker]

A non-starter, realistically speaking. The Pubbies need the Hispanic vote to win, and if that means selling out to illegals, so be it.

The Republicans need the white vote to win, throw that away with an amnesty and its 1964 again.

[af_vet_rr]

A non-starter, realistically speaking. The Pubbies need the Hispanic vote to win, and if that means selling out to illegals, so be it.

Yup. Not to mention that many companies that use illegals to do work for them have lots of money that will flow into election coffers.

He won't get out of the gates. The mainstream GOP and the mainstream media will both ignore him, which leaves his campaign DOA.

[Mulch]

Note to self: Disregard anything said by someone who refers to the republican party as "Pubbies".

[Plutarch]

The Pubbies need the Hispanic vote to win...

Let us assume that the voting Hispanics here now are all in favor of more Mexicans coming in illegally to compete with them, even though polls show otherwise. Which red states would turn blue due to a reduction in the the Hispanic Republican vote?

Maybe NM, CO, NV. Florida not too likely, as the Hispanics in FL are largely Cuban.

Many of the Blue states have very low Hispanic numbers, and a Republican differentiating himself on the very popular issue of border security might stand to gain white votes in Blue or competitive States such as NH, Iowa, MN, MI, OR, WI, OH and MO.

[Arizona Carolyn]

Except Hispanics who can vote and are American Citizens are not happy with illegal immigration... so IMHO would increase the Republican Hispanic Vote.

[ZULU]

The only Hispanics who can legally vote are citizens, and despite LaRaza and Mr. Gonzales, polls have indicated most of them are fed up with illegal invaders too.

[Barney Gumble]

That's the wrong wrong wrong attitude. It's the typical establishment Republican attitude. In order to get the Latino vote we have to pander to them? Many want to work, start businesses, etc. Sell them on the American dream not welfare.

Did you know that many hispanics who come legally aren't exactly thrilled with illegal immigration either?! Do you honestly think a Hispanic that came legally, dealt with all the red tape, is going to vote for you because you turn a blind eye to illegal immigration? Do you think that Hispanic who now pays taxes, is going to love dolling out money for illegal healthcare and such?

As an analogy, I have an Italian background. A politican wouldn't get my vote if they started pandering to the mafia. "I won't go after the mob, in order to secure the paisano vote" That's the same mentality polticians have with illegal immigration.

Why are Republicans heads in the sand over illegal immigration? Also a note: illegals can't (or shouldn't) vote anyway. So why are you pandering to a crowd that can't vote for you.

Of course the other half of the answer is the cheap labor that donates money.

[judgeandjury]

The Pubbies need the Hispanic vote to win, and if that means selling out to illegals, so be it.

Considering the fact that 47% of Hispanic voters voted in favor of the anti-illegal alien measure Prop 200 in Arizona last year, it seems that one of the best ways for Republican candidates to get the Hispanic vote is to be anti-illegal immigration.