Posted on 07/09/2006 8:27:14 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton said Latinos can be a unifying force in the national immigration debate, but they need to acknowledge concerns about national security, the rule of law and the fear of lowered wages.
Clinton spoke Saturday at a "Cafe con Clinton" breakfast meeting at the start of the National Council of La Raza's annual conference at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
The largest national Latino civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States, the council is hosting a four-day event expected to draw at least 20,000 people.
Clinton said the immigration debate in Washington, D.C., is being shaped by a small group of Republican hard-liners who are motivated by ideology. They believe in a "financial elite," and the concentration of wealth and power, instead of "the power and the greatness of middle-class families" and viewing America as a family that includes everyone, Clinton said.
Taking a hard line on immigration "sounds good, and it's a way of creating a divided country and distracting people from the real challenges facing society," he said.
"They're not bad people," Clinton said. "They really believe the world works better if they run it and we keep our mouths shut."
He praised President George W. Bush for siding with moderate Republicans on immigration, noting that Bush is from Texas, which has a large immigrant population, and "it's hard to demonize people if you know them."
Clinton urged Latinos to mobilize on a grass-roots level for change, and said the politics of demonization won't help anyone.
"You can be a glue, because you have the ethics of work and family," Clinton said. "You can build up the (moderate) forces in the Republican party" so the two political parties can have honest discussions and "wind up with a better solution than either of us could come up with on our own."
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who introduced Clinton to the crowd, said the United States has witnessed "a community coming-of-age in America" since the peaceful March 25 pro-immigration demonstrations in downtown Los Angeles that drew more than a half a million people.
Although some may have struggled to speak English, "the message couldn't have been any clearer, any more eloquent, fluidly and fundamentally American: They want nothing more than to live and work and raise their kids and provide for their families," he said.
The mayor urged the crowd to demand immigration reform that respects those who "work hard and play by the rules," and doesn't criminalize someone who "reaches out and helps an immigrant only guilty of wanting a better life."
"We all know America as not built by people with trust funds," Villaraigosa said. "It was made with the toil and the dreams - los sue os - of its immigrants."
In addition to a host of nationally known speakers, including Republican political strategist Karl Rove on Tuesday, the conference offers a host of free workshops - many in Spanish - on homeownership, health and citizenship.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger cut the ribbon to the Latino Expo with Villaraigosa and National Council of La Raza President Janet Murguia, who served as a deputy assistant to Clinton. The governor and mayor were mobbed by press and conference-goers who snapped photos of them both with cameras and cell phones.
Juana, 25, and Chanquin Naranjo, 32, of South Gate were pleased when the governor and mayor kissed their 5-month-old twins, Jaquelin and Karina.
But Chanquin Naranjo said he was more excited about the mayor's attention than Schwarzenegger's, "because he is a Latino, too, and I know how he feels."
"My people, we only want to work," said Naranjo, who is a U.S. citizen originally from Guatemala. He added that the United States should keep criminals out, but make it easier for hard-working people to immigrate and become citizens.
Oh, come on, he didn't really say this, did he?
Our current immigration laws already respects those who work hard and play by the rules. It's the illegal aliens who have demonstrated a lack of respect for playing by the rules.
ping
How anyone can take this hillbilly traitor seriously is beyond me!! He should be in jail.
The world would be a better place without his big mouth running and without his demon seed wife around.
Would you like one?
Yes, Barf is barf no matter the letter after their name.
Duly Noted. I wonder if the Gubinor will show, he is listed as (Invited) on the events schedule.
---
I thought the title could use a little sexing up, hope I didn't overdo it.
Title looks good. That's what drew me here.
This sentence tells me clinton was paid well for his treasonous action.
Sorry. As far as the guvnor is concerned, he was invited. It'll be interesting to see if he accepts. If he does, my guess would be as a surprise speaker at the closing of it.
AP: Former President Bill Clinton praised President Bush on Saturday for supporting reforms that would allow millions of illegal immigrants to seek citizenship but said the debate in Congress is being fomented by Republicans who want to divide America.
"I'm proud of him for doing it and I thanked him for doing it," he said of Bush during a "Cafe con Clinton" breakfast speech to the annual conference of the National Council of La Raza, the nation's largest Hispanic civil rights advocacy group.
Clinton said Bush's roots in Texas — which has one of the nation's largest Hispanic populations — have helped him view immigrants as people rather than statistics.
"It's hard to demonize people if you know them," he said.
Bubba is such a traitor and sexual predator. The criminal should be prosecuted, convicted and sentenced with the key to his cell thrown away.
Taking a hard line on immigration "sounds good, and it's a way of creating a divided country and distracting people from the real challenges facing society," he said.
I hope Hillary says the exact same thing when she runs for POTUS... yeah, that will go over real well in the vast majority of towns and cities in this country where the people DO NOT think massive illegal immigration is going to have a positive impact on their quality of life.
"They're not bad people [Conservative Republicans]," Clinton said. "They really believe the world works better if they run it and we keep our mouths shut."
Well, I must concede that Bubba got that part right.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.