Posted on 04/22/2007 2:46:11 PM PDT by meg88
Interesting: where Giuliani, as mayor of New York, championed the cause of legal immigrants and often defended illegal immigrants, ‘he now talks of penalties for people […] illegally [in the US] and requirements for them to wait at the back of the line. And while he once pushed policies like providing schooling for the children of illegal immigrants by saying, “The reality is that they are here, and they’re going to remain here,” now he emphasizes denying amnesty.’
His aides describe this development as a “shift in tone”, explaining that “his basic thinking has not changed, but that his emphasis has shifted to reflect the times.”
Anthony V. Carbonetti, a senior political adviser who has worked with Mr. Giuliani for 15 years, said: “Immigration reform has to begin with border security because we are a nation at war. He is still very proud that people want to come to this country.”
More and more Republicans / Republican voters want Giuliani to make clear where he stands on immigration these days. Does he want to, effectively and aggressively, fight illegal immigration, or does he still favor the policies he favored when he was mayor of New York?
Republican candidate Tom Tancredo for instance, who runs on an anti-illegal immigration platform, criticized Giuliani:
Without mentioning him by name, he took Mr. Giuliani to task for past policies that have “encouraged more illegals to cross our borders.”
This issue, like his expressed views on abortion may hurt him with the conservative Republican base: the New York Times describes Giuliani as “a national leader for the cause of welcoming immigrants in the 1990s.”
Back in 1996 Giuliani said: “The anti-immigration issue that’s now sweeping the country in my view is no different than the movements that swept the country in the past. You look back at the Chinese Exclusionary Act, or the Know-Nothing movement — these were movements that encouraged Americans to fear foreigners, to fear something that is different, and to stop immigration.”
Nowadays, he says that he opposes granting amnesty to illegal immigrants: but he does not want to deport them either. He is of the opinion that illegal immigrants have to earn a legal status.
His plan? - First identify the 12 million individuals currently living and working illegally in the US - Then ‘issue them “tamper-proof” identification cards’ - When that’s done, they should start paying taxes - And, lastly, “if they are ever going to become citizens, the thing I am really interested in, they have to read English, write English, speak English and be able to understand the basics of American civics.”
So, did his views change? I’d say no. It seems to me that his emphasis has changed, yes, but that he is still not willing to ‘condemn’ illegal immigrants. I sometimes wonder how anyone can condemn them: to be honest, if I were living in Mexico, in poverty, and there would be little chance for me to enter the US legally, I would try to get into the country illegally as well. I’d want to provide for my family, I’d want to live well. Wouldn’t you?
Now, that does not mean that illegal immigrants should be welcomed with open arms and should be granted amnesty, but it does mean that someone like, for instance, Tancredo is either a hypocrite, or lacks compassion.
In short, were I American, I would most likely favor Giuliani’s plan. It’s a realistic approach - the borders have to be enforced, but there are 12 million illegal immigrants and deporting them will: 1- not happen and 2- be inhumane
OxyMORONic baloney...
“His aides describe this development as a “shift in tone”,”
IOW, instead of speaking plainly, he will adopt Rovian/Bushite dissembling, misnaming, and deception.
The sovereignty of our borders and our territory is not the business of any foreign national, period.
” “his basic thinking has not changed, but that his emphasis has shifted to reflect the times.””
In other words, he’s lying...
Yep.
L
Hasn’t Mitt Romney done the same thing and more times on the issues?
“Moderate Conservative Liberal Perspective”
The yellow stripe in the middle of the road more like. Gee, I can string together a bunch of words, too.
ping. More rudy fun.
Rudy is a gun grabbing open borders POS!
Rant over.
This is the one thing the open borders crowd had infused into the collective consciousness of the American electorate; painting Americans who want our borders enforced and laws followed as "racist."
We simply cannot allow that line of reasoning to continue. It's a tactic employed by Progressives, that's quickly gaining ground with pundits and politicians alike, who really do not want to solve the immigration problem. The want to pass some legislation and call it a day.
As Tom Bevan of RealClearPolitics has pointed out, Rudy is an adherent of the same approach to illegal immigration that John McCain, Ted Kennedy, George Bush, and Harry Reid have championed:
"While McCain has taken heat for his support of comprehensive immigration reform, Rudy is every bit as pro-immigration as McCain - if not more so. On the O'Reilly Factor last week Giuliani argued for a "practical approach" to immigration and cited his efforts as Mayor of New York City to "regularize" illegal immigrants by providing them with access to city services like public education to "make their lives reasonable." Giuliani did say that "a tremendous amount of money should be put into the physical security" needed to stop the flow of illegal immigrants coming across the border, but his overall position on immigration is essentially indistinguishable from McCain's."
That's bad enough. But, as Michelle Malkin has revealed, under Giuliani, New York was an illegal alien sanctuary and "America's Mayor" actually sued the federal government in an effort to keep New York City employees from having to cooperate with the INS:
"When Congress enacted immigration reform laws that forbade local governments from barring employees from cooperating with the INS, Mayor Rudy Giuliani filed suit against the feds in 1997. He was rebuffed by two lower courts, which ruled that the sanctuary order amounted to special treatment for illegal aliens and were nothing more than an unlawful effort to flaunt federal enforcement efforts against illegal aliens. In January 2000, the Supreme Court rejected his appeal, but Giuliani vowed to ignore the law."
If you agree with the way that Nancy Pelosi and Company deal with illegal immigration, then you'll find the way that Rudy Giuliani tackles the issue to be right down your alley.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE OF GIULIANI'S LEFT-WING POLITICAL POSITIONS
Americans to fear foreigners, to fear something that is different, and to stop immigration.””
In other words.....you are all a bunch of low-life, racists! Giuliani knows best! Sounds alot like our current Prez.
So he won't mind if I ignore a few of his stupid gun laws then.
Before he decided to run for President I actually had some measure of respect for Giuliani. In the last 3 months that respect has vanished and has been replaced by utter contempt.
L
I don't know why politicians, especially one from NYC which is rich in immigration history, can't make a simple difference between immigrants who patiently waited in line, filled out the paperwork, abided by our rules and culture, and proudly became U.S. citizens, to those who sneak over our borders and overstay their visas to wreak havoc on the American way of life.
Rudy shouldn't even get a cabinet position in a GOP administration, let alone a shot at winning the WH. It is clear that his lack of principles and ignorance of the Constitution makes him an ongoing threat to Americans.
Me too. When I read his book, I go sick. He should have enjoyed his laurels.
The deeper I look the worse the stench gets. Sort of like a NYC phone booth.
LOL. And this from a guy who written a book about leadership, and whose blind, myopic followers extoll the virtues of his so-called leadership abilities. The book is probably in K-mart's $2.99 discount bin right now.
L
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