Posted on 06/02/2007 10:22:51 AM PDT by nj26
President Bush’s advocacy of an immigration overhaul and his attacks on critics of the plan are provoking an unusually intense backlash from conservatives who form the bulwark of his remaining support, splintering his base and laying bare divisions within a party whose unity has been the envy of Democrats.
It has pitted some of Mr. Bush’s most stalwart Congressional and grass-roots backers against him, sparking a vitriol that has at times exceeded anything seen yet between Mr. Bush and his supporters, who have generally stood with him through the toughest patches of his presidency. Those supporters now view him as pursuing amnesty for foreign law breakers when he should be focusing on border security.
Postings on conservative Web sites this week have gone so far as to call for Mr. Bush’s impeachment, and usually friendly radio hosts, commentators and Congressional allies are warning that he stands to lose supporters — a potentially damaging development, they say, when he needs all the backing he can get on other vital matters like the war in Iraq.
“I think President Bush hurts himself every time he says it is not amnesty,” said Senator Tom Coburn, Republican of Oklahoma, referring to the bill’s legalization process for immigrants. “We are not all that stupid.”
This week, in discussing Mr. Bush’s recent comments accusing conservative critics of the immigration legislation of fear-mongering, Rush Limbaugh told listeners: “I just wish he hadn’t done it because he’s not going to lose me on Iraq, and he’s not going to lose me on national security. But he might lose some of you.”
Such sentiments have reverberated through talk radio, conservative publications like National Review and Fox News. They have also appeared on Web sites including RedState.com and FreeRepublic.com...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
I read about it in an article that discussed Cindy Sheehan’s departure from the anti-war crowd & Dems sometime last week. She mentioned wanting to sell ‘Camp Casey’ and said it’s ‘value would go up’ due to Bush selling his ranch nearby. I’ll see if I can find the article again, and if I do I’ll post the URL.
When one thinks about it, one may have to conclude that the “open borders” lobby may in fact be the most powerful special interest group in the country.
Large majorities of Americans have favored stronger border controls for decades.
Illegals are swamping the criminal justice system and everybody knows it.
And yet when push comes to shove (and it has to come to shove VERY HARD on this particular issue to even get any attention), the politicians will resort to the most transparent fraud to try to stiff-arm the popular will.
I mean really, has there been any legislation that was as outrageous and brazen a lie than the bill passed last year which purported to REQUIRE the government to construct a physical barrier on the border?
And then the Administration and Congressional leaders secretly defund the fence, and hope the public won’t notice?
And inserted provisions in their new “comprehensive solution” concluding that they wouldn’t have to build a fence at all if the government were simply to confirm to itself that the new legislation is likely to “work,” so we don’t need a fence anyway?
Nothing less than a stake through the very heart of this “open borders” “merge-with-Mexico” lobby is going to save this republic.
I'm sure several of them are not newbies.
Well, I can’t speak for anyone else, but I’ve tried to be respectful, and not resorting to personal attacks. I can’t say the same for people I’ve been on the opposite side of arguments with the last few days.
I will agree that things seem pretty hostile right now compared to some months back and that doesn’t really help anyone, but I think people are feeling pretty slighted right now as well, hence the anger and frustration coming out.
I honestly think the majority of people have gotten tired of being on the defensive when it seems that our elected officials have no respect for us. I know it’s kind of hard for me personally to defend our President against liberals & Democrats when he comes out in favor of amnesty and Global Warming... (Some on here have said that the Global Warming thing is just a ‘stunt’ intended to expose the hypocrisy of the left, but I’m not so sure frankly — and if it is a stunt it wasn’t thought out very well, IMHO.).
I also know that it really bothers me personally when I get referred to as a bigot, and an alarmist simply because I disagree with this Amnesty Bill and I clearly voice my concerns. I can imagine it really gets to others as well, and rightly so.
It’s not alright for our elected officials to be so outright offensive no matter who they’re speaking about, and even more so when you are speaking about people who have been your staunchest supporters in the past. Lately, Bush has used the same comments that groups like La Raza and others have leveled against us for years now.
It really, really upsets me as my own sister is half-Mexican (we’re both adopted), and I’ve seen the problems of racism first hand. This has nothing to do with RACE! I’ve also worked with many LEGAL Mexican immigrants (and those of other national origins), and I lived in West Denver (a predominantly Mexican neighborhood) for 2 1/2 years and my friends, and co-workers felt just as I do about this. It’s about rewarding CRIMINALS who have hurt our society in many, many ways. I don’t understand where the support for this bill is coming from besides the businesses who like paying slave labor wages, and the criminals who are hoping for a free pass.
Your head is clearly too thick to understand what you read. I am not advocating the “change” you are concerned about. I like what we have now. That’s not enough. Whether I like it or not times are changing. We are killing (abortion) our population, we will not produce our own oil/gas, we have a political Party that wants our military to loose. These and more prove to me that times are “changing” and I do not like it. Neither does the President of the United States. He has a plan that might, I say might, turn things around. You are acting like a traitor to oppose your President (IMHO).
That is a HUGE gamble there Rove .. and not one that I would bet on
And if you think I'm wrong .. this article from the NYT and their enjoyment of hammering it home should give those in the WH some pause and think seriously of dropping this immigration bill
They may think it's not amnesty .. but it's pretty damn close to it
I doubt you ever supported him
sniff
You are seeing ghosts.
yes
if you are referencing the immigration bill, then I am astounded by this statement. Anyone who has critical thinking skills and has studied this bill and past immigration bills, can only come to one conclusion. The result of passing and signing this bill will destroy our way of life; our Republic will be morphed into a socialist hell hole.
It is only proper for those who cherish Liberty, love our Constitution and believe in the rule of law, to express their righteous anger over the unconscionable intentions of our rulers.
The President is irrational on this issue. The inevitable result of legalizing this vast number of low-income mostly-uneducated foreign nationals will be, when the effects eventually kick in, to hand control of all branches of the government to Democrats for decades, if not generations to come.
I have supported the President from very beginning. When I heard that he as governor of Texas was taking seriously the ideas of Marvin Olasky, I hoped he would run for president, and as soon as it was legal to do so I started sending him max contributions and never stopped.
In so many areas he has been outstanding when you consider objectively the forces he was up against.
There have been some major disappointments, certainly -- expanding Medicare for prescription drugs, McCain-Feingold and too-high spending. And some valiant efforts that fell short -- faith-based initiatives and Social Security reform.
And he has been more than courageous on the overriding issue of our time, defending ouselves from Islamofascists.
But he is just irrationally wrong on this issue, and his legislation, if adopted and when the consequences are finally felt, will make conservatism unable to contend for national power for a long time to come.
I believe the President, who in fairness to him has always maintained this position more or less since before becoming president, feels this way for emotional and anecdotal reasons having to do with his own personal and familial relationships. He is out of touch with ordinary Americans, and genuinely doesn't understand the damage he would do to his country from this.
Senator Kennedy is a lot of things, nearly all of them pejorative, but one thing he is NOT is a FOOL. He understands much more clearly than the President who wins and who loses when the dust finally settles from this disaster, if enacted.
grrrr .. I hate typos
I would bet on = I wouldN’T bet on
Clear huh? You will not be able to find a quote in which he supports granting immediate legal status to essentially all illegal aliens. When he was running for re-election in 2004, he knew he was going to be asked about immigration and amnesty at the the Tempe debate. He was prepared. What a terrific opportunity to tell the voters about his courageous plan to legalize them all. Bush found a plan he could call Amnesty, and that was Kerry's.
In 2004 one of his points was I don't think we ought to reward illegal behavior. Since the Senate bill does exactly that, Bush doesn't say it anymore, does he?
GWB in 2004: "In September 2003, he [Kerry] supported amnesty for illegal aliens".
BUSH: And so in order to take pressure off the borders, in order to make the borders more secure, I believe there ought to be a temporary worker card that allows a willing worker and a willing employer to mate up, so long as there's not an American willing to do that job, to join up in order to be able to fulfill the employers' needs.
That has the benefit of making sure our employers aren't breaking the law as they try to fill their workforce needs. It makes sure that the people coming across the border are humanely treated, that they're not kept in the shadows of our society, that they're able to go back and forth to see their families. See, the card, it'll have a period of time attached to it.
It also means it takes pressure off the border. If somebody is coming here to work with a card, it means they're not going to have to sneak across the border. It means our border patrol will be more likely to be able to focus on doing their job.
Now, it's very important for our citizens to also know that I don't believe we ought to have amnesty. I don't think we ought to reward illegal behavior. There are plenty of people standing in line to become a citizen. And we ought not to crowd these people ahead of them in line.
BUSH: If they want to become a citizen, they can stand in line, too.
And here is where my opponent and I differ. In September 2003, he supported amnesty for illegal aliens.
During the 2004 campaign I attended any number of rallies and Dubya’s message on immigration was always the same, guest workers, path to citizenship, no amnesty etc...
It didn’t change then and it isn’t any differnet now. So anyone spewing this crap about “Bush lied...yada yada” either never listened to his speeches, disagreed but voted for him anyway, or is about as misinformed as one can get.
I’m really sick of so called conservatives trashing a good man because they don’t agree with him on immigration, even though they voted for him twice and he has never in that time changed his stance on the subject.
My advice to you...
1. You are on the wrong web site, what you want is DUmmies Underground.
2. Take some time to learn to spell, the word is damn, not dam.
3. GW is not a liar, you might want to look in a mirror for that.
LMAO POST OF THE DAY!
He added, however, “Let me also clarify something. This administration is firmly against blanket amnesty.”
George Bush 12/15/2003
No it isn’t.....the writing is on the wall, ceiling, and floor.....and a bunch of wildcat anti-sovereignty side agreements south of the border.....and btw I said “America as we have known and loved it”. Defending this guy at this point is indefensible. Keep your eye on G8....it’ll jerk the covers from him even more!
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Roger On Target~~~Fire For Effect...
You may wish to read post 195...
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