Ultimate explanation for George Bush's immigration & amnesty push - by John Derbyshire

National Review ^ | July 2, 2007 2:20 PM | John Derbyshire

[dennisw]

What a Waste. Steve Sailer said it all.

[L]et's stop and think about what an enormous waste of six years it has been for the President, aided and abetted by the almost the entire American Establishment, to pursue his delusion of imposing his immigration obsession on the citizenry. Even leaving aside how much better the immigration situation would be if Bush had followed his oath and simply enforced the damn laws, imagine what he would have been able to accomplish legislatively in other areas without wasting time, energy, and political capital on a losing proposition like this.

Well, why did he? Why did the president push this appalling bill with such passion and such arrogance? A number of theories are current. On a realist-to-romantic, or prose-to-poetry, spectrum, they are:

Machiavelli. Bush has been persuaded, probably by Karl Rove, of the following theorem: Hispanics are now a large proportion of the electorate, and are destined, via differential birthrates, to become a larger one. It’s important for the Republican party to win over these voters by doing Hispanic-friendly things. As a rough first approximation, Immigrant=Hispanic, so that a kind’n’gentle policy on immigration should be pleasing to Hispanics.

Bicycle. Someone — perhaps a visitor from the Wall Street Journal editorial page — has persuaded Bush that the U.S. economy would come to a juddering halt and fall over if not fed by a steady stream of unskilled immigrants working for below-minimum wages.

Pauline Kael. Bush has never in his life mixed socially with any person whose job or neighborhood quality is threatened by mass unskilled immigration. To the people he does mix with socially, unskilled immigrants are a good source of servant labor, or a way to “socialize the costs, privatize the profits” of enterprises they own or invest in. This puts us in somewhat the same zone as Pauline Kael’s famous bafflement on hearing that Nixon had been elected president: “How is that possible? I don’t know anyone who voted for him.” Can elite Americans really be that out of touch with reality? Believe me, gentle reader, they can.

Noblesse oblige. Bush’s childhood experience of friendly, deferential Mexican servants and employees, and of his Dad’s elite Mexican friends in the oil business, disposed him so kindly towards Mexicans in general, he is keen to do anything to (a) please the Mexican authorities, and (b) avoid any appearance of unkindness or lack of generosity towards Mexicans in general (e.g. by apprehending illegal Mexican immigrants). The first approximation here is even rougher than the Rovian one: Immigrant=Mexican.

Evangelical. The president is known to cleave to a generous and universalist (if you like it), or naive and sappy (if you don’t) style of evangelical Christianity. He sees himself, in his own mind, holding out his arms, murmuring: “Suffer the little immigrants to come unto me.” While by no means despicable as a personal lifestyle choice, this may not be a good foundation for national policy.

My guess is that there is some combination of all these at work, but with the center of gravity down in the romantic zone. W is an intelligent man, but he’s a feeler more than a thinker, consulting his heart before his head, and sometimes forgetting to consult his head at all. This can be an endearing trait under some circumstances. The forming of national policy is not one of those circumstances.

[stephenjohnbanker]

LOL!!

[Guenevere]

I think your post nails it!

[nicmarlo]

hehehe

[Guenevere]

agree again!...the truth will come.

[dennisw]

Ministry of Truth is what it’s called in Orwell’s 1984. And get lots more Google hits. But Ministry of Propaganda sounds better

[nicmarlo]

Ministry of Propaganda sounds better

and, in this case, is way more accurate (even though George Orwell's intent was the same).

[Osage Orange]

Can't say I disagree with you........

Seems we are living in interesting times.

Until the Sheeple wake up..( if ever...) we are doomed to ride the horse that was given us.......

[Guenevere]

So in essence....Bush's Presidency was a schizoid form of bait & switch from the previous administration.

The Clinton's, Bush's worked their Machiavellian designs...on us.....presenting us with the good guy/family man/faithful husband....

..in exact opposite of Clinton's womanizing skulduggery...

ONLY too late we find out Bush was scheming to sell the farm (US) soon after he took office....

But 9/11 happened....putting his grandiose plans on the back burner.

Am I on the right track?

[nicmarlo]

that’s generally what I believe to be the case....based upon various readings over the past couple years and, thereafter, connecting the dots...it is a logical conclusion.

[WorkerbeeCitizen]

All five of your points are excellent and all the material I've read supports exactly that.

So there it is.

Is it good for America? President Bush thinks so - I disagree with him.

So, does the real question now boil down to;
Do American's want to trade their sovereignty and liberty for financial stability and security?

Not this American.

[blam]

"Time to HAMMER the House!!"

I just sent all the US Representatives from my state an email about immigration.

[WorkerbeeCitizen]

I believe that is a good summary.

[HamiltonJay]

I’m telling you, this is what is going on.

All the other stuff, while true, is just window dressing. Truth behind this is simply to keep mexico propped up, period.

[stephenjohnbanker]

“Truth behind this is simply to keep mexico propped up, period”

And like I said, you don’t trash the USA to keep Mexico, or any other country in the world, from going under. Let Carlos Slim of Mexico support these peasants. Slim is down to his last 67.8 billion!

[stephenjohnbanker]

B U M P

[AmericanInTokyo]

Why THANK YOU! That was a kind thing to say!

[Razz Barry]

When I read articles like these; Venezuela Charged with Backing Mexico' Lopez Obrador and Is Mexico's Obrador a Revolutionary? it becomes clear. Mexico, by just a few votes, avoided postponed a revolution. There are many, I among them, who think Obrador won the last election. Next time, the numbers may not be so easily fudged. Our government is going to destroy us by forcing millions of socialist mind people upon our system. When Obrador, backed by Hugo Chavez, wins the presidency, the revolution won't stop at the border, especially if we give legal status to the millions of illegal Mexicans here now.

[nicmarlo]

There are many, I among them, who think Obrador won the last election. Next time, the numbers may not be so easily fudged. Our government is going to destroy us by forcing millions of socialist mind people upon our system.

Your scenario is valid, imo. And I'm not sure what to do to head it off...there are millions now illegally in our country...possibly just waiting for such a thing.

[Razz Barry]

And I'm not sure what to do to head it off...there are millions now illegally in our country...possibly just waiting for such a thing.

You can bet those in the southwestern U.S. are waiting. They think we stole the land from Mexico any way.

I don't know what can be done. I'd rather use forced deportation and let Mexico explode. If it comes across the border we'll have to kick their butts back to Mexico City again. One things for sure. The country our founders entrusted to us needs to be saved at all cost.

[WorkerbeeCitizen]

"...And I'm not sure what to do to head it off.."

I has been my contention there this is where the discussions on this whole mess should be.

Instead we argue over whether or not NAFTA, CAFTA and the immigration bill (partial list), are even related to each other, or accomplishes what our leaders say they do - they do - fearless leader doesn't use the same words we do though.

I agree with the analysis that the Mexican government cannot survive in its current form.

Worth about .02 cents US