Posted on 09/25/2011 10:37:58 AM PDT by Clairity
In this week's GOP Presidential debate, Governor Mitt Romney and Senator Rick Santorum both repeated untruths about Governor Rick Perry's immigration position. It is time to set the record straight.
First let me say, I've not endorsed a candidate and though I've predicted a Perry win in 2012, it is not based on a personal desire, but rather the assessment of all the data that I believe the general election race will be dependent on. I did the same thing in 2006, predicting a Barack Obama win, but by no means endorsing his candidacy.
Second let me also say, this week's debate performance by Governor Rick Perry was bizarre and seemed to run out of complete steam in the final thirty minutes. In fact I was so curious as to the Governor's performance down the stretch I inquired to the Perry campaign to see if the Governor had taken ill, or had some other medical issue arise in the final half hour.
But on Thursday evening it did become clear that the GOP opponents intend to rhetorically bloody Governor Perry as best they can until they begin to be eliminated from the race.
In the debate, Chris Wallace asked a direct question to Mitt Romney regarding the in-state tuition rates of children who live in the state, but happen to have parents who came here illegally.
Mitt Romney replied, "I don't see how it is that a state like Texas--to go to the University of Texas--if you're an illegal alien--you get an in-state tuition discount. D'you know how much that is? It's twenty-two thousand dollars a year. Four years of college you're almost a hundred thousand dollar discount if you're an illegal alien--if you go to the University of Texas. If you're a United States citizen, from any one of the other forty-nine states, you have to pay a hundred thousand dollars more. That doesn't make sense to me. And that kind of magnet, draws people into this country, to get that education, to get that kind of hundred thousand dollar break, it makes no sense..."
I was disappointed that Chris Wallace didn't stop him and make him answer the question he had actually asked him.
Maybe Mitt Romney doesn't realize that many children of illegal aliens aren't illegals themselves. And as long as birth-rite citizenship is the law, anchor babies are protected under the law with equal benefits to all other American citizens.
Maybe Mitt Romney doesn't realize that nearly all of the rest of children of illegals had no choice in whether to live in Texas or not. If they were brought there by parents who were illegal--how is that the child's fault? Is Romney ready to charge those children with crimes? Mass deportations? Even Romney has not pledged to go that far.
Maybe Mitt Romney somehow missed the point that Governor Perry's problem is one that the Federal Government created for him. By refusing to enforce current immigration law, the Obama administration has made life for border states unbelievably difficult. And in some cases the Federal Government is even attempting to choke out state's rights to react to border issues in any way whatsoever.
Maybe Mitt Romney is completely ignorant of what the reality of dealing with the border actually means--in real terms. Gov. Perry had to raise $400 million in state taxes to attempt to shore up the border and do the job that the Feds should be doing.
Or maybe Governor Romney believes he doesn't need any votes from legal Hispanics and legal immigrants who are wrestling with the real issue of being in a position where their family's future is in question.
But to set the record straight, it was the state of Texas, and most specifically its lawfully elected legislature that drafted the legislation and passed it with only 4 votes of 181 possible to vote against it. Yes, Governor Perry signed it into law, but it was a definitively bi-partisan initiative that the people of Texas clearly wanted to see become law.
Additionally, Governor Perry has actual compassion for these children who ended up in his state, outside of their own doing. Educating them gets them working and contributing to the state's treasury faster, and is more meaningful than letting them sit on the sidelines.
And despite what the unusually angry Rick Santorum offered, all the legislation did was allow those children (NOT ILLEGAL ALIENS AT LARGE) to get the same "starting point" in state institutions that all of their classmates got. The stupid argument that Romney and Santorum grew red-faced and spittle-spewing over didn't seem to hold true against Texas where non-Texan students would have to pay $88,000 more than other Texas-raised children. And states discriminate that way against other children from other regions of the country--all the time.
President Obama will need to re-energize the American Hispanic vote in order for him to win re-election. They had left him on the economy, and they were never with him on his values. But Mitt Romney--who vows allegiance to a church that had at its core a racist doctrine until only a couple of decades ago--is verging on alienating other ethnic groups, in part because he is not telling the truth about the Texas legislature's law to allow children (not illegal aliens who crossed the border--the children of) to simply pay the same amount of tuition as the kids they sit next to in class.
In short Perry knows this problem intimately. And it will be a cold day in Hades before he ever signs a federal version of the DREAM Act. He believes in fencing, technology, state's rights, and workplace incentives.
Which more or less means he believes in the same enforcement techniques as all the rest of the GOP field.
And for Santorum and Romney to pretend otherwise is sanctimonious and dishonest.
Santorum is a social justice, “compassionate conservative’ kind of guy. He turned Rino a long time ago, so he has no room to talk. He’s very generious with other people’s money and rights. As Perry would say - “He has a big heart.” Santorumm is an idiot to boot.
Gov. Perry has had plenty of chances to clean this mess on his national immigration policy up beyond the debate. He is acting flat footed and tounge tied. He’s out of touch with most Americans when it comes to suffering from the foreign invasion of our country. Too bad. Elitism and “citizen of the world” internationalism is out of style.
Americans are weary of playing soldier, sucker, and slave m to racist foreigners and their wealthy American politicans who like to play stupid with political correctness and “we are the world” illusions. Corporate Treasury shake down artists (fasicists) who promise to “create job” with our money are on the outs, too.
He’s not going to change. He’s emersed in liberal elitism. He does not know the Americans who are paying the social and economic cost of his wheeling and dealing. He even panders to “The Race” racists who are now threatening a race war in our country. Liberalism is a mental illness. We can’t afford to put it in power again. We are all suckered out.
“Because you can’t physically fence the entire border. The Rio Grande is the physical border of America. Are you going to plunk a fence down right through the middle of it”
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Uhh.... The fence is put on our side of the Rio Grande... As close to the river bank a you like.
Everyone has pretty much figured that one out.. /s Except for Rick Perry.
And Janet Napolitano.
Texas
I don't even think they do pay. The government doesn't identify them so how does the government know they are paying taxes?
Been building it for 10 years. Thanks.
shalom b'SHEM Yah'shua HaMashiach
you missed it the stupid one is zero obozo...perry can beat him so back him...........
I beg to differ. He's just the opposite. I have a friend who worked in his guv's office for 5 years...said he is one of the nicest and most conservative guys around.
I have another friend who is the most conservative member of the TX House (certified as such)...who says Perry is conservative.
These are people who know him behind the scenes.
I have never been a big fan of Perry but I think he would be better POTUS than most people running.
I agree he has been tongue-tied. LOL! It's too early to count him out...he always runs from behind.
When he isn't being accused of being a "womanizer," he's accused of being "gay." My favorite was when he caught flack for living in a house that the state is paying $9 or 10 thousand per month rent, he said he'd be "glad to get back to the 'mansion'." If you live in TX you know the guv's "mansion" is anything BUT a mansion...old and small and they only live in the top floor...bottom is open to the public...but it sounded like he wanted back in a mansion.
I like Cain, too. A lot of my friends who are NOT political junkies like Cain.
Do you live in TX?
There are a good number of states where students get in state tuition, and this attack on Perry is wildly overblown. These are people who already went through three years minimum of taxpayer funded high school. Kids of people who come here illegally are different than the adults who made the decision to come here. I see merits on both sides of this issue. If a kid comes here with their parents illegally, gets a high school degree, want to get higher education paying tuition and seeking citizenship, that is not the worst thing in the world. Better than just sucking off the welfare state. I can definitely argue against the instate tuition, but this policy has the 3 year rule which is the same as the requirements for a student coming from another state. No special privledges as other candidates are claiming. Only about 25000 participate, so it is a small percentage of the overall illegal population. These individuals seem to have ambition and desire to live here legally, so lumping these 18 years olds in with welfare leaches just taking from the system is not accurate, IMO
what part?
Where do you expect these illegal aliens to get a job after they graduate college?
Central Texas
Gee, what an outrage! That's the EXACT same rate I would have to pay to go to Texas A&M university, seeing as I'm a resident of Illinois and thus don't have access to "in-state tuition rates" like Rick Perry gives to ILLEGAL foriegners who have no right to live in MY country.
I dare you to look your fellow AMERICANS straight in the eye and tell the thousands of hard-working AMERICAN colleges students busting their @$$ and working mulitple jobs to pay their tutition..."tough luck, you can't have access to the tuition rates that Texas gives to foriegn criminals. We don't care how hard your AMERICAN parents worked to put you thru school. We don't care if live two miles across the Texas border and have lived in the region you want to attend college all your life. We don't care if went to H.S. in Texas or grew up in Texas. We don't care that your family lost their job during the recession. We don't care that you don't have access to those "minority" scholarships we reward to "underpriveldged hispanic minorities" solely on the basis of someone having a spanish-sounding last name. Here in Texas, we care more about 'afforable education' for foriengers that sneak into our country than our fellow Americans".
As for me, little miss daughter of an "undocumented" construction worker can go pound sand when so many TAXPAYING AMERICAN CITIZENS are struggling to get a quality college education, and I'd be glad to tell her that to her face. If she's such a bright gifted "straight A" student she could readily get accepted at a college or university in the nation she was born in. In fact, they NEED more people with college educations in those countries, that's one of the reason they're failing economically.
Hey motoman, since this is such a great idea, how about you start lobbying the Mexican government to give "in-state tuition rates" to americans who enter Mexico ILLEGALLY? Funny how we're the ONLY country stupid enough to enact this "great idea", isn't it?
Listen, Perry is a good candidate for the republicans and I am not ready to pull the plug on him for good. I do not like the RINO’s Mitt & Jon, Bachmann is dropping like a shooting star even though I like everything she stands for but she is not giving me good vibes in debates with 0Bama. Newt likes man made global warming, Santorum lost in his own state. So who is left? Paul? Johnson? Both unelectable in general IMO.
I like Cain a lot but he has to demonstrate durability. But he is the only viable choice for me because the man knows private enterprise like the back of his hand.
And I agree with you 100% that the feds have failed on curbing illegals. First it was the compassionate conservative Bush-43 and of course Obama is from Chicago machine.
All that said, even if Texas wants to give in-state tuition to illegals, I can not get enthused about a candidate who is willing to make compromises with illegals on national level. The illegals may be paying taxes in Texas, but that does not make them legal. If paying taxes absolves you of your crime, then our jails should be mostly empty because most lawbreakers have paid some kind of tax. The illegals have broken our laws and they have not been punished as every law breaker gets punished. I did not immigrate to USA 50 years ago expecting law breakers to be pardoned without penalty. We now get something like over million LEGAL immigrants each year. We can not tolerate law breakers to get ahead of that line. That is bordering on anarchy.
If Cain peters out, I will have to go with Perry.
Of course you needed a transcript you are a law abiding USC. You also need the proper documents to enter the US, but illegal aliens don’t abide by the law. I don’t know why this is so hard to understand.
Oh, so I should vote for the one who “can win” like for McCain in the primaries last time? Blind obedience to the party went out of style with the Soviets and Nazis.
18 year olds are not children. Did you want to be referred to as a child at the age of 18?
They are pursing citizenship while a student, so in four years time, I imagine they can either become a citizen or become documented to work here.
What’s your solution here? Round everyone one up? I am not convinced that this approach is right, but the bottom line is that in one of our most conservative states this passed almost unanimously with officials of both parties including nearly all conservatives voting for it. The issue has been blown way out of proportion the past two weeks, and Perry has only made the matter worse in a terrible explanation and unjustified attack on opponents. Many states, including number of republican run states have some sort of policy like this. I am not an advocate, but I am not going to paint this issue as something it is not.
They can apply for a permanent residency which makes them legal (not a us citizen).
The in-state tuition law states that they have to apply for a permanent residency in the US, be in a Texas school for at least 3 years up to graduating high school and they have to pay the tuition.
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