Jun 23 2006
GOP Utter Failure Part II
I posted earlier on the disaster laid upon this country by the GOP Congress by leaving this country’s borders unprotected, the 12 million immigrant workers here undocumented and vetted, and therefore the country exposed to terrorists infiltrating us with hopes of killing us. Results matter – no amount of excuses matter. And the fear of immigrants here today, illegally possibly becoming US Citizens in 10, 15, 20 years (which is the best they can hope for under the guest worker program changes) is definitely not of sufficient near term concern to simply walk away from the biggest security risk we have. The terrorists can still today – thanks to the GOP leadership in the House – cross our borders and disolve into a mass of underground workers whom we need to coax into the light and to become documented.
Well, I am not alone in my contempt of the do-nothing-to-protect-us Congress who have lost their focus and priorities for this nation. The Wall Street Journal notes the fallacy of this lose, lose, lose decision:
Most Congressional majorities campaign for re-election by touting their legislative achievements. Not this year. House Republicans have decided that the key to saving their majority is not to solve the immigration problem they’ve spent the last year building into a “crisis.” Give them credit for novelty, if not for wisdom.
…
If Republicans want a precedent, they might recall what happened to Democrats who failed to pass a crime bill in the summer of 1994. Already in trouble on taxes at the time, Democrats looked feckless on crime and health care and went down to crashing defeat. Immigration could do the same for Republicans, who have been flogging the issue for months as a grave national problem. Doing nothing about it now risks alienating even those conservatives who merely want more border police.
There was only one thing that could shake my support of Reps to the core – and that was allowing this nation to be at unnecessary risk to attack. And someone, somewhere decided to gamble the entire conservative movement by betting immigrants becoming nationalized citizens in 2016 would trump a terrorist threat this summer. Well, they were wrong. And hopefully no one will die before reality returns to DC and the GOP.
I guess I can detect a plan in all this madness. It comes from the realization that America will be a magnet for immigrants as long as we enjoy the freedoms and economic engine we have built up. Americans understand what drives this issue:
Every poll we’ve seen says that the public favors an immigration reform of the kind that President Bush does. That’s because, whatever their concerns about border security, Americans are smart enough to know that immigrants will keep coming as long as they have the economic incentive to do so.
Is the Tancredo-Dobbs plan to destroy our economy be electing Democrats so as to remove the incentive to come to America? Seems about as logical as leaving us exposed to terrorists by doing nothing and walking away with smug little smiles on their faces.
Make sure to also check out DJ Drummond’s take on all this. And also take note of some of the truly shady characters who are associated with the ‘anti-amnesty’ crowd in this amazing post by SJ Reidhead at The Pink Flamingo. Who knew Rep Tancredo spoke to Neo-Nazi’s? It is important who rallies to your cause and who’s support you garner. While I am sure the is no effort by the anti-immigration forces to embrace the neo-Nazis, it is important to notice when neo-Nazi’s embrace your cause and re-evaluate. Well, I guess I would. [H/T Harold Hutchison]
I believe you have this somewhat backwards. The Bill passed by the Representatives deals quite strickly with the illegals here. It does not give them amnesty, income tax forgiveness, or retroactive social security benefits. It makes their illegal presence here a felony.
The Senate (and the President) wish to sell the same bill of goods as the Simpson-Mazzoli Bill of 1986. Amnnesty and a “promise” of increased border security in the “future”. All that accomplished was to give amnesty to about three million illegals (50% more than expected) and to kick the can down the road. Now, twenty years later, the can has come to rest and the Senate (and President) believe we have no memory and will buy the same BS one more time. The straw man that we can’t deport twelve million illegals is suposed to justify our rewarding them for breaking our laws?
Close the damn border and we can then take a breath and consider our options. There are quite a few measures which can be taken at little or low cost to motivate these illegals to return home and, in any event, we must rid ourselves of the criminal element who are doing jail time and then walking out the doors.
EdwardV,
I know what was in the House Bill. But I have nothing backwards. We have nothing but exposed borders and a sea of undocumented workers in which Al Qaeda can hide. That is failure and there is nothing to rationalize it away. The GOP exposed us in a craven political ploy because their bill had zero hope of passage. I posted on solutions for this impasse before, so I was not for one or the other – but failure to do anything is not admirable or smart. And now it is done. The GOP did a cut and run on national security out of fear some immigrants may become US citizens in 10-15 years. Why should I be anything but disgusted?
Edward,
The House passed a bill they knew would never pass the Senate and then refused to compromise on the Senate bill.
I don’t understand why people are so upset about an amnesty, the problem is never going to be solved until there is some sort of an amnesty for the ones already here. Without it there is going to be absolutely no way to deal with those already here. Also, those people already here have or are going to eventually have kids who are going to be legal citizens and who are going to vote.
Eventually there will be an amnesty, like it or not. People in the border states were in favor of the Senate bill. I have found the House action to be knuckle-headed, narrow-minded, and short-sighted. Passing that bill would have probably led to Republicans controlling the political scene for a very long time. That can probably now be kissed goodbye. My guess is that Republicans are going to face a much more difficult time in border states now and the fastest growing segment of the US population has now been pushed even deeper into the arms of the Democrats.
Way to go, knuckleheads.
The people who so vehemently oppose the Senate bill keep saying “close the damn border,” yet the House, in vehemently opposing the Senate bill, has done so in a way that ensures that we DON’T “close the damn border,” at least not this year. In fact, we apparently aren’t going to do anything AT LEAST until after the election.
Does anybody really think this is a good thing? Are the people in the House going “Well, doing nothing this year probably isn’t a GOOD thing per se, but at least we saved America from being cancelled in 10-15 years”?
Let me put it another way. Whoever takes Texas will probably take the next Presidential election. The Republicans have just made it much more difficult to win Texas.
FIRST, we need to fix the borders.
Then we can discuss guest workers, etc, etc
MOST PEOPLE in this country may be stupid, but we are not so stupid as to see that closing the border is most important.
The congressional works will take the Senate bill and the House bill and find a “happy medium” that gives lots to the illegal immigrant and will add some window dressing to the borders.
Screw the Wall Street Journal and its intolerant, hardass position on this. The American people want the borders closed, then are quite willing to discuss other matters. As it stands, House-Senate conference will NOT give the American people what they want and need.
Ole Jim,
Do you have any clue how long it will take to build up the borders? This is another one of those truly idiotic claims that we cannot work on bringing the illegal immigrants out from underground until the border wall/fence is completed in 5+ years.
Sorry, I am not risking my kids safety for your sides silly excuses not to act now. Just because some can’t see doing more than one thing at a time doesn’t mean it cannot or should not be done.
But all this is moot since the brave GOP cut and ran on this issue and did nothing. You have no wall, in case you had not noticed.
Ole Jim,
BTW, you do know the Senate Bill had all the border protections of the House Bill. You can kid yourself, don’t think you can kid me. You have nothing and seem proud of it. When an American dies because a terrorist got through, will you still be proud?
Ole Jim:
The Senate Bill would have closed the border. I do not understand why people can not get it in their heads that the hardliners just KILLED a bill for border security becasue they refused to compromise on anything. That is not governing, that is pigheaded stupidity.
Last night on Brit Hume, I heard Charles Krauthammer say, “What difference does it make if we talk about immigration for a year?” and I thought, well the GOP has been talking about this stuff for a year and Bush has always been in favor of a guest worker program and now all of sudden they want to chat, after all what’ s the hurry. This was the attitude.
I usually like Charles but I have to admit that I was looking at him at that moment the same way Mort Kondracke was. I mean come on, these are the same people who swore this was a crisis that had to be dealt with. Right now. Yesterday. This minute.
The Senate bill stinks because of the amnsety provisions in it.
Compromise?
The track record of the Bush administration on enforcing current law is abysmal. Why should anyone expect the Senate bill, once passed and signed would do anything for the enforcement of the border.
Yes, this is the crux of the issue.
The laws on the border have not been enforced. The border closing seems no more likely to be done with the Senate bill, BUT the legal means of letting all the illegals get citizenship and various benefits will then be codified.
The Bush administration is simply not reliable on the borders. Minimal show attempts to enforce the 1986 laws on hiring illegals constitutes showmanship, not law enforcement.
This whole debate is about cheap labor. That is why the Wall Street Journal has consistenly backed the amnesty programs.
We have a mild reprise in food prices from current inflation from wetback labor in the food industry. It really isn’t worth that price differential in the long run.
Ole Jim,
Visualize this as a problem with several variables, each affecting the other. The border cannot simply be “closed.” The need for employer cooperation, for foolproof identification, for adequate screening, for incentivising those already here to come forward, all are part of “closing” the borders and are not “window dressing.”
Lets capitalize on those already here and get them into the tax system.
They need to have a legal guest owrker program so that people will be less inclined to enter illegally. They need to seperate the workers from the criminals and the terrorists by devising plans that will help identify who is who without overhelming law enforcement. The wall will only do so much.
Ole Jim:
Bush ahs deported more 6 million people. Returns are up 300%. Ten years ago 3,000 people were deported after being accused of a crime, this year the Bush administration put 63,000 of these people on a plane and returned them to where they came from.
This is just right wing nonsense being perpetrated by people like Malkin who don’t know what they are talking about.
When Tancredo goes after a conservative like Mike Pence from Indiana who comes up with something he thinks might be a compromise then we are dealing with loonies here.
The idea that Bush can wave a magic wand and just fix something that has been broken forever is ridiculous, this is why no one wants to deal with this, why it got this bad. If it were half as simple as you say, it would have been dealt with long ago.
This is what you linked us to in that “this amazing post” above:
“It’s like this. For weeks I have been trying to link a few people to a few organizations and movements. I’ve done so today. It isn’t for the faint of heart. If you want to be like O’Reilly, Rush, or Hannity and become a king or queen of denile, be my guest. But, I suggest a few people open their eyes and see what is going one here. It isn’t pretty. Fact is, it is absolutely terrifying. Never Again is Happening NOW.
Just play along with me and follow the links. They are ugly, dirty, and you are going to want either a stiff drink or a shower – or probably both after reading them. Then, follow the bouncing ball.
Stormfront is a neo-Nazi, white power organization. On this page they are promoting the big Wake Up America conference. Keep following the links. I will spell them out to you step by step.”
I didn’t bother going any further, this is obviouly some liberal America hating fruitcake.
I’m even surprised you would be reading such hogwash, much less pointing your readers to it.
And you said:
“Every poll we’ve seen says that the public favors an immigration reform of the kind that President Bush does.”
They may, but where can we find one? Surely that “AMNESTY FOR ALL” thing that the Senate passed isn’t what they want, even that’s not what Pres. Bush has said he wants.
By the way, the next time you see one of those polls, link us to it. Some way or other I always miss those polls saying we want to give up and give everybody amnesty or citizenship (or as you call it, ‘a path to citizenship’.
posted earlier on the disaster laid upon this country by the GOP Congress by leaving this country’s borders unprotected, the 12 million immigrant workers here undocumented
How did the GOP get credit for this? I think if you check, one heck of a lot of them came in during the Clinton watch
Why should I be anything but disgusted?
If for no other reason, your complete failure to understand it.
knuckleheads.
Left by crosspatch
if you can’t argue the facts, attack the person
Some people don’t have a clue, they just absolutely don’t have a clue
BTW, you do know the Senate Bill had all the border protections of the House Bill. You can kid yourself, don’t think you can kid me.
For the record, there is ABSOLUTELY noting in the Senate bill that would secure the border, NOTHING.
There are a lot of if, ands, and buts, but NOTHING that would guarantee, or even pretend to guarantee, border security.
People in Texas will never let the democrats back in power thats why they want the border sealed.The wets are trying to take this state over and we know it.Yankees should let all the mexicans they want come, we have more than enough.the congress will stall till after the election then they will try to pass the senate bill unless the election goes the way I pray it will a majority win for those aginst amnesty and those who want amnesty lose their seats. Illegals here have cost good americans their jobs, retirement,kids future,Everyone who wants amnesty should come see what its costing this state.They say we are booming .Those without a colledge education are suffering .Uneducated americans are still americans where is the sympathy for those people.You can kick your dog so many times before he bites you.I hope the american people will wake up before its to late. Someday the border will be sealed by the army .The mexicans are going to have an election we’ll see how that one turns out.We may have more enemys down south than friends.President Bush is considered a tratior here Mccain,Kennedy,and the rest of the democrats and rinos will be sorry they backed this horse.Guestworkers & amnesty is nothing more than citizenship for all who will come.If the democrats ever do take over this state the mexicans will run it for them, it will be just like mexico,legalized drugs,prostituion,corrupt police, crooked politions,all out gang wars,the rest of america better look out Texas is all that stands between them and all out anarchy.Maybe thats what the rest of y’all want. Love, sweetness