OK, Republicans. Since you’re so religious and all – it’s time for a little “come to Jesus meetin’”. If you’re not familiar with the term, click on the link. It’s time for a little harsh dressing down.
Do you realize what we have at stake in this election next year? This isn’t just about taxes, pork spending, social security benefits and repairing bridges. This is about saving our Republic. Do you know we’re already past our life expectancy? Economies and societies built on the rule of law, liberty and economic freedom have this troubling tendency to destroy themselves at around the 200 year mark. This happens when people figure out they can use the ballot box to get their hands on someone else’s stuff.
Well guess what, folks? We’re there. We’re past there. We’re on the ropes. We’re old – and durned near on our deathbed.
We have a president who was not raised as an American. Oh, I know. He’s a citizen and all that … but he was not infused during his formative years with how fortunate he was to have been born in this country and what it means to be an American. He lived in Indonesia, for crying out loud, for much of his childhood; that and Hawaii. Well guess what? I lived in Hawaii too, and I can tell you that as a student in Hawaiian schools you weren’t exactly saturated with American culture and history. Hawaiian history? Sure. And that’s understandable. Hawaiians are very proud of their heritage. But U.S. history? Only what the schools absolutely had to include. And that private school, Punahou, that Obama went to in Honolulu? Here’s another “guess what?” My sister taught there; right around the time that Barry was a student. Again – not a place where you’re going to learn what a blessing it is to be an American and a citizen of the greatest nation on earth … ever.
Our president thinks that American greatness comes from government. He believes that free enterprise is inherently evil. He is robbing us of our economic liberty as he institutes a command economy. He believes in using tax policy for income redistribution rather than raising the revenue needed to pay for the basic (Constitutional) functions of government. He said he was going to fundamentally transform the United States of America, and we stupidly didn’t ask him just how he planned to do that. Now we know. And now we know that for our children to have half a chance of improving on the standard of living that we have enjoyed – or even living as well as we have -- this man has to be sent back to a community organizing office behind a dry cleaner on the South Side of Chicago … STAT.
That brings us to Newt Gingrich and this little puddin’ storm over his comments on immigration. Newt suggested that we might not want to be rounding up people who have lived in this country – though illegally – for 25 years or so; during which time they raised families, started businesses, paid taxes and helped drive our economy; and ship them back to Mexico. As soon as those words were out of his mouth Michelle Bachmann – desperate for a way to ignite voters – started screeching about “amnesty.” In no time we had the ObamaMedia falling over itself to parrot the “amnesty” line and call Gingrich out on strikes.
Let the progs and libs play this thing any way they want … but you Replublicans; you GOPers … could you make a special effort and try to get serious here for a minute or two? Think! I’ve done it on occasion, and I can promise it’s not painful.
Do we need to enforce our immigration laws? Absolutely! Does the border with Mexico need to be secured? No doubt. And Gingrich has said he would do just that. But a bit of realism needs to creep into this conversation.
I love analogies, so try this one: You come home from work to find a pipe has broken. Your home is flooded. What is the FIRST thing you do? Do you sit there and argue with people about how you’re going to get all that water out of your home? No. The FIRST thing you do is shut off the water. The same logic applies to our immigration problem. The first thing we do is secure our borders. Gingrich says he will shut them down.
OK … so the flood has stopped. NOW you start to clean up the mess.
Republican voters need to mature a bit on this issue …. Not one of your candidates has actually articulated a plan deport all illegals. Not one. And do you know just why that is? Because every single GOP candidate, including Bachmann, knows full well that there is no way in the world we’re going to round up every illegal in this country and send them south.
Try to imagine what the world will think of us (and it does matter) if we suddenly start looking for people who entered this country illegally 25 years ago; people who then married an American citizen, started a business, raised several children – all citizens – and who is now a vital and integral part of the American economy and his community, not to mention a husband, father and grandfather. So we find these people, and start shipping them back to Mexico. Can you hear the screams from the international community? Try these two words: “Ethnic cleansing.” Oh, I know. In reality we would just be expelling law-breakers … but you try to tell that to people we want to like and admire us that when they see that most of the people on the green busses have brown skin and dark hair.
I’m particularly amused by Bachmann’s (and other’s) claim that letting these people go through a process to gain legal residency status in America would be a “magnet” for more illegal immigration. Earth to Michelle. Our country is a magnet. Our way of life, our freedoms, our opportunities … all a magnet; a magnet much more powerful than giving some long-time illegal (but otherwise law-abiding) residents a break. What is Bachmann’s solution? Are we going to combat illegal immigration by making the United States a country to which nobody wants to emigrate? Seal the borders! Take the same actions to protect our borders that Mexico takes to protect theirs!
There’s a lot of anger on this issue. Understandable anger. We’ve had a succession of politicians and leaders who have steadfastly refused to do anything about what I call the Mexican invasion. And when a state (like Arizona) does try to address the situation, our federal government sides with the Mexican officials to go to court to get the enforcement actions stopped!
If it were not for the 17th Amendment to our Constitution, this story would read completely different .. but that’s another column.
So, Republicans --- instead of insisting that your candidate seek revenge on people who sought freedom and opportunity many, many years ago; try demanding that your candidate promise to do something to stem the tide as soon as he’s sworn in. Shut off the water. Close the borders. Once that’s been done we’ll seek out the illegals that pose a threat to our society and greet them with a clenched fist. Those who contribute to our society and want to join our family? Let’s greet them with an outstretched hand.