Immigration Coming Front & Center

No sooner had Captain Ed and I posted about immigration being a winner for 'Enforcement First' Republicans than I read this article.
Supporters and opponents of liberalized immigration laws bellowed at each other through bullhorns at a rally in Phoenix on Monday as pressure on the U.S. Congress to break a deadlock over a proposed immigration overhaul gathered pace nationwide. About a thousand supporters of a Senate bill offering millions of illegal immigrants a path to citizenship gathered outside the Capitol building in downtown Phoenix on Labor Day, chanting, "We are America" and waving U.S. flags.
While there still isn't a consensus on Capitol Hill on what immigration reform should look like, a consensus has formed across the nation on what it shouldn't look like. The 'enforcement first' group has the clear majority right now, though this protest proves that the 'illegal immigration lobby' is still a noisy faction. The difference between the rallies of last spring and this fall's rallies is that there's vocal opposition at the rallies:
They were met by scores of angry opponents of the measure, toting placards urging authorities to "stop the criminal alien invasion" and "secure the border," who jabbed fingers at protesters and tried to shout down keynote speakers. "These people are illegal aliens. They need to be incarcerated, fined and sent home," said activist Carol Hands, as she stood amid protesters shouting through bullhorns.
As I pointed out here, there's now polling data that confirms the strength of enforcement first immigration reform legislation. The national media thinks that John McCain's and Ted Kennedy's opinions are majority opinions but they couldn't be more wrong. There's far more people in what I call the Tom Coburn/Jeff Sessions camp than in the McCain/Kennedy/Hagel/Martinez camp.
Speaking at a Labor Day Catholic Mass at Los Angeles Cathedral, Cardinal Roger Mahony criticized lawmakers in Washington for dragging their heels over reforms. "I say to members of Congress, you do not have the right or the luxury to let four weeks go by and refuse to deal with immigration reform," Mahony said. Mahony, who has emerged as one of the leading advocates for illegal immigrants in the United States, said he sent letters on Monday to Bush and congressional leaders urging them to break the impasse.
With all due respect to Cardinal Mahony, I don't understand how a person of faith can overlook illegality. I wouldn't have a problem with him if he simply prayed for a solution. That's one thing. It's another to condone illegal activity.
The rally in Phoenix was one of several over the Labor Day weekend as pressure mounted on Congress to break the impasse when members return from recess on Tuesday ahead of Congressional mid-term elections in November.

The impasse will be solved this November when more enforcement first politicians are elected. I also suspect that alot of Republican senators 'got religion' this past month during their recess. I don't think that's enough to break the deadlock in the Senate but it will tell people who's standing in the way of real immigration reform.



Posted Tuesday, September 5, 2006 7:31 AM

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