Thread: GOP Official Urges Caution on Immigrants

DOUBLE POST>>> SORRY GUYS

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... 01479.html

( The Washington Compost )

GOP Official Urges Caution on Immigrants

By Dan Balz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, December 2, 2005; Page A05

CARLSBAD, Calif., Dec. 1 -- Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman urged his party Thursday to oppose rising anti-immigrant sentiments in the debate over border security and illegal immigration, suggesting that the GOP risks being on the wrong side of history and electoral politics alike if it embraces an exclusionary message.

Appearing before the Republican Governors Association, Mehlman waded into an issue that political analysts say threatens to rip apart the Republican coalition and inflict long-term damage to the party's hopes of expanding its appeal to Latinos and other minorities. A top political hand to President Bush, Mehlman followed the White House lead in treading a middle path on the issue: He issued a strong call for tougher enforcement of immigration laws but extolled the contributions of immigrants and denounced those who have sought to close the country to foreigners.

"Throughout our history, there have always been Americans who believed that coming to these shores was a right reserved only for them and their ancestors, but not for others," Mehlman said. Citing Republicans and Democrats from earlier eras who had expressed anti-immigrant prejudice, he added: "Ladies and gentlemen, that was wrong then and those who argue that now are wrong today."

Mehlman said after the speech that he was not aiming his remarks at any particular person or politician. But his message offered a counterweight to the views of many conservatives, led by Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.), who have warned that illegal immigration is damaging to the nation.

The party chairman spoke three days after Bush traveled to the Mexican border to highlight his determination to strengthen security along the country's southern flank. But the president also emphasized his support for a guest-worker program that would provide legal status to many temporary workers. Tancredo called that tantamount to amnesty for illegal immigrants.

Few states illustrate more vividly than California the double-edged nature of the problem that immigration presents to the Republican Party. In 1994, then-Gov. Pete Wilson (R), responding to growing voter resentment over the tide of illegal immigration at a time of economic recession, sought reelection on a platform strongly opposing illegal immigration. Wilson helped engineer a ballot initiative, Proposition 187, that sought to eliminate government assistance for illegal and some legal immigrants.

The strategy helped Wilson survive for a second term, but proved disastrous for the Republican Party in the state. The 1996 election produced a surge in participation by Latinos, raising their share of those who turned out to vote by roughly a third, with Democrats winning 70 percent of their votes.

With Latinos now the fastest-growing segment of the population, Republicans can ill afford to offend them with immigration policies that are seen as punitive. GOP strategist Mike Murphy, who participated in a panel discussion after Mehlman's speech, noted that in California, a politician now can win 70 percent of the white vote and still lose an election because of the state's growing diversity.

Bush long has resisted the most vociferous anti-immigration rhetoric in his party. His political team has focused relentlessly on reaching out to the Hispanic community, and his share of the Latino vote grew measurably between 2000 and 2004.

In the face of growing resentment among citizens in border and neighboring states that the federal government has lost control of border security, Bush and other politicians now are under pressure to respond with tougher immigration policies. But Republican pollster Bill McIntuff told the governors meeting that the party must respond, but with language that does not sound exclusionary. "We have to have the right policy and soft language," he said.

"America is a nation of immigrants and America is a nation of laws, and we must remember the 'and' between the two," Mehlman told the governors. Portraying most immigrants as hardworking and law-abiding, Mehlman said that Bush recognizes that "family values don't stop at the Rio Grande."

Mehlmann--Get a New Job!!

The GOP is already on the WRONG SIDE OF history since 2001.

You've sold out our country, our sovereignty, failed to secure our nation, refused to end wars that are over, failed to respond to Katrina for 5 days, enriched Oil Barons through a natural disaster, ruined our manufacturing economy, indebted our nation and our people, flooded our nation with people we do not want here and can not sustain successfully --and as a life-time 4th generation Republican, I can tell you with a life-time of experience and over a 100 years of GOP knowledge in my genes---YOU BLEW IT!

You want sing that "Immigrant Dance Song", then go find a nation that needs some immigrants and maybe they'll hire you.

WE DON'T.

Maybe you're home country will take you back, you being an "immigrant' and all.

Mehlman Quote:
Mehlman said. Citing Republicans and Democrats from earlier eras who had expressed anti-immigrant prejudice, he added: "Ladies and gentlemen, that was wrong then and those who argue that now are wrong today."

He still doesn't get it. He STILL doesn't understand that we are NOT anti-immigrant, we are anti-law breaking. We are FOR a reasonable amount of LEGAL immigration which encourages assimilation and which does not endanger our culture, values and language. This guy is SLOW.

We are FOR being ABLE to be that WELCOMING country GB talked about.

Gosh, this guy is slow. Is he the best the Republicans could find?

Yes, Mr. Mehlman, your party IS in danger of fading away, just like the English language. There is something coming that YOU will have to accept.
It's coming directly from the American people.

Its called a THIRD PARTY. Get used to it.

Judy:

Great post! I responded with a letter to the editor on this article. I used some of your words so I hope you don't mind, but they were so good that I couldn't resist so I have to give you credit for inspiring me today with your words. Well quite frankly you inspire me everyday.

Here goes:

Your article concerning GOP Official Urges Caution on Immigrants by Dan Balz

I find it utterly disgusting that Ken Mehlman not only describes the 90 percent of the American population that wants to put an end to the illegal alien invasion as anti immigrant, but says that GOP politicans that actually listen to their constituents and work to try to end this immigration quagmire as being on the wrong side of history. First off it's not anti immigrant, it's anti illegal alien as in anti law breaking. Second it's Ken Mehlman and the RNC who's been on the wrong side of history since 2001. It's they who have sold out our country, our sovereignty, failed to secure our nation, refused to end wars that are over such as Iraq and Afghanistan, failed to respond to Katrina for 5 days, enriched Oil Barons through a natural disaster, ruined our manufacturing economy, indebted our nation and our people, flooded our nation with people we do not want here and can not sustain successfully.

Here is another history lesson for Ken Mehlman. President Bush's poll numbers are rapidly declining and a big part of which is because he continues to push his destructive agenda of open borders despite the huge public outcry to close our borders. Ken Mehlman and the RNC are so out of step, so out of touch with the American public that they are in serious danger of losing their majority, but yet they continue to be arrogant and condescending toward the American people and continue to push their agenda regardless of the what the American people think. The Hispanics have traditionally always voted at least 60-40 against Republicans despite their many attempts at appeasing illegal aliens with amnesty and other nonsense and this trend has been going on for at least 50 years. Nothing has changed and they will never learn. The Republican party will continue to be the Stupid Party and when they lose their majority in next years elections they will be scratching their heads trying to figure out what went wrong and why the people didn't vote for them. They don't get it and they never will. I predict the Republicans will lose their majority in 2006 for many reasons and as a lifelong Republican I can promise you that I for one will not vote for any Republican who refuses to listen to what the American people want.

The American public wants the borders to be closed, they want all illegal aliens to be deported without excuse, they want the corrupt lawbreaking employers to be jailed, they want the war in Iraq to be over with and for our troops to come home, they want the out of control spending to stop and if the Republicans can't find a way to pull their heads out of the sand and clean out their ears then they are going to be in for a rude awakening in 2006.