Thread: McCain's popularity isn't about immigration

And that's quite obvious to most of us who have joined ALIPAC. McCain's poll ratings plummeted in '07 when voters were reminded of just how insidious McCain has been when it comes to many important issues like taxes, free speech, and especially immigration.

After the Florida Republican primary and McCain's win there, pro-amnesty media sources found a way to connect McCain's blatant pro-Amnesty stance to his win, based on the high percentage of Hispanics living in Florida. But is that really why he won?

To assume that all Hispanic voters, who are (barring any voter fraud) US citizens, are in favor of amnesty for illegal immigrants is an incorrect assumption. Hispanic voters, as with any group, are individuals whose opinions will vary from one person to the next. There are many within the Hispanic community who followed the rules and came to the US legally, and are resentful, as many Americans are, of those who think they don't need to follow the rules and somehow deserve a free pass. Granted, some Hispanics will feel that they "should" want amnesty, otherwise they are going against their own. However, it is wrong to assume that all Hispanics want amnesty.

Media sources claim that immigration is a dead issue. Yet nothing could be farther from the truth. Just in the last few days, Conrgess has been put on notice to remove loopholes from the economic stimulus bill that would allow money to go to illegal immigrants. Clearly, those of us who demand secure borders and that all immigrants come here legally are still a force to be reckoned with. Racists and other proponents of illegal immigration have been hard at work, and the message they want to spread for their own interests is the lie that immigration is no longer an issue in the 2008 presidential race.

While it is likely that many McCain supporters are pro-amnesty, McCain's popularity is likely due to the fact that many Republican voters have not yet made up their minds or have supported candidates that are no longer in the race and have not recommitted to another candidate. Also, it is possible that many of McCain's supporters do not have illegal immigration at the top of their list of issues, or have bought into his lies that he will fix the problem of illegal immigration.

Outside of the Republican party are many individuals who do not identify as either a Democrat or Republican. These individuals identify more with a smaller third party or no party at all, and consequently would not be involved in the primary voting. It is my opinion that a very large number of people who are in support of legal immigration and against amnesty are part of this group.

With the Republican nominee choices becoming more limited and the full presidential election picture coming more into focus, I believe that McCain's chance of winning the Republican party nomination will diminish. This doesn't mean he won't get the nomination, as it's likely that party officials are in the pocket of those who want the cheap labor that illegal immigrants provide, but he will most likely loose support along the way. And should a worst case scenario arise of McCain or a democrat becoming the next president, we can shut down the phone lines in congress again when the next amnesty bill is presented.

Media sources claim that amnesty is dead issue. Yet nothing could be farther from the truth

I agree with this. One of the reasons McCain has risen in the polls (or at least hasn't stayed in the cellar) is because he has spinned away from his overt calls from amnesty and is now (deceitfully I might add) stressing border security.