Thread: Semantics of immigration have candidates on guard

Semantics of immigration have candidates on guard


December 19, 2007


By Stephen Dinan - When Howard Dean complained recently about Republicans overheating the immigration debate, his top piece of evidence was their use of "outrageous phrases like 'illegal aliens.' "

But the chairman of the Democratic National Committee might have turned his anger on his own party, including Sen. Barack Obama, who used the phrase twice in the Democrats' CNN debate last month.

With immigration turning into a dominant issue for both parties, the language of the issue is becoming a tiptoe affair — and as Mr. Dean shows, both parties will have to be careful they don't catch their own troops in friendly fire.

Stacie Paxton, a spokeswoman for Mr. Dean, said the difference is Democrats don't mean to use the phrase as an attack.

"Chairman Dean was speaking to the ugly truth that Republicans have used immigration as a wedge issue for political gain, rather than getting serious about immigration reform," she said. "While Democrats want to solve the problem, Republicans want to distract from their failures on the issue with divisive rhetoric."

"Every Democrat shares the goal of securing our borders and working toward comprehensive immigration reform with civility and respect and have said so repeatedly," she said.

A spokesman for Mr. Obama said they would not comment on the record on his use of the phrase.

For the most part, Democrats prefer to call those here without authorization "undocumented" — the preferred term of Hispanic and immigrant rights groups. Most Republicans are comfortable with the adjective "illegal," coupled either with "alien" or "immigrant," and some Republican candidates will just call them "illegals."

A middle-ground phrase — "unauthorized immigrant" — is gaining in use among those who study the issue, though it hasn't broken into the political debate yet.

But Democratic candidates occasionally will go off-message: In addition to Mr. Obama's use of "illegal alien," both he and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton have used the phrase "illegal immigrant." And Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr., Delaware Democrat, has used the term "illegals" in a debate.

Among Republican hopefuls, Rep. Tom Tancredo and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney both have used "illegal alien" during debates, and Mr. Romney, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and former New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani have used "illegals."

Mr. Dean said Republicans' harsh words reflect a harsher turn in policy.

And he may be right: As Mr. Giuliani's stance has stiffened, so has his terminology. In a quote that keeps coming back to haunt him, he said in 1994 that "if you come here, and you work hard, and you happen to be in an undocumented status, you're one of the people we want in this city."

Mr. Dean said Hispanic voters will punish Republicans for their tone. Republicans counter that Mr. Dean is afraid of losing votes because all of the Democratic presidential candidates embrace a path to citizenship for illegal aliens — which many voters say amounts to amnesty.

Last year, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists issued a statement objecting to using "alien" because "it casts them as adverse, strange beings, inhuman outsiders who come to the U.S. with questionable motivations."

Ivan Roman, the association's executive director, said this week that although some Democrats have used offensive terms, Republicans have been worse. "The Republicans were just shameless in the tone that they took on bashing immigrants," he said.

But he said that seemed to change in the past two debates, including the Spanish-language one broadcast on Univision.

President Bush occasionally uses the term "illegal alien," and last week his press secretary, Dana Perino, defended it when asked about Mr. Dean's comments.

"I actually think that it's a legally defined term," she said, though she added, "I'm not going to comment any further on Howard Dean's comments."

U.S. law refers to foreigners as aliens, with the term "resident alien" used for immigrants here legally.

But Mr. Roman said bureaucratese isn't a defense. "Just because a person is called a resident alien because way back when we created the laws, that was the term that was used, doesn't mean we need to keep using it," he said.

Last month in the Democrats' CNN debate, Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich of Ohio lectured moderator Wolf Blitzer about using the term "illegal."

"I take issue with your description of people being illegal immigrants. There aren't any illegal human beings," he said, insisting they be called "undocumented" instead.

It's an issue for reporters as well. The Washington Times style is to use "illegal alien" except when quoting directly, but other papers shy away from the term, and still others use terms interchangeably, including illegal immigrant.

A columnist for the Lansing State Journal in Michigan wrote earlier this month about the angry e-mails he received when he used "illegal alien" in his recent columns on immigration.

In October, Lawrence Downes, a member of the New York Times editorial board, wrote a column arguing that using the word illegal "pollutes the debate" and, he said, explains why "bogus, deceptive" enforcement policies such as a border fence or workplace raids win so much applause.

"None of those enforcement policies have a trace of honesty or realism. At least they don't reward illegals, and that, for now, is all this country wants," he wrote.

www.washingtontimes.com

ILLEGAL ALIENS is the correct and proper term given to a foreigner (alien) who is in this country against the LAW (illegal) and having NO respect for the laws. DEAL WITH IT DEMS!

In addition, there are MORE American voters in the US than hispanic only voters. I am latina and I will NOT vote for ANYONE who wants to provide a short-cut for ILLEGAL ALIENS to stay!

Ya, Demacrates want amnesty for all, it is their answer to everything.

For the most part, Democrats prefer to call those here without authorization "undocumented" — the preferred term of Hispanic and immigrant rights groups. Most Republicans are comfortable with the adjective "illegal," coupled either with "alien" or "immigrant," and some Republican candidates will just call them "illegals."

undocumented--Part of Mexican President Calderon and the Democrats plan to 'neutralize' (brainwash) Americans into accepting the illegals presence. Illegal denotes the fact a crime was committed. I will never refer to them as undocumented...they are ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS/ALIENS.

Felipe Calderon
Today, Mexican president Felipe Calderon] asked his diplomatic representatives in the U.S. to participate in the public debate on immigration by appearing at public events, talking more to the media and working with nonprofit groups to promote Mexican immigrants' role in supporting the U.S. economy.

"The key is to neutralize this strategy of confrontation and discrimination that forms part of U.S. society's mistaken perception, and be able to newly focus arguments on the complimentary aspects of our economies," he said [to the consuls]............

........Calderon's instructions came two days after he accused U.S. presidential candidates of "swaggering, macho and anti-Mexican" posturing. He also warned the U.S. Congress not to impose conditions on a $1.4 billion anti-drug aid package.

http://lonewacko.com/blog/archives/007300.html

I am neither bitter nor cynical but I do wish there was less immaturity in political thinking.
Franklin D. Roosevelt

We will not let the OBL and pandering, hypocritical Dems control the language and redefine the terms. The proper, accurate, legal phrase is "illegal aliens," or illegals for short. And "comprehensive reform" we all know is a tranparent euphemism for amnesty.

Dept. of War = Department of Defense

Ouu I remember that as the first use of Double Speak.

Orwell saw this coming in 1948. His only error was in not for-seeing computers. Though I must admit TV has been the greatest influence on public indoctrination for years.