POLITICS: Republicans heat up anti-immigrant rants
By Tim Louis Macaluso on Nov. 29th, 2007 at 12:19pm 2 Comments
During the last presidential election, the Republicans' wedge issue was gay-marriage.
This year it's undocumented workers.
A fiery exchange between Republican frontrunners Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani dominated the early part of last night's CNN You Tube debate. Romney accused Giuliani 
of making New York City the largest sanctuary city in the country.
Giuliani shot back that Romney ran a "sanctuary mansion" while he was governor of Massachusetts. Apparently the former governor unknowingly hired undocumented workers to help with repairs.
The exchange made for good TV, but it was also a childish, schoolboy squabble about a serious national issue.
The fervor against undocumented workers has become so hot that for many Americans, rational discussion about the subject is not allowed.
Instead, we're bombarded with frightening stories of terrorists who might cross the border, thousands of Americans losing their jobs, and taxpayers funding education and health care for Latin Americans working and living here illegally.
Americans are being whipped into hysteria. And underlying it is fear and racism.
Undocumented immigrants have nothing to do with the Iraq War, a falling dollar, and a broken health care system. But that won't stop the fear-mongering.
Just imagine if two undocumented women picking lettuce all day in Arizona wanted to get married. Welcome to the new apocalypse.
User Comments
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STANLEY on December 1st, 2007
Sir,
I think that America is right in discussing the issue of immigrants because ultimately the land is yours. I would do the same in my country. This debate is long overdue and should be taken with serriousness.
I am a lawfully admitted international student from Africa studying in the USA. I know that
I do not wish to stay in the USA after my education. This is both my personal conviction and I also managed to convince the USA embassy in my country that I really wish to study in the USA and I do not wish to overstay my welcome.
I can do this because I have job offers and a family business and estate to manage.
However every visitor to these United States should be regarded as an illegal mmigrant. To the very end we can never compare life here in the USA with the poverty in developing countries. Temptation to stay in the USA is really great!
Therefore while you discuss and debate the issue of illegal immigrants, you might as well be reminded of three very important points:-
1. IImmigrants are are as old as the history of the USA.
2. Illegal Immigrants will have the option of going back to their country of origin.
3. America gives Diversity Visa (Green Cards) each year to selected countries.
I believe that the USA can afford and should simply legalize all the illegal immigrants in its soil. This is the best solution is for all those illegal immigrants to come out and legalize request to change their status.
Those who come forward should not be victimized but allowed to stay under a special immigration programme, while those who refuse should be exposed as frauds and never do wells who do not really have business staying here and deported.
To me it seems foolish that the USA is giving out green cards to selected countries in the world every year, but not adressing the problems of illegal immigrants within its soil.
This debate therefore is an eye opener and should becontinued.
God Bless America!
Sincerely,
STANLEY
Kathleen Seabolt on January 12th, 2008
Yes, we still need hand labor to support American agriculture. No, not a lot of American citizens line up for this work. Your $7 pint of raspberries had to be gently picked, even unripened.
The question of illegal immigration is a great challenge to our national character. The price of providing educational and medical programs to illegal immigrants is daunting (especially to small communities), but the cost of denying services to children who do not choose their ancestry, country or citizenship is tragedy.
I have been present for the blowhard delivery of a back-where-they-came-from speech delivered in the presence of a friend whose last name is Vasquez - he quietly waited for the bigot to draw breath and casually mentioned that his family has been residing on the same piece of property in California for 17 generations - it was land granted to them by the country of Spain. His family's citizenship has changed from Spanish to Mexican to Californios to American over the past 300+ years.
When the rhetoric evolves from the typical jingoism into thoughtful, economically viable strategies to legalize immigrants, then I'll start paying more attention. But this level of discourse I've heard my whole life.