Obama Continues to Play Hispanics on Immigration Issue
President Obama recently inflamed passions on both sides of the immigration debate with a pre-election day appearance on the Univision radio show hosted by the enormously popular Eddie “El Piolin” Sotelo.
At one point, Sotelo questioned Obama’s commitment to immigration reform and offered that as a possible explanation for why the president hasn’t kept his promise to make it a top priority in his administration. The president took the easy way out and simply returned to the Democratic playbook of blaming the GOP. Obama tried to convince the show’s listeners that, even though Democrats control both houses in Congress (for now), they are nonetheless powerless to move the needle on immigration reform without the support of Republicans.
That’s ridiculous. Democrats have the capability to do much more than they’ve done, but the reason they won’t do more is because passing immigration reform as it is commonly discussed — i.e., with a guest worker component — is unacceptable to a powerful constituency that Democrats won’t challenge under any circumstance: organized labor.
Besides, if Obama wants to tell the story of the immigration reform debate, he should at least tell it right. He seems to have forgotten that, while serving in the Senate during the 2006 debate over immigration reform, he himself proposed “poison pill” amendments intended to kill bipartisan legislation.
The following year, the Senate debated the exceptionally well-crafted Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007. One of the chief architects of the bill was Sen. Jon Kyl, R-AZ, and the legislation had a half dozen Republican sponsors. During the debate, Sen. David Vitter, R-LA, proposed an amendment that would have stripped away the language calling for illegal immigrants to be given visas so they could remain in the country legally. That amendment was defeated by a vote of 29 to 66; those casting the “no” votes included 26 Republicans.
Still, in the world according to Obama, the GOP is always to blame. And it’s up to Latino voters to, as he told Sotelo, punish their enemies and reward their friends.
But luckily, the host didn’t let Obama pass the buck to the GOP. Sotelo reminded the president that he was able to pass health care reform because he put his shoulder to the wheel and made it happen. Why can’t Obama do that with immigration reform, Sotelo wanted to know.
Congratulations, Ruben, on finding your ‘honest streak’. This is the most sensible article you’ve written in a while and, whether I agree with your politics or not, I do respect your pointing out Obama’s hypocricy.
So why is no one focusing on the Idaho 1st District where Democrat incumbent Walt Minnick is frantically trying to whip up some up anti-immigrant sentiment in a desperate attempt to save his seat?
In non-stop attack ads Minnick accuses his Republican challenger, Raul Labrador (WHO IS AN IMMIGRATION LAWYER) of having a “specific and preexisting plan” to help one of his clients to whom he was assigned as a public defender “to flee to Mexico to avoid the charges” and who “was later caught after sneaking across the border again.”
Did you catch that? A candidate with actual knowledge and experience to help us write sane immigration policy is subjected to attack ads with murderish looking backgrounds of police tape, photos of bad boy drug dealers and threatening voice overs to make the outrageous claim that he had a specific and preexisting plan to help a driver in a drug bust flee to Mexico and sneak back again. Here is the original attack adhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1RwA3EgGrA&feature=player_embedded
No truth to it. A retired agent involved in the case came out in support of Labrador. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccfLxLnuxSg&feature=player_embedded The judge agreed with Labrador’s request for all the right reasons. It is just an outrageous gutter smear. Minnick runs from the cameras when confronted. http://www.labrador4idaho.com/2010/10/ktvb-shows-walt-minnick-running-away-fact-check-on-latest-smear-ad/ Sheriff Joe Arpaio endorsed Labrador to help show he is willing to work for real reform rather than just another round of amnesty; but still no national interest in this very close race.
There little being reported on this. Can you imagine the 24/7 media focus on this case if Raul Labrador were a democrat candidate rather than a republican?
For anyone interested in writing a possible post-mortem on how this easy to win house seat was lost, here is an article that lays it out fairly well. ://www.examiner.com/conservative-in-spokane/new-walt-minnick-ad-shameful-deceptive
fix on link for article and attack ad fixed: http://www.examiner.com/conservative-in-spokane/new-walt-minnick-ad-shameful-deceptive
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1RwA3EgGrA&feature=player_embedded
Obama knows he doesn’t need to lift a finger to gain the Latino vote; those that bother to vote ‘know their role,’ and they vote in lockstep: 90% Democrat
Ruben, I can’t believe I have to correct you on this, but El Piolin’s name is Eddie Sotelo, not Soleto. You erred numerous times in the article. Hmmmm……
Eddie did his job, Ruben. Are you willing to do yours?
I am searching to find the “Latino” line of demarcation, the clear, bright line where “Latino” pundits and organizers take a stand on what is good for America, which includes an array of folks who come from places other than Mexico.
Marco Rubio, is he getting a lot of play in the Mexican ancestry community? Or does the “Latino” solidarity end at the doorstep of conservative “Latinos” much the same way African-American solidarity ends at the doorstep of conservative blacks?
The leftists have planted a fiction into the “minority narrative” and have been doing so for decades. Obama didn’t work with UNO because he loved Latinos generally or Mexican-Americans specifically. The socialist “organizing” tool used Mexicans (whether American or undocumented) to push a leftist agenda.
What a silly move to play footsie with a movement that needs to hide who they are, to try to help a people who needs to hide who they are. The shadowy combination is creepy and unsettling. Had Mexican-American pundits and organizers realized that the Tea Party was their ticket all along, they would have invented it themselves.
The way to gain influence is not to take a stand against the right-center of this country and throw in with the rabid, frothing, anti-American leftists. It makes you “enemies” of the people. Didn’t you grasp the meaning when Obama stated it?
Why would you want to sneak across the border to come live with “enemies”? It certainly wouldn’t be to assimilate and make friends, now would it? If one adopts Obama’s “enemies” theme, then if you were those “enemies”, Ruben…what would you do if those “enemies” came crashing across YOUR borders?
If, instead, the “Latino” voters said…”My fellow Americans are NOT my “enemies” and the Tea Party represents values that I respect and admire”…the “immigration” issue would have an entirely different feel to it, wouldn’t it?
And, Ruben…where would the “progressives” go, at that point? If Latinos took up with the Tea Party rather than the anarchist/socialist left, there would be no attack on Latinos from the left, do you think? Latinos have been sucker punched. They bought the fraudulent inversion narrative of the left. Having influence over BOTH parties is the smarter way to go.
If by UNO you’re referring to the United Neighborhood Organization in Chicago, they are playing Obama like a fiddle. Consider for a moment, the only wards in Chicago that gave Clinton more votes than Obama were the south side hispanic (Mexican, specifically) 10th, 13th, 12th, 22nd, 14th, and 25th. Juan Rangel, UNO CEO, is actually alright guy, starting several charter schools, with English immersion as part of the official curriculum. It ought to be interesting to see the ward redistricting flesh out next spring when their will likely be a another attempt to carve out a geographically contiguous hispanic ward in the Back of the Yards neighborhood (47th St east of Western Ave) and parts of adjoining Gage Park. Obama was very adamentally in favor of three black alderman who are based further to the east but had “arms” of their three wards extended into this Mexican American area following the 2001 redistricting.
Its not to late. If Sharron Angle had simply left it at the “northern border is most porous”, she would clown Harry Reid by 65%-35%. Thats going to one hell of a 2011 Western governors meeting: Jan Brewer and Tom Tancredo with Brian Sandoval and Susana Martinez, along with old man Jerry and good hair Rick.
Read Stanley Kurtz’ book, the chapter on how Obama used UNO is instructive.
I was there in Chicago, during the Jane Byrne/Harold Washington transition. I saw all of this play out first hand. The Latinos got used…again. It’s about time for them to realize, the power play is on the other side.
The inversion narrative is so firmly cemented, the Democrats have no options but to continue pretending they care. That seals their support. Now, all the Latinos have to do is work with the Republicans, hand in hand…and they become the real force that Democrats keep paying lip service to, and not fulfilling.
The way to the Republicans heart should be easy. All the things the community already believes. Loyalty, family, opportunity, fairness. Pro-small business, hard work, honor.
Throw in a good dose of patriotism, assimilation as an attitude rather than resistance, fight stealth socialism and voila! Republicans would pave a path to the American doorstep. Not a chance the Democrats would stand in the way, it would expose them as frauds.
Instead, the inversion narrative blocks this path and it serves the stealth socialists well. Remember, they NEED class, ethnic, gender and race victims. That pat on the head and crust of bread is shell game trick.
Fixing immigration means NO amnesty. Deportation is key. Come here the right was or don’t come here at all. People that break the law cannot be rewarded for it.
How about we also deport Americans who hire them?
It takes two hands to clap, you know.
Regarding Hispanics and “immigration”:
http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_16478933#ixzz144AmMHFD
I think Navarette is an ‘open borders’ guy. I wonder if he believes that Mexico needs to open her borders to the Americans; somehow I think not. It’s too bad that the Mexicans don’t seek to come to this country properly and legally and it’s equally unfortunate that they don’t choose to become assimilated once they are here. Assimilation means learning to speak English, ditching the Mexican flag, acting and thinking like Americans, and abiding by American holidays. Until they can do these things, the Mexicans remain Mexicans and need to remain in Mexico until such time as they change their minds and behaviors.
You THINK?! MOST gracious/diplomatic of you, Annie. Unfortunately, the rest of your astute comment is considered “xenophobic/raaaacist” by most whom find affinity with this author’s prejudice(s).
“… if Obama wants to tell the story of the immigration reform debate, he should at least tell it right. He seems to have forgotten …”
If Mr. Navarette wants to tell the story of the “immigration reform” debate, (his code for amnesty) he should at least tell it right. He seems to have forgotten that somewhere between 10 and 20 million non- citizens have stormed America’s border and broken American laws. Now, in complete contempt for our American laws, those millions demand the same “civil rights” as citizens, rights rely in large measure on respect for American Law in order to work. Thus, those who spit on our laws and rights now demand, through sheer force of huge numbers and the threat of civil violence and discord, a reward for their stampede into our heartland…
Navarette is a complete racist, a bigot, an apologist for the tens of millions of Latin law breakers. He regularly slanders patriotic Americans as “bigots” and “racist” when they object strenuously to this tsunami of Latino lawbreakers. He sides with the lawbreakers mainly on the basis of sharing their race and little else, salivating at the prospect of a Latino hijacking of our American system.
Isn’t Ruben’s approach the essence of racism? It’s time to “debate” the issue in terms which are accurate and true : we don’t have a problem with “immigration reform” (as he euphemistically calls it), we have a huge problem with 10-20 million illegal invaders who DON’T BELONG IN AMERICA! Let’s start there, Ruben.
Navarette is an anti-American PARASITE hoping to benefit his race by stealing our most cherished rights. He may technically be a citizen, but he is little more than a perversion of what an American should be.
Navarette, first, define “Immigration Reform”.Then lets discuss it.
Tell you why… I suspect that, to you, “immigration reform” really means giving US citizenship to every Mexican who requests it.
If we do so, we will immediately be slaves to the hispanic element. My adopted siblings and our adopted son are Mexican. So its just barely possible that my wife and I are not racists. It is treason to surrender American sovereignty to foreigners; particularly those who will not assimilate or even learn english. You are for La Raza, good or bad, right or wrong. And that is where you are wrong. Because that is extreme racism. When you so favor hispanics you necessarily so disfavor all others. My wife is Chinese. Why would you steal her rights to empower some hispanic female?
And you, you big, brave heman, threatening to spit on Michelle Malkin! Try
spitting on me and see what happens.