Well, it’s the month of May and all seems to be going as predicted regarding comprehensive immigration reform. While the Gang of 8 attempts to strengthen the bipartisan support for their grand plan–even after Boston–the right-wing fringe of the Republican Party, including the policy hacks at the Heritage Foundation, are announcing plans to derail the whole thing.
The committee will take up the legislation just days after the Heritage Foundation released a report that estimated that the measure, which would offer a path to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented people already in the country, could cost taxpayers at least $6.3 trillion over time.
What no one is saying that the “cost” is factored into a time period of fifty (yes, 50) years, failing to take into account the economic realities of bringing millions out of the shadows. In other words, it’s just another racist fear tactic on the part of the right-wing.
Now, don’t get me wrong, the plan the Gang of 8 is offering is a bad one. The billions more that will be spent on “enforcement” measures will be a boon to a few private corporations, private prisons, and drone manufacturers. But it is still amazing to see that, even with a bad plan, that Republicans are hell-bent on attacking Latinos. In the political sense, they are just not getting it.
So, expect the usual delay tactics, along with the GOP race-baiting where they throw around “illegal” and “amnesty.”
“The longer this legislation is available for public review, the worse it’s going to be perceived,” Mr. Sessions said Monday in a phone interview. “The longer it lays out there, the worse it’s going to smell. The tide is going to turn.”
It’s the tried and true way of Republicans killing legislation–delay it and add even more bad stuff to it until it dies.
Of course, the Democrats leave much to be desired on their “defensive” posture.
“The Judiciary Committee is going to be a good proving ground for our bill because the committee includes some of the Republican Party’s most vocal opponents of immigration reform,” Mr. Schumer said. “By honing our responses to their criticisms, and perhaps even accepting some suggestions for improvement, our compromise will be all the more battle-tested when it hits the floor.”
Reminder: Local immigration attorney, Toni Medellin, will be speaking on the topic of immigration law and policy on Thursday, Noon, at the Harris County Democratic Party’s Brown Bag. I’ll be joining in to speak on the politics of the whole thing.
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