Here's a story about President Bush's immigration speech last night from the Denver Post. They write, "Acknowledging that the United States has failed to stem illegal immigration, President Bush on Monday advocated deploying the National Guard to help secure the southern border. During a 17-minute televised speech, Bush detailed a program in which governors could ask for Guard troops to work alongside Border Patrol agents. Bush also promised increases in both technology and manpower to defend U.S. borders as he pushed anew for an overhaul of immigration laws...
"Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., who opposes the Senate bill because it grants legal status to many illegal immigrants, doubted Bush's speech would convert Republicans opposed to the bill...Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., who supports many aspects of the Senate's immigration bill, said the border needs permanent solutions, not a 'short-term fix...'
The Denver Post editorial staff weighs in. They write, "Illegal immigration has probably doubled since President Bush entered the White House. Interlopers, now as many as 12 million, have created an inexpensive labor supply for large parts of the nation's business base - but while the president has been emphasizing a guest worker initiative, their increasing ranks have provoked opponents to demand tough steps to seal the Mexican border. Seeking to satisfy immigration opponents in his own party, President Bush has roused himself from his Rip Van Winkle nap. Last night he introduced a border security plan that will enlist as many as 6,000 members of the National Guard."
Diana DeGette (via the Rocky Mountain News): "I still disagree with the president on the use of the National Guard, but I completely agreed with him on the other things he was saying. It may be the first time I agreed with the president since he was elected. We need to have a strong enforcement of the border, and I think we need to increase funding for the Border Patrol and surveillance. I think it's important to have a guest worker program. I think we have to have some road to citizenship for people who have been here a long time."
Mike Littwin: "Bush is facing a crisis, all right. It's not immigration, though. Whatever Lou Dobbs says, illegal immigration is not anything like a crisis. The possibility of civil war in Iraq - now, that's a crisis. The devastation in New Orleans - that's a crisis. People risking their lives to cross a desert to clean our toilets - that's a tragedy. Bush's personal crisis is that most of the country has all but given up on him. He needs to get somebody, somehow, back on his side."
Captains Quarters: "It really seems as if the White House wrote a speech to just pacify their critics instead of actually responding to their concerns. If this is how seriously the administration takes border security, then we need to bring a screeching halt to the immigration reform bill until that attitude changes."
Bull Moose: "The base must be appeased. But, they will not be. Short of sending an army of Jack Bauers to round up and deport illegals, the right will not be satisfied. They will continue on the immigration rampage. The speech will not quell the conservative revolt. It will likely intensify it. The Moose actually supports the thrust of the President's plan - it is a sensible and balanced approach to the problem. And his speech was a judicious and reasoned presentation. Yet, rational proposals on this issue are not the order of the day within the GOP."
Jesus' General weighs in (warning: profanity) on immigration.
Category: 2008 Presidential Election
6:45:06 AM 
|
