Jose'...Can You See?
I'm curious as to why immigration is an issue with President Bush some six years after he first took office. According to the White House website, he's only really dedicated three video's worth to the issue since he's been in office, and that didn't start until 2005.
The topic really have Republicans in a bind. Their more..."racially intolerant" base doesn't want anyone fence-hopping from south of the border (notice how no one talks about people immigrating from Canada), yet the "have-mores" love the cheap labor immigrants provide. What's a faith-based, compassionate conservative to do?
For Bush, it was dedicating 17 minutes to talk to the American people.
Let's go over his five "clear objectives." Since they're supposed to be "clear" I won't bother much with his rambling side stories and anecdotes.
"First, the United States must secure its borders."
To this end, Bush wants to use the National Guard in a pseudo-volunteer capacity for the Border Patrol. He seems to imply that the BP will still call the shots, but I don't see anything in the BP's org chart that suggests they have any kind of inherent authority over the National Guard (and ditto for the Nat'l Guard's org chart). This looks like Homeland Security all over again.
"Second, to secure our border, we must create a temporary worker program."
This plan is based on the premise that there are jobs that "Americans won't do," which is actually a misstatement. Americans will do the jobs, but only if they are being paid fairly. The President knows that he corporate compatriots do not want to pay reasonable wages, so this "action plan" benefits them moreso than any immigrant or American worker.
"Third, we need to hold employers to account for the workers they hire."
As soon as he says this, he follows it up with "businesses often cannot verify the legal status of their employees because of the widespread problem of document fraud." So in other words; "It's not the corporation's fault that they hire illegals, it's the counterfeit ID makers." So this "action plan" is one big smokescreen.
"Fourth, we must face the reality that millions of illegal immigrants are here already."
This is essentially Bush's way of giving up on doing anything substantial concerning anyone already here. His meek proposal to make them legal is little more than a political ploy. This olive branch will no longer be offered if the Republican's maintain their majority after the November midterms.
"Fifth, we must honor the great American tradition of the melting pot, which has made us one nation out of many peoples."
And for President Bush, there is no greater tradition than to speak bad English. It's not that I don't think immigrants shouldn't learn English; but this guy is the last person in America who should be talking about language barriers. Also, I thought America boiled down to two things: respect for the rule of law and the ability to practice your beliefs (assuming you don't torture, abuse or kill anyone) without persecution. Not "sharing ideals," which, as delivered sounds like "do it our way or go home."
Whatever. He'll be lucky to get a dead cat bounce from this speech.
The topic really have Republicans in a bind. Their more..."racially intolerant" base doesn't want anyone fence-hopping from south of the border (notice how no one talks about people immigrating from Canada), yet the "have-mores" love the cheap labor immigrants provide. What's a faith-based, compassionate conservative to do?
For Bush, it was dedicating 17 minutes to talk to the American people.
Let's go over his five "clear objectives." Since they're supposed to be "clear" I won't bother much with his rambling side stories and anecdotes.
"First, the United States must secure its borders."
To this end, Bush wants to use the National Guard in a pseudo-volunteer capacity for the Border Patrol. He seems to imply that the BP will still call the shots, but I don't see anything in the BP's org chart that suggests they have any kind of inherent authority over the National Guard (and ditto for the Nat'l Guard's org chart). This looks like Homeland Security all over again.
"Second, to secure our border, we must create a temporary worker program."
This plan is based on the premise that there are jobs that "Americans won't do," which is actually a misstatement. Americans will do the jobs, but only if they are being paid fairly. The President knows that he corporate compatriots do not want to pay reasonable wages, so this "action plan" benefits them moreso than any immigrant or American worker.
"Third, we need to hold employers to account for the workers they hire."
As soon as he says this, he follows it up with "businesses often cannot verify the legal status of their employees because of the widespread problem of document fraud." So in other words; "It's not the corporation's fault that they hire illegals, it's the counterfeit ID makers." So this "action plan" is one big smokescreen.
"Fourth, we must face the reality that millions of illegal immigrants are here already."
This is essentially Bush's way of giving up on doing anything substantial concerning anyone already here. His meek proposal to make them legal is little more than a political ploy. This olive branch will no longer be offered if the Republican's maintain their majority after the November midterms.
"Fifth, we must honor the great American tradition of the melting pot, which has made us one nation out of many peoples."
And for President Bush, there is no greater tradition than to speak bad English. It's not that I don't think immigrants shouldn't learn English; but this guy is the last person in America who should be talking about language barriers. Also, I thought America boiled down to two things: respect for the rule of law and the ability to practice your beliefs (assuming you don't torture, abuse or kill anyone) without persecution. Not "sharing ideals," which, as delivered sounds like "do it our way or go home."
Whatever. He'll be lucky to get a dead cat bounce from this speech.
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