this, but you just said what I might have. You sound like you are upset, so please don’t think about Napolitano, who hates the idea of a border fence of any kind, being in charge of the border fence. Wow, I feel so safe now.

Just wait til Obama grants them all amnesty and makes sure they get to vote in 2012. With a stacked House and Senate, I don’t think any of them will give a rat’s-you-know-what how many people call/fax/email Capitol Hill this time. Come Jan. 20, the fox will be in charge of the henhouse.

Now THAT’S something I’d be happy to be wrong about… and here lately… my record for being wrong is pretty good so perhaps there is “hope” after all!

and I really mean that because I too am for law and order,

We HAVE changed laws before, and just for the record, a reduced penalty (ie: fines) is not the same thing as amnesty. I hate to split hairs here, but we have to be honest when discussing these things. And while we are being honest, let us admit that our hero (my hero at least), the greatest leader of the 20th century as far as I am concerned, the late, great Ronald Reagan himself pushed for and signed an actual amnesty (ie: NO punishment, just blanket amnesty).

As for the “Cuban” issue; those Americans of Cuban heritage have been the exception to the rule when it comes to voting trends among hispanics, mainly because they are all too familiar with the evils of socialism/communism. They also have a special status among immigrants upon arrival in the US. I am not sure if you are aware, but they have a unique exemption from deportation as soon as they set foot on dry land. Given these facts, it is not surprising that many of them would not want to be classified as “hispanic” politically.

Finally, as to the larger question of immigration, we have GOT to find a way past this issue. We need to FACE FACTS. White Americans are dwindling due to low birth rates, and Black Americans have shown ZERO propensity to vote for Republicans in significant numbers in contested races between same-race candidates. The only other potential source for long-term growth of the conservative movement is hispanics, who, are the fastest growing segment of the population due to birth rates, regardless of immigration.

I am not saying we need to be for amnesty, but we agree on something and we need to do it now, or we will continue to be demagogued with hispanics by the liberals.

If it is ONLY about law and order, could we perhaps make Mexican immigrants the same status as Cubans? (ie: you make it here, you say) Then they would be here “legally”, so no breaking of the “law” if that is all that bothers us.

If it is overcrowding of hospitals & such that bothers us; making them legal taxpaying citizens would at least mitigate that problem. Or better yet we could grow some testicles and address the real problem there instead, which is the feeling of liberals that everyone is “entitled” to free healthcare.

I am not saying I have the answers, but when I saw the southwest as solid red in 2004 with the GOP winning nearly half of the votes of the largest minority group (and soon to be largest minority vote) in the US, I felt very good about our chances going forward and I want to get back there. Seriously, someone please find a way for us to make a stand on this issue without alienating more voters than we attract.

but it is the ham-handed way we articulate the position. We are a nation that was founded by immigrants, has prospered because of our immigration policies. And there are segments of the Latino population that we really should be doing better than we are in because the Pat Buchanan’s of the world are the only “conservatives” who seem to get heard when it comes time to discuss this issue (and since Tancredo practically quotes Buchanan verbatim on this, he isn’t any better for us on this score).

Somewhere between blanket amnesty and the apparent thuggery in the fake nostalgia of the Buchanan position, there has to be a realistic solution that we can articulate.

But there’s one thing that we need to be clear about. As long as the penalty for businesses that employ illegals is less significant than the profit they can make for hiring them, illegals will come into this country any way they can. The solution is not the fence. That won’t stop the desperate job-hunter trying to feed a family. Any solution has to involve dropping the hammer on any company caught hiring known illegals.

How to appeal to Hispanic and other immigrant populations?

I wish to remind everyone that a large share of the immigrant population does not come from Latin America but from Asia. Viet. and the Phil. lead the way. Also, Bosnia ranks in the top 10 nations from whence immigrants come. This being said, a friendlier policy towards legal immigration would help the conservative movement appeal to a wide range of demographics.

One conservative goal is to promote strong security, nationally and locally (anti-crime). This goal is often sighted when it comes to immigration. However, conservatives also support lesser government. This latter goal is forgotten by conservatives in the immigration debate. One method of reforming the immigration debate is to stress opening the door to legal immigration. By expanding the numbers of permitted immigrants, citizens who are filing for bring in their children, spouse, parents or brothers would be very appreciative. Businesses likewise would benefit from the ability to obtain skilled workers. Simplification is a must. Dozens of visa types exist. Creating a system where families can petition on their own, without the need to obtain legal advice, at a rate of thousands of dollars, would also curry favor with the immigrant population. Conservatives are for the family, for business and for less government. Expanding the number of legal immigrants would help unite families, strengthen business and strike a blow against big government. Helping families unite in this country would also have a healthy impact upon the youth of the immigrants. I live in the DC suburbs and the MS-13 gang is present. Their members are often US citizens, the children of immigrants who have had to grow up without the support of both parents.

How to deal with illegals in the United States? Strengthening the border is a must, but it would only have a limited impact on the flow of illegal immigrants. I believe 45% illegals come in with a legal visa and overstay their visa time limit. A sealed border would not stop these illegals who are visa overstays. For national security purposes, I am more fearful of a visa overstay then a border jumper.

Attrition is the most powerful weapon against illegals. By permitting an increase of legal immigration, a practical alternative would open to those wanting to enter the nation to work hard. Currently if you petition your sibling from the Phil., you will have to wait over 10 years for your sibling to have approval. Such an alternative is not practical. Stronger business enforcement is required as well. Finally, the “Fair tax” would fully tax illegals who might be paid in cash. If illegals would realize that they could return to their country and re-enter legally within a reasonable period of time, I believe the majority of them would do just that.

The next debate may be on whether or not the country would be able to handle an increase in immigrant numbers. I believe it could.

So when can we end the INSANITY….I say kill em if they fire on our Border Patrol what say you?