The Tea Party wins another big fight on immigration reform

[mota bhai 2,675]

The party of gridlock
By Fareed Zakaria, Friday, February 14
NEW YORK

...

Watching the machinations in Washington over the last two weeks, it is now impossible to talk about how both political parties are to blame for the country’s gridlock.

Consider what just happened on immigration, an issue ripe for resolution. A majority of Americans support granting citizenship to illegal immigrants — by 81 percent in the most recent CNN poll — as well as enhanced border controls. The leadership of the Republican Party in Congress talked about a comprehensive reform package that would create a lengthy waiting time for citizenship — 13 years — and couple this with tougher enforcement. Most Democrats were willing to accept this compromise.

But it became clear to the Republican leadership that even this would be unacceptable for many tea party Republicans. So, on Jan. 30, party leaders circulated a new proposal that took away any prospect of a special path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, no matter how long they waited. Instead, these people would merely be given legal documents allowing them to work and pay taxes. This was a huge concession to tea party activists and seemed unlikely to go anywhere. Democrats had been firmly against the concept of permanent second-class status for illegal immigrants. A majority of the public opposes it as well.

But within a few days, President Obama took the opportunity of an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper to say he was “encouraged” by the proposal. “I genuinely believe that Speaker Boehner and a number of House Republicans, folks like Paul Ryan, really do want to get a serious immigration reform bill done,” he explained. “I’m not going to pre-judge what gets to my desk,” he added, to make clear he was not ruling out the proposal.

Every Democrat I spoke with hated the idea, for moral and political reasons. Most were surprised by Obama’s concession. So what happened? A few days later, House Speaker John Boehner stood in front of the media and explained that even his new plan was a nonstarter and immigration reform was dead.

His explanation was that no one trusted Obama to enforce the laws. But in fact, the Obama administration has enforced immigration laws ferociously. It deported more than 400,000 people in 2012, two and a half times the number in 2002. In 2002, for every two people removed from the country, 13 became legal residents. In 2012, for every two removed, just five became residents.

...

Harvard University’s Theda Skocpol ... that in the hundreds of interviews she conducted when writing a book on the tea party (with Vanessa Williamson), she found that “[f]iscal conservatism is often said to be the top grassroots Tea Party priority, but Williamson and I did not find this to be true. Crackdowns on immigrants, fierce opposition to Democrats, and cuts in spending for the young were the overriding priorities we heard from volunteer Tea Partiers, who are often, themselves, collecting costly Social Security, Medicare, and veterans benefits to which they feel fully entitled as Americans who have ‘paid their dues’ in lifetimes of hard work.”

This suggests a bleak future for getting anything done in Washington. Immigration was supposed to be ripe for common-sense reform. The public is for a compromise solution, policy wonks have proposed ways to make it work, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce supports it, the country’s leading technology firms have been clamoring for one, senior Democrats and Republicans are in favor. And yet it couldn’t get past the central problem in Washington today: the extreme and obstructionist faction within the Republican Party.

The next time someone blames “both sides” for Washington’s paralysis or issues a bland call for “leadership” to get us out of it, remember the case of immigration.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/fareed-zakaria-the-party-of-gridlock/2014/02/14/308fb75a-9590-11e3-8461-8a24c7bf0653_story.html

Edited February 14, 2014 by mota bhai

[luckytxn 2,265]

Lol. Keep blaming the tea party.

[mota bhai 2,675]

Blaming? They won.

[Pooky 3,840]

His explanation was that no one trusted Obama to enforce the laws.

After the numerous delays, redefinitions and fudging of the PPACA, can anyone deny the possibility?

And then there's what the Democrat-controlled Congress did to President Reagan's immigration reform, in 1986. It happened before, to a Republican President. Would President Obama bat an eyelid if it happened to him?

The next time someone blames both sides for Washingtons paralysis or issues a bland call for leadership to get us out of it, remember the case of immigration.

A better question would be to ask just how many amendments Dingy Harry Reid has allowed to reach the floor of the Senate, this term.

Edited February 14, 2014 by Pooky

[luckytxn 2,265]

Tea party is small but vocal. They can't win anything.

Blaming? They won.

[mota bhai 2,675]

Tea party is small but vocal. They can't win anything.

They are, at this point, the single largest faction within the GOP. The GOP is hardly a party anymore. It's a collection of small parties, the Tea Party being the largest and most well funded.

[luckytxn 2,265]

They are not even close. The compasionate conservatives (Socialists) left over from Reagan and Bush are and will continue to be so.

They are, at this point, the single largest faction within the GOP. The GOP is hardly a party anymore. It's a collection of small parties, the Tea Party being the largest and most well funded.

[mota bhai 2,675]

They are not even close. The compasionate conservatives (Socialists) left over from Reagan and Bush are and will continue to be so.

Reagan/Bush were socialists?

Maybe.

Or maybe you're just insane.

[luckytxn 2,265]

Regardless no one can deny that the Republican party is mostly RINO's. They became that way since Reagan. Bush coddled them. Unfortunately the Tea Party idiots have a firm 10-15% of the party and they need even that much badly. The party is between a rock and a hard place. I for one like it.

Reagan/Bush were socialists?

Maybe.

Or maybe you're just insane.

[mota bhai 2,675]

Regardless no one can deny that the Republican party is mostly RINO's. They became that way since Reagan. Bush coddled them. Unfortunately the Tea Party idiots have a firm 10-15% of the party and they need even that much badly. The party is between a rock and a hard place. I for one like it.

If the Republican Party is mostly RINO's, then they aren't RINO's anymore, you are.

[Teddy B 17,252]

After the numerous delays, redefinitions and fudging of the PPACA, can anyone deny the possibility?

[luckytxn 2,265]

I am not a Republican but I do vote every election.

If the Republican Party is mostly RINO's, then they aren't RINO's anymore, you are.

[mota bhai 2,675]

You're a socialist. You know why I can say that? Because thanks to you, that word has lost all meaning on VJ.

[Teddy B 17,252]

[luckytxn 2,265]

Thank you. Good to make a difference.

You're a socialist. You know why I can say that? Because thanks to you, that word has lost all meaning on VJ.