Please be advised that CampaignTrailReport.com has moved and is now fully integrated with its parent site at LibertyNews.com. Please click here to visit the official Elections & Politics section at LibertyNews.com!
Copyright © 2011 Vanguard of Freedom
He never mentioned his name, but St. Petersburg Times’ Political Editor, Adam C. Smith seems to think Mitt Romney’s comments on immigration were referencing Rick Perry’s “Achilles’ Heel,” immigration.
He quotes Romney:
“We must stop providing the incentives that promote illegal immigration,” Romney told more than 100 people attending a Republican Hispanic conference. “As governor, I vetoed legislation that would have provided in-state tuition rates to illegal immigrants and I strengthened the authority our state troopers had to enforce existing immigration laws.”
Smith’s article is an interesting read because he points out the issues involved in illegal immigration in states that have a substantial Hispanic population like Texas and Florida. “Illegal immigration remains a hot-button issue among Republican activists, but leaders in Texas — where 38 percent of the population is Hispanic — have tended to take a more moderate approach to the issue.” See that Article HERE
But if the immigration issue is Romney’s choice as Rick Perry’s Achilles Heel, then Rick Perry has got him beat already at this early date, and as long as Rick Perry does not flounder or gaffe his way into oblivion, then Rick Perry will remain the GOP front-runner.
The reason for this should be obvious. Rick Perry’s record on immigration, however it may be spun with regard to the Dream Act, the Border Fence, or the Arizona Immigration Law, positively or negatively, has to be seen in the context of Texas politics. For one thing, Governor Perry has been elected to office how many times?
One can hardly call Texas Republicans “moderate.” I mean, really? I just read a quip by a Perry critic quoting the Governor saying he was in favor of seceding from the Union. It was taken out of context, but the point is, on the one hand they position him as a right wing extremist, and on the other as a “moderate” on immigration.
The question that should be asked is this: ”Which would the Obama campaign prefer as an opponent? Romney or Perry?
The picture you get when you ask yourself that question is truly worth a thousand words, and some of those words might go along a bit like this: The last time the Socialist Liberal Media (what I like to call the: SLIME) picked a candidate for Republicans, it was one who had to distinguish himself from Obama by picking a Vice Presidential candidate that was clearly a Conservative.
And of course the other side of this argument is that there are yet quite a group of other candidates still in the running, and the long dark night of the campaign is still young.
Vanguard of Freedom Network / Patriot Action Network / Liberty News Network
Related posts:
MITT ROMEY IF YOU ATTACK A FELLOW REPUBLICAN I WON’T VOTE FOR YOU OR ANYBODY WHO DOES IT.
where does perry really stand on the illegal question? No jobs were created this past month. Illegals have stolen jobs for a lower wages troops coming home and yet illegals still manage to steal jobs from Americans. Illegals are helping to break our country ripping you and me and the rest of us tax payers off so why doesn’t perry take a strong stand against law breakers who get rewarded for breaking our laws? If Mitt attacks hopefully Perry will tell the truth where he stands on this issue.
This is a hot button issue in our country. I am afraid that the illegal Mexican immigrant has been demonized. We are a country of immigrants and grant political asylum for those endangered in their own country. I think Ron Paul is correct when he said in one of the debates, “We now have a mess on the borders, and there is lot more to it than just immigration, because we’re financing some of this militarism against the drug dealers on the borders right now to the tune of over $1 billion. And there is a mess down there, but it’s much bigger than just the immigration problem. “ Decapitation, drugs, poverty and lack of opportunity await the average Mexican citizen. All of these things have only grown worse during this administration. Consequently, the US immigration problem has also grown worse.
Rick Perry has been vocal on his opinions as to what he believes will work: “boots on the ground”. On closer scrutiny, Perry did come to this opinion lightly. He is in the trenches. At the CNN/Tea Party debate, Perry said, “There’s not anybody on this stage that’s had to deal with the issue of border security more than I have, with 1,200 miles of — of Texas and Mexico. And our federal government has been an abject failure at securing our border. We’ve had to spend some $400 million of Texas taxpayer dollars to send Texas Ranger recon teams down there. Strategic fencing in the metropolitan areas absolutely has a role to play. But the idea that you’re going to build a wall from Brownsville to El Paso and go left for another 800 miles to Tijuana is just not reality. What you have to have is boots on the ground. You’ve got to have 450 Border Patrol agents trained up, 1,500 National Guard troops. You’ve got to have the aviation assets in the air putting real-time information down to the law enforcement. “
Three of the candidates including Perry support this option. Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul are the other two. Ron Paul is a long time Texas congressman. Newt Gingrich was speaker of the house. Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Michelle Bachmann and Jon Huntsman support a fence on the border. The Department of Homeland Security early this year canceled a “virtual fence” project after determining it was too expensive and ineffective — after already spending $1 billion on the project. Again are the candidates telling us what they believe or what they think we want to hear? I find it hard to believe that any of the candidates are unaware of the cost involved or the fact that Homeland Security had abandoned the cause. My vote goes to Rick Perry on this one. He has the experience and knowledge to deal with illegal immigration. We don’t have to wait for him to learn on the job.
State tuition for illegal immigrants after they lived in Texas for three years gives these residents the same rights as anyone else who lives in Texas for three years. Texas has no state income tax. Illegal immigrants in Texas have paid 8.25% sales tax for the three years that have lived in the state. These college students have to pass the same tests and complete the same requirements as other applicants. They have to pay in state tuition, which is, much less than out of state tuition, but it is no free ride. It is difficult for non-English speaking students to go through the Texas education system. Students are frequently held back due to poor language skills for two to three years. In the state of Texas a person cannot take a GED or receive a driver’s license without proof of citizenship. Most Mexican immigrants that enter the state while in their teens struggle to complete high school or to drive to a job. Allowing children of illegal immigrants that successfully complete all the hoops to attend college only benefits the state of Texas.