Posted on 05/20/2006 12:14:06 PM PDT by nwrep
George W. Bush’s speech to the nation on May 15, 2006 highlighting deployment of the National Guard to the Mexican border represents an aggressive policy of racist, anti-immigrant demonization and hysteria. It was a demagogic attempt to mobilize the conservative base and appeal to fear in the lead-up to the November Election, and impact the current Senate debate.
Bush’s call for ‘comprehensive immigration reform’ includes predominantly punitive, exploitative measures that belie the democratic traditions of our country. His proposals to maintain 6,000 National Guard troops at the border and increase facilities to imprison immigrants constitute the domestic side of a permanent war policy, which diverts funds from human needs and must be rejected.
Bush’s feigned embrace of our country as ‘a nation of immigrants’ cannot hide the vicious anti-immigrant, anti-worker substance of his proposals.
We join with all those who are speaking out against this blatant attempt to play to the right wing and distract attention from mobilizations to call upon the US Senate to amend the Hagel-Martinez-Specter compromise, S. 2611. As written, this bill would exclude the vast majority of undocumented immigrants now in the country from a path to legalization and citizenship. It would create a tiered and permanently unequal workforce that splits families.
This attack of Bush makes it necessary to redouble calls and messages to the Senate and the House to take out every punitive and restrictive measure from immigrant legislation. Senate Bill 2611 should be defeated if efforts to radically amend it in a progressive, pro-immigrant direction do not succeed.
Bush’s proposals pander to extreme right-wing, racist efforts to drive immigrants out of the country, demonizing our sisters and brothers as ‘terrorists,’ ‘criminals,’ and ‘invaders’. His ‘guest worker' proposal makes workers dependent on their employer to maintain their status, institutionalizing their vulnerability and undermining the position of all workers. The identification system proposed for immigrants is a step toward an Orwellian national ID card that could be extended to all workers.
We join with labor, immigrant and community organizations in calling upon the US Senate to pass legislation for legalization of undocumented immigrants with a clear path to citizenship, full civil rights and due process, labor rights, family reunification, civic education and participation.
Demagogue
1. (n.) A leader of the rabble; one who attempts to control the multitude by specious or deceitful arts; an unprincipled and factious mob orator or political leader.
We don't need demagoguery, we need leadership.
The fact that occasionally the Communists dislike the same things you do, for utterly different reasons, doesn't really make them "right", IMHO.
It all depends on what one means by "right," I guess.
In this case they are right.
This is smoke and mirrors and useless legislation being passed by a Party staring down the barrel of a serious setback in November to appease the wolves.
Nothing they have done to date, no law they have passed...including the "Engish as the official language" is anything but panacea for the masses, or better yet, pablum.
They've offered no solutions.
What is this communist party right about? Open borders? Letting in the flood gates of third-world workers, so wages can be depressed even more? Handing out American citizenship as if it's a piece of candy?
They're right that Bush's announced immigration plan is way wrong. But of course, their reasons for holding that opinion are totally wrong. Their goals are totally wrong. Their political philosophy is totally wrong.
They're also right that Bush's plan "..was a demagogic attempt to mobilize the conservative base and appeal to fear in the lead-up to the November Election, and impact the current Senate debate." We know this because Bush's plan is all hat and no cattle. It won't actually do much to stem the invasion of illegal immigrants.
Thanks for clarifying! : )
Of course, the Perpetually P*ssed Off Crowd will align themselves with any group so as long as that group also hates President Bush.
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