Alan Keyes' remarks at Minuteman fence groundbreaking - President Bush: 'We don't trust you'

Transcript of Alan Keyes' remarks at Minuteman fence groundbreaking
To President Bush: 'We don't trust you'

At the May 27 groundbreaking of the new Minuteman fence to be constructed on private land along America's southern border, about 300 Minutemen and several dignitaries met to officially launch the privately-funded undertaking.

Among those attending were Minuteman Civil Defense Corps leader Chris Simcox, Rep. Steve King of Iowa, Arizona governor candidate Don Goldwater, and Alan Keyes--all of whom addressed the group, along with a line-up of other secure-border supporters.

ALAN KEYES: Thank you very much. God bless you. God bless you all. We always say that. But there are times, I think, when we ought to stand back and realize that the truth of the matter is that sometimes when we say, "God bless you," what we're really saying is you are a blessing from God.

And right now as America faces what I think is the greatest crisis of our institution in its history, across the board, one of the most important examples of that crisis is right here. When a country loses the will to defend its borders, when a country loses the will to assert its identity, when a country loses the will to stand in defense of its way of life, that country is doomed. And I think all of us have to be fearful, if you listen to what's coming out of Washington and coming from our president, and so forth, that we are hearing the confirming echoes of that doom coming down the corridors of our present and the future that we should be leaving our children and our grandchildren.

Now, I'm here to tell you right now that however we may sometimes feel discouraged, that however we may sometimes think that there is no hope, you need to remember that when we pray to God for a blessing, you have come forward to be the answer. You have come forward to be the defenders.

You have come forward to be the examples of the American spirit that built this country and will defend its future.

And we also have to be clear about something else, because part of me feels like, as you very well know, we shouldn't be here at all, the truth of the matter. After all, we go through the motions every few years, we send folks off to Washington, D.C., we elect them to the House, we elect the Senate. What is their first duty? To listen to them these days, you'd think that their first duty would be to serve the money bags who put money into their political coffers--but that is not their first duty. To listen to them these days, you would think that their first duty is to kowtow to foreign potentates and presidents, like Vicente Fox, instead of the people of the United States. But that is not their first duty.

To listen to them talk today, you would think their first duty was to respond to the needs and wishes of all those folks throughout the world who wish that they were in America. But that's not their first duty.

The oath that they swear, every single one of them, is to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States.

And that Constitution is not the work of foreign governments, it is not the work of foreign people, it is the work of the people of the United States. It is to us that they owe their allegiance.

We are left to our obvious conclusion, if, as the president himself said--and I don't care, did any folks in this country realize how breathtaking it was for the President of the United States, well into the sixth year of his terms of office, to look the American people in the eye, and as if it were a really fantastic and wonderful revelation that he had just discovered--to tell us that we do not have control of our borders?

Now, this is very good, don't you think? This is like the fellow who is hired to guard your property telling you that you don't have any security!

I'm thinking to myself, "Well, Mr. President, you've been at work for six years now. I'd like to know what you've been doing with all that time!"

He tells us now that he's going to get to work, that he's going to do the job that he should have been doing all along. And what's even more appalling is that after September 11th, you would have thought it would have been fairly clear--they tell us we've got to secure our ports of entry, they tell us we've got to secure the airports, they tell us we've got to seriously examine everybody who's coming through into the country--and meanwhile they have left the southern border of the United States wide open to every individual who is willing under the cover of darkness and deceit to come into this country.

And they acknowledge hundreds of folks coming across every day, and we're supposed to believe that in the midst of all those people, they are just wonderfully innocent, hopeful immigrants coming across to seek a better life.

I think that in the midst of a lot of those people, there would have to be a few of those folks who are coming across to take our lives, not to seek a better life for themselves!

So, what do we do? Well, what we are told we ought to do, given the Senate's bill, is we ought to deal with the problem of all of the illegal folks who have come--and the things that they need in order to regularize their lives--and then maybe somewhere down the road, a little piecemeal here and there, they'll deal with the security of our border. And that shows you where their allegiance lies--and it doesn't lie with the people of this country. Because, if they took that allegiance seriously, there would only be one priority for the President, for the Senate, for the House--as they have, thankfully, shown us--and that priority is clear: security first, security now, security before anything else will be considered.

And everything else they offer us, as [Rep.] Steve King was just telling us--here we are, sort of like the young lady who is taking care of the first child by her boyfriend, who then tells her, "Don't worry about birth control. Trust me."

Well, we're taking care of having to deal with the problem of millions of people who have come into this country as a result of the dereliction of duty of these political elites. And they wish us to accept what they told us in '86 and '94 and every time they turned around: "Trust us! Trust us! Trust us!" I think we need to send them a good, clear, strong message: "We don't trust you anymore!"

And I want to say it outright. I'm a Republican, . . . but it's about time that we look G.W. Bush in the eye and tell him, "We don't trust you, either!"

What we need, in order to restore our trust is not your promises, not your talk, not your 614 pages of legislation you don't intend to enforce. What we need now, as the only thing that we will accept, is results that finally get this border back under control of the American people, where it belongs!

Here's why you give me particular hope. You give me particular hope, because I look back at the history of the country, and though they tend to forget it, America wasn't built by the government. The government was built by the people.

Before it extended its reach, people had to reach out. They had to explore, they had to clear, they had to build, sometimes they had to fight and struggle and give their lives. We stand on ground that was not first claimed by the American government, it was first claimed by the courage, the ingenuity, the perseverance of the American people.

And as it was claimed in the first place, so it must be defended now--and that's why you're here.

You're here to remind folks who think that every time an American steps forward to take the initiative now, they should be told to wait for the government to act, wait for the government handout, wait for the government research, wait for the government to do it--we have never waited on the government before, and we're not going to start now.

And though we all may have very good reason, given the record over the last several decades, to not trust the political elites, somebody explain to me why it is that any of them would look at the American people, and when we step forward and say we want to help in our own defense--we want to do what's necessary to defend our own property, our own families, our own homes, our own lives in the way that has been our great tradition--can you tell me on what grounds they dare to tell us that they don't trust us?

I think it's about time that they acted like the people who built this country in the first place, people who aren't willing to trust the government first, not when we can trust to our own courage, to our own work, to our own discipline, to our own character.

I want to tell you, Chris [Simcox], given the things that I've seen you've been doing for Americans everywhere--because you've been reasserting the truth of the sovereignty of our people, you have been reasserting truth that, yes, it is, as Lincoln said, "government of the people, by the people, for the people," and we will still step up to the plate to get the job done.

[unintelligible] that's what these [unintelligible] of defense symbolize. They try to pretend that it's some kind of barrier, that it's against somebody who is in Mexico or anywhere else in the world. That's not true. We are acting for our people, we are acting for our country, we are acting for our children, we are acting for our posterity.

We are doing what Americans have always done, and in doing so, I don't think we deserve the distrust and fear of our leaders. We deserve not only their understanding and their support, we deserve that they will fall in line, as they have had to do before, and accept the leadership of the American people.

I just want to tell you that I have been both moved and proud to be able to work in any capacity at all to help the folks who are organizing this great effort, to take the lead and to reassert the spirit of our country.

They are doing so, I think, with an admirable sense that what they're doing is not only on behalf of just themselves or their region or their states or their own ambition. It's on behalf of all of us. This is why I am reminded of what it means to be a people who not only share a common identity, but who will serve our common good and work to a common purpose.

I sometimes have to fear, when I look at what our politicians do, that some of them have entirely forgotten that at the end of the day, that's what citizenship is about. That's what their job is about. It's not everybody for themselves, grabbing what little piece of the pie we can. It's everybody showing a willingness, yes, to take care of ourselves, while we take care of the business of our communities, and our families, and our country. And that's what you exemplify. The true spirit of American self-government.

So, what we're doing here is not just building a fence. We are rebuilding a character. We are redefining a people. We are reminding ourselves and the people of our country and people all over the world that the American people have made a difference. Because, though we come from every voice and color and creed and kind, we stand together now on a common creed of self-government and liberty that has allowed us to make the difference.

And the good spirit and the good example--I think you're going to move people all over this country. You have already started a debate and discussion that is redefining the terms of this issue and will continue to do so. But even more than that, you are going to become the focal point of what will begin to revitalize American politics. That will uphold people of [strength] and faith and of courageous folks who are standing with them.

But we know that everyday, in politics today, that they may think it's all right to serve their special interest and their ethnic masters, and all of this, we are going to insist once again on a politics that serves our nation, that serves our people, that serves our principles, that serves our future. We will take nothing less.

It's a great beginning. . . . I am reminded that it's only a beginning. But Aristotle said, with some wisdom, I think, that "The beginning is more than half the whole." What he meant by that, I think, is quite clearly demonstrated. To finish the job, you must have the whole commitment, heart, and faith that will get the job done. With your courage over the last several years, you have shown that whole--that holy commitment.

And I believe that it is one of those sacred moments that God will bless. So, I say it again: God bless you. But I say, as well, may God continue to bless all of us in this country for the work that you have done, for the things that you will achieve. I don't know what you're getting at the moment, but I'm sure of this: in the fullness of time there will come those Americans who will know what liberty means, because you have fought the good fight--who will stand within a country still secure in its boundaries, because you have stood for their defense, and who will breathe to you and to God Almighty a word of thanks that will come from their hearts--hearts you may never know, but who will remember you as the generation that began the recovery of American greatness.

They're just jealous because Keyes looks awesome in black. ;-)

(2000)

Here's another blast from the past, the year 2000, more pertinent today than ever:

QUESTION: Mr. Ambassador, thank you for being the beacon of morality for this country. [applause] Our country is the envy of the world, despite the many problems that we have, and it seems that our borders are--there's a tremendous problem with the borders of illegal immigration. And it has great taxing effect, particularly in the areas near those borders. Can you address--the political side has done nothing about it over the years. I lived in San Diego for a number of years, and it seems that nothing was ever done, even though there was a lot of talk about it. What would be your approach to immigration? Particularly, illegal immigration?
KEYES: Well, I would wanna make that distinction because, unlike some folks, I am not against immigration, per se. And I think there are objective reasons why it's kinda hypocritical anyway for Americans to be against immigration, since so many folks here are the result of immigration. Now, some people might say I have a better excuse than any to be against immigration, since my ancestors immigrated here by force, as it were. [laughter]
But nonetheless, I think you look at the reality and we, all of us--many of us, anyway--came from somewhere else. They tell me that even the Native Americans (I'm part Cherokee, long way back), Native Americans, they tell me, if you go far enough back--even Native Americans crossed the Bearing Strait over from Asia. You're going back pretty far then, no? So, in a certain sense, the whole New World is populated by immigrants from somewhere else, and I don't believe we should insult the truth of that heritage by pretending that it's done us some harm. It hasn't.
It is a great asset if we manage it responsibly. It still gives us access to things that increase the talent, but also, I think, increase the value that we place even on our own institutions. Because, it doesn't at all hurt that in every generation, we get an influx of folks coming from parts of the world with less freedom into a part of the world with more--who walk the world for a few years and just say, "I love this place!" That's a good thing. It reminds those of us who might take it for granted of the value of what we've got. So, I'm not against immigration, per se. But, I do believe that it has to be carefully regulated, so that it does not damage our quality of life, destroy our infrastructure. I think we are, in a way, the urban area of the world. And, if you look at a lot of the countries around the world, like Mexico and India and places like this, urban areas become a magnet for the people from the less developed rural areas. And they come in such large numbers that the infrastructures of the cities break down, and they can't handle it. We don't want America to become a large-scale version of that breakdown. And so, we've got to be responsible. We've got to act on behalf of the great trust which, I believe, we have for humanity in terms of the welfare of this country.
So, you limit immigration through the law and then--here's the key part, and know this is hard, so brace yourselves. This is a very unusual suggestion I'm gonna make. It'll come hard. You'll think I'm really radical and wonder how it is that I could ever hope to do anything in politics. But I think the key to dealing with our immigration challenge is to enforce the law. [laughter and applause]
Now, I know--wait, see. You're ready to throw brickbats at me. No. Consider the laws are on the books. But we have so many folks who want us to act as though they don't exist, and we should not respect the distinction between illegal and legal immigration. We must. And if we don't, then we ourselves are undermining the laws. They become not even empty words. They become worse than that.
And so, we've got to enforce the law. That requires cooperation from state and local governments. And it requires cooperation from private business. It also requires a willingness to react firmly to those levels of government and to those businesses that violate the law. That's what enforcing the law is all about. Now, in many areas of this country, you have people who are winkin' and connivin' at illegal immigration, because somebody's who's powerful in their political scene or in their economic scene is, well, pulling the strings. If it's bad for the country, then we're gonna have to have leaders at the national level with the integrity to enforce national responsibility, even in the face of those state and local political obstacles.
In this area, it is the responsibility of the federal government. We have a federal government who's been willing to take on all kinds of responsibility that they shouldn't have. They want to take over education. They want to dictate law enforcement, and this and that. It's not their job. But the defense of this country and the integrity of its borders is the job of the federal government and they ought to do it with courage and responsibility. [applause]
Having said that, though, I hope that everyone will realize it's part of the reason that I believe in conducting politics the way I do. Some people tell me that it may never succeed to just go out there, state what you think is right, and try to get enough people on your side to make it happen. But, if you do it that way, people are very clear about exactly what you stand for, that if you ever do get elected nobody will be unclear about what's coming. And in the area of immigration, if Alan Keyes ever gets elected to the White House, state and local governments can expect to find a federal government that will be very hard about the business of looking you in the eye and saying, "Not a penny comes from us, if you won't cooperate in enforcing the integrity of our borders." And I'll be clear and strict about it. [applause]
It's time we stopped payin' lip service. I think we should also encourage--this would be done at the state level through the political coalition we represented--we encourage at the state level, we encourage in a proper form at the national level the implementation of the ideas that were in Proposition 187. I know there are people who somehow like to argue that if you're somehow in favor of something like that, where you're essentially saying to illegal immigrants, "We are not going to treat you as if you're legal immigrants; we're certainly not going to treat you as citizens." And they like to say, "Well, that's being discriminatory. That's awful. That's bigoted." What's going on in this country? Have we lost our minds? We put laws on the books, and then when people break the law, we consider ourselves wicked folks because we enforce it. I was particularly struck by this during the Proposition 187 debates some years ago. Because, the Mexican government, they have a representative in California, he was speaking out about how terrible this was because somehow it was going to be discriminatory against folks coming over from Mexico.
Unfortunately for somebody like myself, having worked in the international arena and at one time having done a fair amount of work in this very area, I knew that if you want to find a government that's as hard as nails when it comes to the question of immigration into its country, the status of aliens, most people who are actually are legal aliens in Mexico have only very limited and truncated rights, in terms of what they can do, contracts they can enter into, and so forth and so on. If you're illegal, they don't even take the time of day to explain it to you. They just put your butt on the latest thing out of town, and off you go. And no apologies accepted. No long administrative tribunals. No rights. Nothin' else.
And I'm watchin' as the representative of this government, tough as nails in enforcing its own law, dares to get on a high horse and tell us that we can't take rudimentary steps to enforce our own. This is absurd. We don't have to feel badly about it. We are, in fact, meeting our responsibility to people all over the world who come to this country with a sense of hope by not making stupid mistakes that will destroy the reality of that hope. It's our stewardship responsibility to do this in the right way. [applause]
Alan Keyes, Renew America rally, March 8, 2000

Someone claimed earlier that Keyes hasn't been concerned with illegal immigration until recently. Apparently, they must have missed what he's been saying for years. What a surprise, eh?

It didn't take long to find this exchange from back in 1998.

Question: Yes, Mr. Keyes. Thank you very much for coming. As a former Democrat, in New York, I saw you recently on the Black forum--“The Tony Brown Journal.” I happen to love Tony Brown. Tony Brown had a gentleman on, a military strategist named Thomas Chittham. In his book Civil War II, he says that if we do not resolve the social ills of this country, the massive illegal immigration, that it is a possibility--and I quote you--“this republic could be finished; we could possibly break up.”
What is your opinion on this massive illegal immigration, with hardly no enforcement?
Keyes: I think it is very clear. I do not understand why some people insist on acting as if a concern over illegal immigration is somehow a rejection of the immigrant traditions of this country. It is not. I am strongly committed to those traditions, as I think we all ought to be. They have been a source of hope and vibrancy for this nation.
On the other hand, I think that in order to maintain our tradition of immigration, we have to be crystal clear that we are not going to tolerate illegal immigration. That is step number one.
But it is easy to say that, and I’m sure folks in the Congress will be coming forward soon, as even President Clinton was saying the other day, with bills to tighten up the border and so forth. But the thing that I find interesting is that if you really are serious about ending illegal immigration, then you ought to be serious about maintaining those controls over access to our welfare system and other things that will keep folks from being attracted into this country because they think they will get a free ride.
And I think also--and this is a challenge I directly put to the folks in the Congress--if you are concerned about illegal immigration, then you ought to be deeply concerned about the possibility that folks who are not even citizens have been exercising the franchise anywhere in this country. And I would call on them, in that context, to prove how serious they are about defending the integrity of our borders--and our citizenship--and stop playing games with problems like those involved in Bob Dornan’s district in California.
On matters like this, I want to listen to what this Republican leadership in the Congress is saying. But I can’t hear it anymore, because what they are doing deafens me, and keeps me from believing what they say.
Alan Keyes at CPAC, January 31, 1998

Pretty close to what is said today.

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