Romney's top Hispanic surrogate: GOP must embrace immigration reform

The Hill ^ | November 14, 2012 | Cameron Joseph

[CutePuppy]

Former Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, Mitt Romney's top Hispanic surrogate, is calling for the Republican Party to "modernize" and embrace comprehensive immigration reform in order to survive as a national party.

"We need to modernize. Modernization includes diversity. Obviously, immigration reform is part of that process of diversity," he told The Hill on Tuesday. "We are the party of growth, of business, of entrepreneurship, of innovation. We cannot continue to be that without an effective immigration policy."

Gutierrez, who chaired Romney's Hispanic Steering Committee during the GOP nominee's presidential campaign, blames Romney's rightward primary shift on immigration for his loss. Obama bested Romney among Hispanics, one of the nation's fastest-growing demographic groups, by a whopping 71 to 27 percent. That has led to calls from many prominent Republicans for the party to re-evaluate its position on immigration.

"The primary process has been taken over by the extremes," Gutierrez lamented. "The process forced Gov. Romney to be on the extreme right during the primaries and then in the general he had to work his way back to the center. The primaries gave the opposition so many talking points to use against Gov. Romney."

Gutierrez called his time as a Romney surrogate "very frustrating."

"What I learned throughout this whole process is that we as a party cause a great deal of fear for Hispanics, and not just in Hispanics but other immigrants too," he said. "I'd go on a Spanish-language show and defend the party, only to pick up the paper the next day and find some incredibly antiquated statements about immigrants from extremists in our party, things that almost sounded like they were from the 1920s. ... I was getting the question of self-deportation three days before the election. It never went away, even though the governor had moved and evolved and talked about a different position."

The former Cabinet official for then-President George W. Bush said that better immigration policy alone could not fix things for the party - but without comprehensive reform that includes a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, the party would continue to struggle with Hispanics, Asian-Americans and other fast-growing populations.

He said immigration reform is an "economic imperative" for the country.

"It's a strategic issue for the 21st century. It's not a tactical political issue," he said. "When I came to this country in 1960 as a refugee from Cuba, the one thing I remember is how welcome I felt, how much people wanted me to succeed. I think of these students, these 'DREAMers,' and the courage and will it takes to continue to study 18 hours a day and get good grades even though they don't know if they're going to be deported the next day. Those are the kind of people we want and have made this country. We need to accept that and understand if we get immigration right, the 21st century is ours. If we get it wrong ... what a shame."

[CutePuppy]

Giving amnesty to people who are here illegally and will then vote against you is not only immoral, it's suicidally counterproductive and will only rile up those who are jumping through bureaucratic hoops to immigrate or get a work visa in the U.S. legally.

He is also hitting all the buzzwords ("diversity," "modernization," "comprehensive reform," "pathway to citizenship," "undocumented immigrants") and deliberately confusing the issue by erasing the difference between political refugees (Cubans and others) and reconquistas from Central and South America.

That's the Bush-Romney "Hispanic surrogate" - 'nuff said?

[Gene Eric]

Exactly why must the Country grant anything to these foreign nationals?

[Utmost Certainty]

Shamnesty.

[onyx]

GO AWAY EVERYTHING and EVERYONE ROMNEY!

[Just mythoughts]

Well they gave us saint Ted Kennedy's deathcare reform might as well give us his amnesty reform. Then the majority can make Teddy a saint.

[KentTrappedInLiberalSeattle]

"Severely conservative!"

"Electable!"

"Unskewedpolls.com!"

"Dick Morris!"

Man... everything even remotely related to Mitten's epic electoral belly flop is going to end up, decades from now, being recalled (with a barely repressed shudder) as the political equivalent of Earth shoes, or pet rocks, or the Starland Vocal Band.

At best. ;)

[Catsrus]

Are you telling me that Ted Kennedy hasn’t been made the patron saint of amnesty yet? I’m shocked!

[Arthur McGowan]

Former Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, Mitt Romney's top Hispanic surrogate, is calling for the Republican Party to "buzzword" and embrace comprehensive immigration reform in order to survive as a national party. "We need to buzzword. Buzzword includes buzzword. Obviously, immigration reform is part of that process of buzzword," he told The Hill on Tuesday. "We are the party of buzzword, of buzzword, of buzzword, of buzzword. We cannot continue to be that without an effective immigration policy."

[ansel12]

Speaking of Massachusetts.

This is the REAL Mitt Romney on illegals.

My jaw dropped when I saw Mitt denying his illegals in the 2007 debate, and was not surprised what came of it a week later (well, surprised but not totally shocked).

Governor Mitt and wife Ann, were interacting with the Guatemalan illegals at their private home for 10 years. The landscaper that the illegals worked for, was a naturalized Colombian himself, personally chosen by Mitt, (A naturalized Colombian, Guatemalan illegals, and a sitting Governor during 4 years of that period), IDs better have been checked.

In December of 2006, the republican Governor was exposed, and suffered national embarrassment for using illegals for 10 years.

In December of 2007, in a national debate, Rudy Giuliani accused Mitt Romney of having run a “Sanctuary Mansion”. On national TV, Mitt Romney indignantly denied the claim.

A few days after the debate, the Boston Globe decided to look again at Mitt’s house, and guess what, they found Guatemalan illegals, they were working for the same Colombian, MITT HAD NEVER FIRED THEM!

Ten years and a national scandal, turned into 11 years, and into a second national scandal, with all the same players, the same “contractor”, Guatemalan illegals, and the same Mitt Romney and his wife interacting with them at their home during the week.

[Jack Hammer]

The illegals continue to demand unlimited immigration and total amnesty, coupled with some sort of perceived “right” to go to the head of the line, while those who wish to come here from Ireland, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Mali, Argentina, Ukraine and countless other nations fill out their forms and study English and wait. And wait. And wait.

[onyx]

He screwed over over my candidate, Newt Gingrich, and I had sworn in '07 I'd never vote for Romney, but when the demonic-rats voted against God and Jerusalem at their evil convention, I changed my mind and decided I had to vote against the Marxist by voting for Ryan/Romney and then came Benghazi which cemented the deal.

I thought R&R had an excellent chance of winning, until Romney wouldn't address Benghazi.

[Ann Archy]

ROMNEY DIDN'T WANT AMNESTY!!!! He was TOUGH on this....that's why he lost the Hispanic vote, supposedly!!

Our country is LOST...GONE....IMMORAL.

[Just mythoughts]

Are you telling me that Ted Kennedy hasn’t been made the patron saint of amnesty yet? I’m shocked!

Not yet. But he is now the official patron saint of Obama's 'deathcare' act. It would not surprise me in my lifetime there will be sufficient numbers voting to make old Ted Kennedy officially a US patron saint.

[KentTrappedInLiberalSeattle]

until Romney wouldn't address Benghazi.

It's a mortal lock, guaranteed, that Newt sure as hell wouldn't have skittishly treated the bloody butchering of a U.S. ambassador, by yowling foreign savages, as an "Oopsie! Mustn't touch that, for heaven's sake!" election taboo.

I already knew Mittens was political toast, long before that... but: that WAS a ruinously costly (and absolutely, 110% avoidable) "own goal" error, without question.

[hosepipe]

more democrats or else....

[CutePuppy]

Are you telling me that Ted Kennedy hasn't been made the patron saint of amnesty yet? I'm shocked!

No, Ted Kennedy hasn't been, but according to this post by ansel12, maybe because JFK already has been:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2958740/posts?page=78#78 - FR, by ansel12, 2012 November 12

[nathanbedford]

There is not a single fact in this article, save one, that persuades me to the author's point of view. I have been saying since the election that we conservatives must not succumb to reactions about the debacle but must get good data. We have no data from this man. His opinion is utterly worthless. Opinion of this kind, whether coming from the right or the left, is of no value.

As noted above, there is one fact that is persuasive:

The former Cabinet official for then-President George W. Bush

George W. Bush is one of the big reasons we are in the fix we are in. It was not a Democrat but George Bush who signally failed at first to close the borders and enforce the laws against hiring illegal immigrants. I have never known for sure whether he did this as a cave in to the Chamber of Commerce or because he had a Mexican nanny as a child or a Hispanics sister-in-law. Whatever the reason, George Bush set us up for this catastrophe. How was the author, himself an Hispanic, advising George Bush while he was in the cabinet?

We need as conservatives to get good data. The questions have been asked, how do Hispanics actually vote on this issue, if we granted amnesty would we win the Hispanic vote? If we granted amnesty, do we have any assurance whatsoever that a whole new flood would not be encouraged? What does history teaches about the Hispanic vote in the last amnesty under Reagan? Did George Bush when his Hispanic votes because of his position on immigration and his lack of enforcement or for other reasons? Are Hispanics really the God-fearing, family oriented people who seek only jobs as has been advertised or are they a whole new class of dependency Democrats?

In the absence of data which answer some of these questions, we remain in the dark and vulnerable.

[onyx]

Well, it’s over now, he’s marked “loser” and we’re stuck with the Marxist unless he’s impeached.

[CutePuppy]

:-) Your transliteration is hilarious, but I think it can be further refined.

Former Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, Mitt Romney's top Hispanic surrogate, is calling for the Republican Party to "buzzword" and embrace buzzword in order to survive as a national party. "We need to buzzword. Buzzword includes buzzword. Obviously, buzzword is part of that process of buzzword," he told The Hill on Tuesday. "We are the party of buzzword, of buzzword, of buzzword, of buzzword. We cannot continue to be that without an effective buzzword."

[KentTrappedInLiberalSeattle]

George W. Bush is one of the big reasons we are in the fix we are in. It was not a Democrat but George Bush who signally failed at first to close the borders and enforce the laws against hiring illegal immigrants.

Co-signed.