Posted on 06/27/2013 1:59:34 PM PDT by beaversmom
Former Rep. Tom Tancredo can see it coming: Even if the House passes a perfectly conservative bill to reform the nation's immigration system, the Senate Gang of Eight will water it down in a conference committee and leave Republicans little choice but to get rolled and vote for a bill they don't like.
His advice to his former colleagues: Don't bring up a bill at all.
"Where is this national push? Are people rioting in the streets for immigration reform? It's so odd in a way that it has achieved this level of attention and involvement," Tancredo said in an interview Wednesday. "I would be hesitant to bring up any bill simply because of what would happen in a conference committee."
House Speaker Boehner said Thursday that any bill to hit the House floor would need support from a majority of the Republican Conference, both before and after a conference committee. But Tancredo, who made his name in Washington as an anti-illegal immigration crusader, said he didn't trust Boehner to appoint the right members to the bicameral panel tasked with reconciling the two bills.
"A bill comes from the Senate. It's lousy. The Republicans go 'Oh, this is terrible, so we'll write our own bill.' And it'll be a much better bill. It goes to conference and [Boehner] appoints squishy Republicans to the conference committee. The bill comes back looking just like the Senate bill, or something pretty close. A whole bunch of Republicans can drop off at that point, going, 'Oh, this is terrible.' But they'll have enough squishes to join with Dems to pass it," Tancredo said.
And Tancredo isn't buying the often-made argument that passing immigration reform would be good politics for the GOP. Just look, he says, at the messenger.
"The purpose is political, of course, everybody knows that. It is to increase the number of Democrats that will be available to that party to turn into voters. The idea that this is somehow going to help Republicans is crazy," he said. "I'd love to be at this table, right, when you have [Sen. Chuck] Schumer and [Sen. Bob] Menendez saying, 'You know what you guys, we've got this great bill, and it's going to help you win a presidential election.'"
"Who believes this shit? Who in the world falls for this? So the question is, why are you doing this? You can't be that stupid. I don't believe [Sen. Marco] Rubio is naive. So if you're not naive, what is it? Duplicitous? For what purpose? Maybe you feel you have a niche that you're going to try to get in for a presidential campaign," he added. "The idea that they're doing anything that would benefit Republicans in the long run is ludicrous. Hispanics vote for Democrats for exactly the same reason that other people vote for Democrats: They want ObamaPhones! They want big government! It's got nothing to do with immigration!"
Tancredo is making his second bid to win the governor's mansion in Colorado, the state he represented in Congress for five terms. But he's keeping his eye on the immigration fight in Washington; Tancredo said he had spoken several times with Rep. Steve King, a longtime ally who is leading the House opposition to an immigration reform bill.
During the interview, in which he laid out his case against Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper, Tancredo said he would maintain his focus on immigration while talking up the importance of education. And while Democrats will attempt to pillory him as an anti-immigrant, anti-Hispanic zealot, Tancredo says he's ready to push back.
"The first thing you have to do is to disabuse people of the notion that your position on immigration has anything to do with race or ethnicity. It doesn't, it never has. They can search every word I have ever uttered on this subject, and there are a lot. Anything I've ever written, and there's tons," he said. "I don't have a Paula Deen moment out there."
That is exactly the Harry Reid of handling House Bills: Let it die.
This one need to be dead for a long time to come.
More like “EVERYTHING TO LOSE”!!!
I’ve wondered this many times. Tancredo has eyes.
yep, nothing ... nothing to gain.
I think the house should take an early and long summer recess without voting on it.
“Where is this national push?”
From the OBL corporatists clamoring for cheap labor and the Democrat constituency lobby trying to finally drive a stake through the heart of the middle class.
Kudos to Tanc for fighting back. The Paula Deen Moment reference is funny ;)
ping
The GOP-e desperately wants to be in the permanent minority and act as a bulwark against conservatives. By appearing a little less socialist than the Dems, they have kept conservatives on the plantation and have prevented conservatives from organizing their own movement. It is clear that the GOP-e is consciously and actively working for the international Left.
Kill the bill. Move on to an equally controversial bill such as another DOMA, Tax relief, etc.
I agree with Tancredo. Nothing good for Republicans can come out of this bill. If they just vote on THIS bill, they will be portrayed by the media as...wait for it...RAAAACIST. If they do their own bill, then I can see what Tancredo says coming to fruition.
Their best play is “Immigration bill...WHAT Immigration bill?”.
Look guys the Gang of Eight are merely trying to extend the same rights and privileges that have been extended to our illegal alien President. Is that to much to ask?
Our tolerance for debt-based welfare to immigrants is equal to our tolerance for the debt that we are willing to pass onto our children and grandchildren.
Reduce our tolerance for debt-based Federal Programs, and our tolerance for immigration will also be reduced.
_____________
Our Southern Border is under the control of Mexican Drug Gangs. An illegal attempt by AG Holder to challenge their grip failed with Fast and Furious.
Obama has allowed INS officials to increase the number of “got-aways” and to decrease the number of illegal alien invaders actually caught.
Gullible News outlets, such as The Wall Street Journal routinely run articles quoting Obamanation statistics that numbers of captured illegal alien invaders are down, and thus there is no such thing as the surge of illegal alien invaders from Mexico and other Southern Hemisphere Socialist Countries.
Most News outlets refuse to come to our Southern Border to document their obviously false assertions.
Most State Politicians cower when our sorry NINE SUPREMES dictate that the State has no authority to protect itself from illegal alien invaders.
As long as THE NINE SUPREMES have 4 Socialist Judges, there will always be a high risk that some gullible Judge from the Majority will cross over to the dark side and continue the destruction of our US Constitution as the signature accomplishment of the US Welfare State. Traitor John Roberts’ support of Obama’care’ is the most horrific example.
Thus, it is incumbent upon those of us who still value the US Constitution to oppose the dark side, what we now call Obamanation.
________________________
The purpose of passing a Federal “reform” immigration bill this year is to allow illegal alien invaders from Mexico, and other Central and South American Socialist Countries, to vote for Socialist-Democrats and appeasing RINOs in the 2014 and 2016 USA National Elections for more debt-generating welfare to future illegal alien invaders to become future Socialist-Democrat voters.
These future Socialist-Democrat voters should be called “McCain-Rubio Democrats,” as no other Senators have done more to encourage gullible RINOs to appease and otherwise cave-in to debt-dependent Democrats than these two sorry RINO Senators.
Stand your ground, FReepers! Raise the Gadsden Battle Flag!
It is us against the gullible supporters of Obamanation!
For example:
While Rubio and his Eight Senate Gangsters put out political smoke and mirrors to “get a bill passed this year,” nothing they have said will change the basic problem of aliens illegally invading the USA.
The Basic Problem: Illegal aliens invade the USA for Welfare and Wages.
Solutions that address the Basic Problem:
1.) End the Anchor Baby Law.
2.) End the Hospital Emergency Room No Payment Law (EMTALA).
3.) End ANY other Welfare to Aliens.
4.) Fine US employers $1,000 per day per employee who is an alien.
5.) Spend NO money on “securing the border.” It is a bottomless money pit.
6.) Spend money on Chainlink/ Concertina wire desert prisons for the EXISTING Federal Law for a mandatory 6 month imprisonment for repeat offenders who have invaded our Country more than once.
7.) Transfer Border Invasion Enforcement to the US National Guard in each State, and thus under the control of the Governor of each State. The less Federal involvement, the better.
8.) Repeal all State and Federal Laws that prohibit voter officials and Police from requesting proof of US Citizenship for any reason what so ever.
9.) Be as hostile to all illegal alien invaders as we should be to all Federal politicians and Federal Judges who vote for or support another Ted Kennedy-style amnesty bill with no significant Federal enforcement.
Contact your local TEA Party, and plan to kick the sorry RINOs and even sorrier Democrats out of Congress in 2014!
It is all about the money FReepers, YOUR tax money.
And let's ask What does the illegal immigrant think of us? Are they racists? What do they think of our laws, our language? Did I ever break a Mexican law?
“Republicans have little to gain...”
Not those that will be paid off very nicely.
The presstitutes using Alinsky tactics.
Exactly. That’ the point Tanc’s making. Don’t let the left write your “story”. That’s what too many of the RINO’s do, they don’t push back against the flat out lies the left tells about us.
Thanks, beaversmom! :)
Their best play is “Immigration bill...WHAT Immigration bill?”.
Exactly!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.