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wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence." - John Adams - |
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Posted on 10/08/2003 2:37:19 PM PDT by wilyrascal
FAIR Press Release
Granting Driver’s Licenses to Illegal Aliens Backfires on Davis
Majority of Voters Would Support Referendum to Block Implementation of Policy
(October 8, 2003 – Washington, DC) Nearly one-third of those who voted in Tuesday’s California recall said they were influenced to vote for Gov. Gray Davis’ removal by his decision to grant driver’s licenses to illegal aliens. Thirty percent of voters said that Davis’ approval of the driver’s license bill influenced them to support his recall, while only 8 percent said it made them more likely to oppose removing him from office.
In a desperate gambit to hang on to office, Gov. Davis last month signed legislation allowing illegal aliens to obtain California driver’s licenses. According to an election night survey by the Luntz Research Companies of voters who participated in Tuesday’s recall election, that decision was a serious miscalculation and was a significant factor in the voters’ decision to recall the governor.
The Luntz Poll (http://capwiz.com/fair/utr/1/NASACDSZKP/MEGUCDSZLJ/ commissioned by the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), showed strong disfavor – 68 percent to 21 percent – for granting licenses to illegal aliens, and that disapproval was on the minds of many voters as they went to the polls.
By a large majority, voters who participated in the recall election said they would support a proposed referendum on next March’s ballot to block implementation of the law granting driver’s licenses to illegal aliens. Sixty-two percent indicated that were such a referendum to appear on the ballot it would win their vote, while only 25 percent said they would oppose it.
“From the outset it was clear that the vast majority of Californians opposed granting licenses to illegal aliens,” said Dan Stein, executive director of FAIR. “The Davis camp believed that the issue would motivate the small minority of voters in the state that desperately want all distinctions between legal and illegal residents erased, while it would be quickly forgotten by the rest of the electorate. Clearly Davis misread the mood of the public.”
Davis’ decision to sign the driver’s license bill, after twice vetoing similar measures, was not the only flip-flop on matters relating to illegal immigration that hurt him with voters. After initially opposing in-state tuition for illegal aliens at state-run universities, Davis ultimately signed legislation allowing illegal aliens to qualify for subsidized tuition rates. That decision was opposed by 73 percent of the people who voted in Tuesday’s recall, while only 18 percent said they favored the idea.
During the course of the campaign, the media repeatedly asserted that Governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger’s support for the 1994 voter initiative, known as Proposition 187, was a political liability for the candidate. The Luntz survey indicates otherwise. By a 65 percent to 26 percent margin, voters said that illegal aliens “should not be eligible for services and benefits provided by state and local governments, except for emergency services.” Prop. 187, which included almost identical language, received 59 percent of the vote nine years ago.
“Last night’s vote is proof that voters in California are still angry about mass illegal immigration and the burdens it is imposing on the state,” said Stein. “For nearly a decade, in what amounts to one of the biggest political spin jobs in history, the media and political pundits have been saying that taking a strong position against illegal immigration is political poison in California, and elsewhere around the country. Once again, the voters have shown they aren’t buying it. In fact the opposite is true. The voters of California showed that they will punish politicians who pander to the illegal alien lobby and will reward those who stand up to it.
“People who are fed up with massive illegal immigration may not participate in high profile media events like bus rides to Washington, but they can and will express their anger in the voting booth,” Stein continued. “Politicians who pander to illegal immigrants and their advocates may enjoy the momentary adoration of a small group of activists, but as Gray Davis found out last night, there can be a heavy political price to pay.”
Contact: David S. Ray @ 202-328-7004
Couple that with the fact that the tripled car tag bills starting arriving in mailboxes the week before the election, and Davis had a bit of a P.R. problem.
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wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence." - John Adams - |
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Care to make a wager on the bold portion?
I believe (R)nuld will "force" the Feds by mandating giving AMNESTY to all the current Illegal Infiltrators!
Oh, what a great idea...worked so WELL before...
Putting a possible increase in Democrat voters above concerns for your country's security backfires on Gray Davis.
| The Luntz Poll (http://capwiz.com/fair/utr/1/NASACDSZKP/MEGUCDSZLJ/ commissioned by the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), showed strong disfavor - 68 percent to 21 percent - for granting licenses to illegal aliens, and that disapproval was on the minds of many voters as they went to the polls. By a large majority, voters who participated in the recall election said they would support a proposed referendum on next March's ballot to block implementation of the law granting driver's licenses to illegal aliens. Sixty-two percent indicated that were such a referendum to appear on the ballot it would win their vote, while only 25 percent said they would oppose it. < -snip- > Davis' decision to sign the driver's license bill, after twice vetoing similar measures, was not the only flip-flop on matters relating to illegal immigration that hurt him with voters. After initially opposing in-state tuition for illegal aliens at state-run universities, Davis ultimately signed legislation allowing illegal aliens to qualify for subsidized tuition rates. That decision was opposed by 73 percent of the people who voted in Tuesday's recall, while only 18 percent said they favored the idea. During the course of the campaign, the media repeatedly asserted that Governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger's support for the 1994 voter initiative, known as Proposition 187, was a political liability for the candidate. The Luntz survey indicates otherwise. By a 65 percent to 26 percent margin, voters said that illegal aliens "should not be eligible for services and benefits provided by state and local governments, except for emergency services." Prop. 187, which included almost identical language, received 59 percent of the vote nine years ago. |
My guess is that the so-called "hispanic" vote was very divided. An American of Spanish ancestry whose ancestors have lived here for generations isn't likely to vote for a MEChA --- pro-Aztlan-Mexican like Bustamante. In this part of Texas, Silvestre Reyes got the majority of the American hispanic vote and is in Congress now because his border patrol programs Operation Blockade and Operation Hold-the-Line made him very popular.
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