Yet again, you have it backwards. The base is right here.
Amnesty didn't work when Reagan tried it, and it won't work now. Quite the contrary, it is making matters worse.
Bush is pushing an agenda that drives the base crazy. He should know better. He, a second-term president not allowed to seek re-election, is sandbagging those who are in his party. If you are so concerned about the Dems staying out of power, quit belittling the legitimate concerns of the base on this issue and tell Bush to quit plugging an amnesty program that failed once and will fail again.
Instead, you are worried about the political standing of a man who will never run for re-election again. Well, once again, tell Bush to drop amnesty and watch his ratings improve.
It has been repeatedly shown that the "base" cannot be depended upon for much except irrational exuberance. It does NOT have a "legitimate concern" but merely reflects a lack of long term thinking and focus on who the REAL enemy is.
I am not concerned about Bush's standing in the polls at all just the ability of the Treason Media to ONCE AGAIN play "the base" like a frigging piano. What else can you call it when a second tier issue is blown up into the ONLY issue. A Life and Death issue when the problem is essentially unsolvable.
Illegal Immigration has one major significance and that is the ability of the Party of Treason to use it to destroy the GOP when anyone with 1/10 of a brain knows full well that the Party of Treason will make the problem MUCH worse.
Gee, I have a zit I think I will blow my head off to cure it.