The reason for Richardson's moderation in attacking Gonzales

[seasat]

Bill Richardson's condemnation of Gonzales has been less severe than the other candidates. He has called him the president's political flack, said that he probably shouldn't have been confirmed as AG, and said that the only way he could survive is for Gonzales to admit he did wrong and politicized the US Attorney General's Office. However, the best statement he could safely and politically make is call for Alberto Gonzales' head just like the rest of the Democratic candidates and several Republicans. Richardson is a smart politician and doesn't owe anything to Alberto Gonzales, so why is he not calling for his head like all these other folks?

Lets look at some of the recent conservatives who called for Gonzales' resignation and their views on immigration.

Bruce Fein:

Mr. Rosenblum has surrendered to my argument that unless ambivalence over illegal immigration is displaced by unwavering public opposition, legalization will do nothing but aggravate illegal immigration. His proposals for effectuating that displacement are deficient because they misconceive the reasons for the ambivalence: namely, the beliefs of Americans who know or employ illegal aliens that they are good people who do not deserve deportation.

Bob Barr:

Next time the Department of Justice publishes its annual index of crime statistics, you might want to look up how many "uninvited visitor" incidents there have been compared to previous years. You might also want to check how many automobile owners had their vehicles "involuntarily borrowed" in the past year. Oh, you can't find those statistics? Well, look under "burglary" and "vehicle theft" and you'll find the information you're looking for.

other conservatives calling for Gonzales' resignation are David Keene, Richard Viguerie, Jeff Sessions, and Tom Tancredo. All of them basically in favor of throwing every illegal immigrant out of the US and locking down the country. They all disagree on some of the social conservative agenda and other issued but this is an issue where all these conservatives are united.

In addition, we've seen a step up in the media by talking heads bashing illegal immigration. There was the publicity about the illegal immigrant drunk driver who killed someone in an accident. There's Lou Dobbs who nightly attacks illegal immigration, even using a white supremacy group as a source. There is obviously a push for deportation of all illegal immigrants by a certain segment of the Republican party.

Gonzales is for a path to citizenship for illegal aliens.

The President has said that illegal immigrants who have roots in our country and want to stay should have to pay a “meaningful penalty for breaking the law.” He wants them to pay their taxes and learn English. He thinks they should wait in line behind those who played by the rules and followed the law.
I know that there is concern about amnesty – but I want to reassure you that the President’s plan is a way for those who have broken the law to pay their debt to society and then have a chance to demonstrate their character and their commitment to achieving legal citizenship. This is not amnesty.

Bill Richardson is an expert on immigration issues. You have to be to be Governor of a border state like New Mexico. The Organization of American States appointed him as a special envoy to deal with immigration issues. Bill Richardson has spoken out on immigration on several occasions and has agreed with Shrub Inc in their support of certain immigration issues like the McCain/Kennedy immigration reform bill.

Here's Richardson's views on illegal immigration.

Today, there are over 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States. Most are law abiding, except for the fact that they have entered this country illegally. And almost all have come here to work -- to build a better life for themselves and their families, just as previous generations of immigrants have done.
Eleven million people living in the shadows is a huge problem, and we need to address it intelligently and thoughtfully -- and urgently. If Congress fails to do so, it will only get worse, and the demagoguery about it which we have heard so much of recently will only get louder.

Richardson would strengthen border security, work with Mexico to improve their infrastructure, increase legal immigration, start a guest worker program that has the same standards as for US workers, and a path to earned citizenship for illegal immigrants already in the US. Richardson has also strongly disagreed with the Bushies on some immigration issues like the border wall (LINK). Richardson has a liberal, fair, and humane approach to the illegal immigration issue.

As noted in the Tavis Smiley interview, Richardson was working with Gonzales on illegal immigration. Compare Richardson and Gonzales positions and notice the similarities. Richardson is not moderating his attacks on Gonzales because he's Hispanic or his buddy; he's doing it because the AG that replaces Gonzales will represent the hard-core, anti-immigrant, wing of the Republican Party. Regardless of whether Bill Richardson is elected president or not, this is an issue that he feels strongly and personally about and supports a fair effective reform. Politically, Richardson can't come out and say that he hopes Gonzales survives because the next Attorney General will work to deport every illegal immigrant in the country. Illegal immigration is a divisive issue, even among some Democrats.

The xenophobic wing of the Republican Party knows that the best chance get their legislation through is before the next election. If we increase our margins in the legislature and take the presidency their agenda will be dead. They also want someone that can give them ammunition through high profile prosecutions involving illegal immigrants. They want to turn illegal immigration into the next "gay marriage" issue to rally their party. Bush is a weak lame duck and won't be able to appoint another loyal Bushie as Attorney General. I can guarantee that the next appointee will work to promote the Tom Tancredo agenda if Gonzales resigns.

[MH1]

1. Thanks for this analysis.

I thought it might have something to do with that but didn't have time to chase it down.

Even without this understanding, I wasn't too worried about Richardson's position on Gonzales - didn't seem like he would have a lot of influence anyway.

[Tejanocrat]

2. Does Richardson support the view that children born in the USA of undocumented parents should NOT be

granted US citizenship?

[seasat]

3. Did you read his immigration policy in my original post?

The answer is no he doesn't support that. He checked a box 11 years ago on the National Political Aptitude test that said something to that effect but I've never found a statement from him or support for that policy from him.

I'm wary of answers based on the NPAT because some of the questions can be confusing. I saw at ontheissues.org where they have Obama supporting bans on all semi-automatic weapons based on the NPAT for the state of Illinois. However, I tracked down a copy of the original test and found out the question was actually referring to "assault" rifles and not all semi-automatic guns. Apparently the ontheissues.org folks were confused by the test too.

Richardson's mother was a Mexican citizen who made sure that Bill Richardson was born in California instead of Mexico so that there would be no question about his US citizenship. Bill Richardson spent part of his life growing up in Mexico. His parents were wealthy but his mother insisted that they live outside the wealthy regions so that Bill could be exposed to true Mexican culture. I can't see someone with that experience endorsing that policy.

Bill Richardson may have made a mistake in filling out the form or he may even have believed that 11 years ago but it is obvious that he doesn't believe that now. New Mexico under Richardson has a allowed illegal immigrants to get driver's licenses and be eligible for a full range of public services. Regardless of what position he held decades ago his position on immigration now is a liberal Democratic position.

[seasat]

4. I started getting suspicious when all the Rs attacked Gonzo.

When I started digging I found that they all had the xenophobic view in common. Richardson is no neophyte in politics. The more I thought about the more I figured there had to be a reason why he didn't call for Gonzales' head like the rest of the candidates.