Congressional Democrats echo right-wing Republican anti-immigrant rhetoric

[Better Believe It]

Congress Spends Another $600 Million for Border Militarization
by Julianne Hing
August 12, 2010

Now we know: Congress can pass an immigration bill in two days if it really wants to. The Senate just passed another $600 million for border security after Senators Chuck Schumer and Claire McCaskill proposed it last week.

The House returned this week from summer recess to approve the funding, as well as the $26 billion for states aid. The money will pay for 1,500 more border agents, unmanned aerial surveillance equipment and communications technology.

With anti-immigrant sentiment burning across the country and mid-term elections just around the corner, Democrats are angling to appear tough on immigrants and immigration enforcement. And Republicans are working overtime to be as outrageous as they can on immigration. (See: Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer; Florida attorney general Bill McCollum; the latest iteration of John McCain.)

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano praised Schumer and McCaskill’s proposal after it passed last week. “These assets are critical to bringing additional capabilities to crack down on transnational criminal organizations and reduce the illicit trafficking of people, drugs, currency and weapons,” Napolitano said.

And as long as the Obama administration continues to conflate drug traffickers with all migrants, increased border enforcement is what we’ll continue to get.

http://colorlines.com/archives/2010/08/us_will_send_another_600_million_for_border_militarization.html

[earthside]

1. News Flash!

Sneaking across the border, whether the person is a drug smuggler or a 'regular' person is illegal.

Call them 'migrants' or 'immigrants' ... if they do not go through proper, official channels to enter the United States, they are then engaging in an illegal act.

Unless federal law is changed to create 'open borders' it is the duty of the national government to enforce the current laws.

What is "liberal" or "conservative" about that concept?

[Historic NY]

2. exactly.

[vi5]

3. I think people's issue with this....

..mine in particular with this whole thing is that even if we agree that this is illegal and should be enforced, is the fact that it's hardly the most pressing issue facing the country as a whole. And the fact is that when actually confronted with the most pressing issues facing the country (the economy, healtchare, etc.) Congress is crippled and complains about the defecit and the need to curtail spending for even the most critically important programs and can't get legislation past.

But for this issue for some reason, they can act immediately and don't seem all that concerned about the deficit.

What's galling is not that they want to enforce laws. That's fine. It's a matter of what they can find money for when they want to, and what they can overcome partisan rancor for.

[Karenina]

10. What I find AMAZING is that Americans rarely discuss

WHY so many are willing to risk their lives to cross the border. Could it have ANYTHING TO DO with AMERICAN GUBMINT-BACKED CORPORATE POLICY?

Just wondering if anyone ever wondered... :shrug:

[OhioChick]

4. +1 n/t

[laureloak]

5. What country are the illegal immigrants loyal to? n/t

[Lance_Boyle]

14. Hint - probably *not* the one they choose to enter in a criminal way. n/t

[Jim Sagle]

7. Fuckin' A.

[Better Believe It]

16. Wake up to reality! The right-wing immigrant bashing is of course racist.

Congress can change the law, as they have frequently done in the past, and permit legal immigration by Latin Americans into the United States but they refuse to.

They want to keep the doors shut and if they could would tear down the Statue of Liberty.

Attacking so called "Illegal" workers is simply a convenient scape goat to take the focus off the real criminals responsible for the economic crisis. It's all about class and the immigrant bashing only serves the interests of the right-wing and corporate America.

As a Native-born U.S. citizen I understand that and refuse to become part of the right-wing racist lynch mob and their attacks against immigrants, Blac, Arabs, etc.,

I would never break up working class immigrant families and cause them harm by notifying the authorities.

Would you?

Don't surrender to this racist witch-hunt like hysteria against "illegal" workers by repeating their rhetoric and false claims.

[mmonk]

21. There is a racism problem developing

and the the anti-immigration movement is a hate movement. Don't feed it.

[Raineyb]

26. Newsflash! Most people here illegally don't sneak across the border. They overstay their

legally issued visas. But oddly enough people don't seem to get worked up over the European who overstays their visa, they're too busy frothing at the mouth over the brown South and Central Americans.

Their complaints are disingenuous at best and frankly, I'm not all that inclined to give them that much of a benefit of the doubt. If you want to do something about people coming here illegally to work you go after the GD employers. If no one hires them they won't stay. Instead we complain about the people "sneaking" in as if they'd sneak in if they knew they couldn't manage to make a living.

[RZM]

6. There's so much cynicism built into current immigration debates

Ironically, I think the most honest voices in this debate are on the extremes (I certainly don't agree with them, but I at least think they're coming from the heart) and ironically, these are the people who view the issue through the prism of race and culture. On the extreme pro-immigrant side, you have a lot of people who are immigrants themselves or the descendants of recent immigrants who feel cultural solidarity towards immigrant populations as well as people on the left who are genuine believers in the value of multiculturalism and intrinsically hostile to expressions of white ethnic solidarity and seek to combat the white hegemony that has characterized American political and social life for, well, ever. On the other extreme, you have tea-party types and nativists who resent the 'browning' of America and are especially hostile to the increasing presence and importance of the Spanish language in American life. Say what you want about either group, but I think these types of arguments are genuine expressions of cherished beliefs and worldviews.

Contrast that with the Democratic and GOP establishments, which (as usual), are far more duplicitous and refuse to say the real reasons for their stands on immigration. For all the stuff you hear about the right's hostility to immigration, I think that's largely posturing and pure lip service to the base -- the 'establishment right' (perfectly personified by George W. Bush) has generally been fairly amenable to open borders, mostly because their benefactors love nothing more than to ruthlessly exploit cheap labor. On the Democratic side, I think there are some who are coming from the heart, but a lot of Democratic movers-and-shakers don't really care about immigration either way, but they know that Hispanics vote democratic and and they fantasize about immigrants tipping the scales toward a permanent democratic majority in congress (as well as Texas coming into play in the presidential race, which would make it a lot harder for a Republican to be elected president).

[vi5]

8. Really good points

Well said.

[RZM]

9. Thanks :) n/t

[Biker13]

11. This Is A good Thing.

[ProSense]

12. This has nothing to do with RW rhetoric.

The right wing is screaming that racial profiling should be legal and everyone should be afraid of terrorist babies. There is nothing RW about actually enforcing immigration law. It's time to address immigration reform, something the RW has stood in the way of years.

[EFerrari]

22. It's classicly right wing to conflate workers here without papers

and actual criminals.

[Lance_Boyle]

13. Enforcing our borders is not 'anti-immigrant.'

Immigrants do not sneak into this country illegally (criminally illegally) over the border. Illegal aliens do that. Trying to keep illegal aliens out of the country is not "anti-immigrant" in the least. No legal immigrant is harmed by stopping would-be illegals at the border before they can commit the crime of illegal entry.

[Better Believe It]

15. If that's true why are all the right-wing racist outfits screaming about the border and

attacking all immigrants under the guise of only being concerned about the so-called "illegal" ones?

[Lance_Boyle]

17. Not aware of any 'attacks' on legal immigration

despite the deliberate attempts of the illegal alien fanbase at DU to conflate immigrants with illegal aliens. It's shameful and vile. Immigrants and illegal aliens are not even close to the same.

[Better Believe It]

18. The right-wing bigots are targeting all immigrants and others as scapegoats.

Congress can change the law, as they have frequently done in the past, and permit legal immigration by Latin Americans into the United States but they refuse to.

They want to keep the doors shut and if they could would tear down the Statue of Liberty.

The so-called "illegal" workers are the most vulnerable, poorest and easiest targets for them.

Attacking "Illegal" workers is simply making them a convenient scape goat to take the focus off the real criminals responsible for the economic crisis. It's all about class and the immigrant bashing only serves the interests of the right-wing and corporate America. The right-wing wants to create division, conflict and confusion within our class. Hitler did that in Germany blaming Jewish people and "Bolsheviks" for the economic depression.

The right-wing neo-fascists are doing that all over Europe now just as they did during the Great Depression. Most liberals, radicals and progressives did not fall for their divisive propaganda. However, some did. We shouldn't fall for their rhetoric and propaganda here.

As a Native-born U.S. citizen I understand that and refuse to become part of the right-wing racist lynch mob and their attacks against immigrants, Blacks, Arabs and other minority targets.

I would never break up working class immigrant families and cause them harm by notifying the authorities.

Would you?

Don't surrender to this racist witch-hunt like hysteria against "illegal" workers by repeating their rhetoric and false claims.

[Lance_Boyle]

19. Illegal aliens are vulnerable BECAUSE THEY ARE HERE ILLEGALLY.

No, they should not be exploited by illegal employers - they should not be in this country to be employed or exploited by anyone at all. Working to keep illegals out and to deport the ones who are here despite our (ahem) best efforts at keeping them out is not anti-immigrant, nor is it racist.

[Better Believe It]

20. What about the alternatives that don't involve organizing a racist anti-immigrant campaign?

The alternatives are clear.

Legalize immigration into the United States and organize those who are not yet legal.

It's a class thing called working class solidarity.

We won't let bigots and right-wing nuts turn us against working class Latinos and others who have entered the United States "illegally" because corporate whores in Congress won't permit them to enter the United States legally.

Change the racist fricken laws and stop the racist stereotyping of Latin immigrants now in fashion among Republicans and even some Democrats who claim to be liberal.

[TheKentuckian]

24. Legal and illegal is a lame hill to die on. We can make it either way. Why do you want it illegal is

is the real point.

Is there some underlying point or what?

[Better Believe It]

23. For weekend DU'ers

[Johonny]

25. Is the problem with this is that it neverseems to work?

We keep putting more and more money into looking at the southern border and yet the problem still exists. Wouldn't it be better to putting the money towards going after businesses that hire people not illegible to work in the US. Then trying to produce a set of conditions that deal with what to do with the huge population of people here already that have no legal status? And then dealing with out current immigration process that doesn't seem to match the cross section of populations that want to immigrate to the US?