Buck Naked Politics

In the Immigrant "Clampdown", "Shamnesty" for Employers of Unauthorized Workers?

by Damozel | Despite an announced "clampdown" on corporations who hire illegal immigrants, the Bush administration seems to have been able to arrest only 100 or so of the people who did the hiring.  )WaPo via Memeorandum) Though the feds have "clamped down" on companies that use illegal workers, only a "tiny fraction" end up with criminal charges filed against them. (WaPo)

Fewer than 100 owners, supervisors or hiring officials were arrested in fiscal 2007, compared with nearly 4,900 arrests that involved illegal workers, providers of fake documents and others, the figures show. Immigration experts say the data illustrate the Bush administration's limited success at delivering on its rhetoric about stopping illegal hiring by corporate employers.(WaPo)

Talk about "shamnesty."  

A Swift Solution to Bush's PR Problems.

No discussion of the commutation of Libby's sentence would be complete without input from sensible conservative Jon Swift, who is always there to point out calmly and rationally and sensibly where we liberals have got it wrong.   Those whose heads are exploding (Why? Why? What in the world else were you expecting? I wasn't at all prepared for this level of outrage),  I can only commend you to Jon Swift, who would like Bush to Give Scooter Libby a New Job.

Immigration Bill Seems Dead

Nationwide, people locked arms and sang, "Ding Dong, the wicked bill is dead."  At least the immigration bill seemed to die in the Senate yesterday, getting only 46 of the 60 votes needed to bring it to a vote. (See who voted and how.) Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid had said if the bill failed to get the 60 votes, he would remove it from further consideration (Washington Post).

I watched the debate on CSPAN. Several senators said their phone system was jammed with calls from angry people wanting to kill the bill -- and possibly the senators who supported it. I wondered if Jack Abramoff had reached out from behind the prison walls and persuaded Ralph Reed to orchestrate a massive phone tree -- like they did for Abramoff's casino-owning Indian client(s).

Not that they needed to. Rush Limbaugh could have easily mobilized a few hundred of his 10+ million listeners against the bill he called the "Comprehensive Destroy the Republican Party Act."

Maybe, Rush was right. The bill did cause massive clashing among Republicans, many of whom felt President Bush betrayed them by pushing the bill. (Mercury Rising)  It didn't help that Bush publicly insulted conservatives and Republicans for opposing the bill.

Immigration Bill Faces Another Vote

The immigration bill, which compelled thousands of Americans to stockpile pitchforks and torches for a march on Washington, faces a "make or break" Senate vote today (Washington Post).

Watching it all unfold was like watching sky-bound pigs glide toward the underworld for an afternoon of ice-skating. President Bush assembled a team to push the bill, including Sens. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and Mitch McConnell (R-KY).

Things didn't go well, as numerous Republicans condemned the bill as giving amnesty to illegal aliens.  Rush Limbaugh blasted Bush and the bill, dubbing it the "Comprehensive Destroy the Republican Party Act."

Salon's Thomas Schaller described a split between the Republican Party's "Wall Street wing" (which wants cheap Spanish-speaking labor) and the "Main Street wing" (which wants big fences along the borders). According to Schaller, angry Republicans "began talking about last straws and using 'impeachment' and 'Bush' in the same sentence."

Senate Immigration Bill Gets CPR

Despite diminished clout and record-low approval ratings, President Bush apparently persuaded Senate Republicans during their Tuesday lunch to help him bring back the immigration bill. Yesterday, after major haggling over amendments, the bill seemed destined for a vote.

In its current form, the bill would provide new border controls, a crackdown on employers who hire illegal immigrants, and a means for 12 million immigrants who are already here to get legal status (Washington Post). Still, the bill's passage is iffy. Senator Trent Lott (R-MS) said:

"I'm sure senators on both sides of the aisle are being pounded by these talk-radio people who don't even know what's in the bill.... Leadership will have to be prepared to do what needs to be done."

Lott referred to entertainers such as Rush Limbaugh, who recently dubbed the immigration bill the "Comprehensive Destroy the Republican Party Act" (Salon). A few weeks ago, the President publicly insulted conservatives and fellow Republicans who opposed the bill.

Even if the immigration bill passes the Senate, it may face obstacles in the House, where some Republicans drooled over the opportunity to kill the bill just weeks ago.

Bush Back from Lunch

Apparently, President Bush's lunchtime attempt to persuade Senate Republicans to revive the not-yet- dead immigration bill didn't go badly. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's post-game comments:

"We had a very, very good discussion, including some of our members who are not -- shall I say? -- keen on this measure, and others who are still taking a look at it and trying to decide how they're going to vote.... So it was a good give and take. We didn't expect anybody to stand up and holler that they had an epiphany" (Washington Post)

Even if some version of the bill passes the Senate, it may face trouble with the House, whose members lay in wait a couple weeks ago for the opportunity to kill the bill through a procedure called "blue slipping."

President Out to Lunch with Senate re: Immigration

While East-coasters were out to lunch today, President Bush was likewise, joining Senate Republicans' weekly policy luncheon and pushing to bring back the stalled immigration bill. The Washington Post reported, "several Republican senators issued a terse warning yesterday: Don't expect much."

"It's a political thing," said Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), an ardent opponent of the immigration bill. "They want the blame for pushing this unpopular bill to fall on President Bush. . . . It makes him look weaker, and it separates him from a substantial majority of Republicans." (WaPo)

I can't help wondering: could the separation have begun when Bush publicly insulted Republicans who opposed the bill? Didn't House Republicans line up to blue-slip the bill weeks ago? Might Bush's record-low job approval of 29% have contributed to the appearance of weakness?

Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said that compromises could revive the bill: "There are a substantial number of Republican senators who believe that this bill would be an improvement over the current situation, over the status quo." (MSNBC)

Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) had urged the president to ramp up pressure on Republicans, some of whom view this as a political trap bearing Wiley Coyote's fingerprints:

Immigration Bill Defeated, White House Still Hopeful

Last night, Senate supporters of Bush's immigration bill failed to stop debate and force a vote. (See who voted and how.)  As the bill settled into a coma, partisan blame flew like dinner rolls at a frat house food fight:

"Republicans contend that Democrats killed the bill by refusing to allow enough floor time to debate relevant amendments. But Democrats argue that Republicans were trying to bog down the bill with “poison pill” amendments aimed at killing the comprehensive overhaul" (The Hill).

Despite the news, White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said the bill is far from dead: "The process has demonstrated that there is a strong bipartisan majority in the United States Senate that wants to see bipartisan, comprehensive reform," he said (Washingtion Post). 

All yesterday, Senators slugged it out over the bill, adding and debating amendments, which compelled supporters to waiver. Last week, President Bush was so riled up that he insulted conservatives who opposed the bill--and they responded in kind.  It's anyone's guess what they'll come up with back at the drawing board.

Damozel's Quote[s] of the Week: Conservative Jon Swift with Not One, but Two, Modest Proposals.

posted by Damozel | If only there were more reasonable conservatives like John Swift!  I'm sure that those who, like me, are caught up in the perplexities of the debates and the pissing contests the media set up between the candidates, will endorse his helpful suggestions for the debates:

1. Wiseguy Questions for the Next Presidential Debate.  "In the last Republican presidential debate, sponsored by Fox News, moderator Britt Hume borrowed a hypothetical scenario from the TV show 24, which just happens to be a Fox program. Getting the candidates to tell us what they would do if they were a character on a television show is...a good way of engaging Americans who might be bored with presidential elections because of the lack of...nteresting characters.

"Each of the candidates responded to Hume's question by trying to make the case that they would be just like 24's Jack Bauer if they were elected President.... Sure, it would be great to have a President who was willing to torture his own brother or shoot one of his colleagues in order to prevent a terrorist attack, but I think we need to ask for a bit more from our presidential candidates."

Swift proposes a series of questions  based on The Sopranos which

Bush Whacked Again in Polls: He's not Alone

Just when you thought approval ratings couldn't sink lower, an ABC/Washington Post poll says otherwise: only 45% of Republicans approve of how Bush is handling immigration, down from 61 percent in April; only 35 percent of conservatives approve, down from 48 percent.

Bush is not alone. Democrats in Congress have also lost ground :

"The Democrats' overall job approval rating likewise has dropped, from a 54 percent majority to 44 percent now.... The damage is almost entirely among people who strongly oppose the war in Iraq. In this group 69 percent approved of the Democrats in April, but just 54 percent still approve now -- a likely effect of the Democrats' failure to push a withdrawal timetable through Congress."

The Washington Post said public satisfaction with the overall direction of the country is "at its lowest point in more than a decade."  It speaks for itself.

Immigration Reform and Bill Richardson.

posted by Damozel | Man, I'm not even going to bother here with the candidates who get to sit at the Rock Starz Table; their views are all over the place. Clearly, the media have decided for the rest of us which candidates' opinions we need to consider. Hillary Hillary Hillary Edwards Hillary Obama Obama Obama Obama Edwards Edwards Edwards Richardson Gravel Other-People-They-Don't-Think-We-Care-To-Hear-From Hillary Hillary Hillary Obama Obama Obama Edwards Edwards HILLARY. 

Is it January already?  But of course:  "rock stars."  Your own words, Bill.   And I like all the so-called "first tier" candidates, but it's a bit previous to be writing anyone off or out, according to me. Here's what the two-page report of the debate in The Washington Post has to say about Bill Richardson:

"Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico emphasized his experience at the state level, saying that as chief executive he had achieved results on health care and learned firsthand about the issues involved in immigration. Dodd, by contrast, emphasized his more than two decades in the Senate." [Democrats Focus on Iraq in Contentious Second Debate, The Washington Post by Anne Kornblut and Dan Balz.]

So I am going to take this opportunity to applaud...

Damozel's Quote of the Week: Bill O'Reilly's Endangered America (includes bonus compilation of blogger reactions!)

posted by Damozel | I've already commented on this in the note I posted on immigration, but really, this is too delightfully extreme not to deserve a space of its own.  Now we have Bill O'Reilly fighting valiantly to defend the "power structure" in his parallel universe America from the evil scheming of "the Left."  These raddled crones, hags, and assorted miscreants want to take all the power from the "white, Christian men" who presently wield it. They will stop at nothing.

You can read what he actually said here or watch the video yourself.  But allow me to fill in some of the gaps:

Feigning compassion---though not fooling white Christian men who know compassion's true meaning ("God blesses the white Christian man who's got his own")---though actually out of envy and spite, the Left will flood Bill O'Reilly's America from sea to shining sea (there is no global warming or industrial pollution in Bill O'Reilly's America!) with millions of brown people. 

Immigration Reform: The Battle Between Main Street and Wall Street Republicans.

posted by Damozel | IN WHICH Bill O'Reilly Sounds the Alarm Against the Decline of "The White Christian Power Structure."

 

  Can I be truthful? I love Fox News.  I would be happy to write about nothing else but, if News Hounds didn't already have that niche pretty much covered.  Other people find Fox firightening; but I just laugh and laugh.  Liberals---of which I am one, but with the advantage of being blue-state born and raised---think Fox exists to present a particular viewpoint and to influence viewers;  I think its mission is instead to mirror what its viewers already think..  Its pundits, such as they are, have gained fame and fortune by articulating a particular point of view so its viewing audience doesn't have to. And right now, those people need Fox.

These are desperate times for Fox viewers.  I mean, come on, Trent Lott actually praised Ted Kennedy for his work on Bush's immigration bill.  ""He is the number one boogeyman for conservative Republicans," Lott said later of the longtime Democratic senator from Massachusetts. But, Lott added, "he is a good legislator, and you can't take that away from him.""  [Ted Kennedy Gets a Little Republican Respect,  The Washington  Post by  Elizabeth Williamson (30 May 2007)].

And you know things are desperate indeed when in an  an interview on Fox News on Wednesday Bill O'Reilly asked interviewee  John McCain to assent to the following proposition:   

Immigration Bill: House Plots to Give Senate a "Blue Slip"

As the Senate struggles with the immigration bill, some House members lay in wait--wringing hands and dabbing drool--for the opportunity to "blue slip" the bill.

The U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 7, requires bills that raise revenue to originate in the House. The current immigration bill, which originated in the Senate, calls for immigrants to pay the government.  Some argue that this amounts to raising revenue, giving house members cause to challenge the bill through a process involving blue paper (hence, "blue slipping"). 

A congressional aide told The Hill:

"If we get an opportunity to do it, believe me, we’ll do it [blue slip the bill]....A number of people in the House are dying to be fingered as the person who killed [the Senate bill]."

Supported by President Bush, the immigration bill has set off a slug-fest among conservatives, even in the talk-show community.

Conservatives Club Each Other Over Immigration Bill

In an intensely ironic moment, President Bush accused Republicans and conservatives who oppose his immigration proposal of using "empty political rhetoric" and "not wanting to do what's right for America."  Two conservatives responded as follows ( Washington Post):

David Keene, American Conservative Union: "I don't think name-calling does any good....What they've done from the very beginning is say, 'This is the way we want it done, and anyone who disagrees with us is outside the mainstream.'"

Brian Darling, Heritage Foundation: "Most conservatives have very strong feelings that this bill contains amnesty... and no yelling and screaming by the administration is going to change our minds...The American people should be frightened by the closed-door process that was used and by the ramifications."

Last week, Rush Limbaugh called the immigration bill the "Comprehensive Destroy the Republican Party Act."  According to Salon, the GOP's split is between the "Wall Street Wing" (which gives money and wants cheap Spanish-speaking labor) and the "Main Street Wing" (which gives votes and wants big fences between Mexico and the U.S.).

Thomas Schaller wrote: "Furious members of the Republican rank and file began talking about last straws and using 'impeachment' and 'Bush' in the same sentence."