Republicans unveiled a 48-page pre-election document styled after 1994’s Contract with America on Thursday with little to no mention of immigration reform.
The “Pledge” makes mention of an “out-of-touch” government, yet the document itself hardly touches on one of the most controversial issues being debated by Americans across the country. The omission of immigration reform comes as somewhat of a surprise to many considering 54% of all Americans regard the immigration issue as “very important” and that a majority of voters from both parties support immigration reform.
The few bullet points that reference immigration did not address immigration reform in itself. House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) even evaded a reporter’s question regarding the absence of an immigration reform platform during yesterday’s press conference outlining the document.
”I think that a lot of Americans are debating comprehensive immigration reform and I’m wondering what the position is and frankly why it’s not in the document,” the reporter said.
Boehner responded with a talking point that evaded giving a concrete answer and immediately cut off the reporter who pressed for further clarification.
“The first steps for real immigration reform are to secure our borders and enforce our laws,” Boehner said.
An enforcement-only approach to immigration is the only proposal on the issue in the “Pledge.” It also appears to endorse and promote Arizona-like immigration policies.
One bullet point says, “The problem of illegal immigration and Mexican drug cartels engaged in an increasingly violent conflict means we need all hands on deck to address this challenge. We will reaffirm the authority of state and local law enforcement to assist in the enforcement of all federal immigration laws.”
The way in which the GOP addresses immigration in the document is a stray from the way in which many Republicans have heavily politicized the issue this election season.
Is anyone really that surprised?…this coming from the party of the big fat NO