Is That A Bit Of Leadership I Smell?

Yesterday we saw Spitzer bow to the local, state and national pressure to abandon giving drivers licenses to illegal immigrants. Not only did he take heat, but Senator Clinton did as well for not giving a straight answer until she could follow Eliot's lead. No one is particularly surprised at her actions because she is a follower. A follower of others, polls and focus groups. Now for Barack, he is a contradiction of sorts. He stumbles here and there, follows others here and there, but sometimes he'll actually take a stand, and he's doing it on this controversial issue.

From The Huffington Post:

Sen. Barack Obama, D-Il, is standing by his support for granting driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants, even after Gov. Eliot Spitzer, D-NY, abandoned the proposal amidst rising political opposition.

"Obama said in the debate he supported it and he's standing by it," an aide to the Senator told the Huffington Post. "He supported a similar bill in the state senate as a law enforcement measure."

Obama's backing stands in stark contrast to the position taken by Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-NY, whose campaign now cites the issue as a basic policy difference between the two Democratic frontrunners.

Is it the right move, the wrong move, who cares, at least it is his stand and he's sticking to it. All along I've supported the plan, I'd rather people who are going to drive anyway have some preparation to be out on the roads. Sometimes you need to put your xenophobia to the side to make way for common sense. I'm glad to see that Obama sees it that way too.

Hillary On Drivers License Debacle, "Now I'm Against It"

Now hear this, Hillary has a third answer for the question asking if she supports drivers licenses for illegal immingrants. First she was for it, then she understood Spitzer's dilemma and now she's against it. I wonder if that has to do with Spitzer dropping the issue today? Or perhaps it was a focus group or a poll, it isn't like this woman has many principles.

From The Daily News:

"I support Governor Spitzer's decision today to withdraw his proposal. His difficult job is made that much harder by the failure of the Congress and the White House to pass comprehensive immigration reform. As President, I will not support drivers' licenses for undocumented people and will press for comprehensive immigration reform that deals with all of the issues around illegal immigration including border security and fixing our broken system."

Yeah we know Congress and the White House has failed the country on immigration reform (and nearly every other issue). I guess to her credit, she finally gave a definitive answer, as opposed to the last two within a minute of each other at the last debate. Of course, that is only because our Governor made the first move, we wouldn't expect any type of leadership from Mrs. Clinton, now would we?

Can Spitzer Make It All Go Away?

Finally, Eliot Spitzer has rescinded his bid to give drivers licenses to illegal immigrants. I was personally in favor of it, just as Hillary was or wasn't in his camp as well. Despite the Governor's good idea, he presented it in spectacularly bad form, since he managed to piss everyone off and throw his poll ratings in the crapper. Now he says he didn't choose to abandon the program out of principle.

From The New York Times:

The governor, who is to announce the move formally on Wednesday, said in an interview Tuesday night that he did not reach the decision easily. “You have perhaps seen me struggle with it because I thought we had a principled decision, and it’s not necessarily easy to back away from trying to move a debate forward,” he said.

But he came to believe the proposal would ultimately be blocked, he said, either by legal challenges, a vote by the Legislature to deny funding for the Department of Motor Vehicles or a refusal by upstate county clerks to carry it out.

“I am not willing to fight to the bitter end on something that will not ultimately be implemented,” the governor said, “and we also have an enormous agenda on other issues of great importance to New York State that was being stymied by the constant and almost singular focus on this issue.”

For a while there it seemed like he was going to go to the 'bitter end' with this but apparently the negative publicity that reached national proportions has gotten to be too much for the first term Governor. Even though his fight is over, the effects could linger for weeks, months or conceivably his entire term. For a man swept into Albany with tremendous popularity, he is certainly going to have to try hard to win back public support in New York.

Hillary Flip-Flops On Stage

Edwards and Dodd help point out to the audience that Hillary effectively flip-flopped on supporting Spitzer's plan to give drivers licenses to illegal immigrants. If she can do an about face in front of the cameras in such bold fashion, how are we going to trust her anywhere else?

Spitzer Calls Out Venomous Lou Dobbs

Lou Dobbs is an interesting figure on CNN to say the least. Every couple of months he goes on a particular crusade of some sort (kinda like Bill O) that generally involves illegal immigrants. He masks his thoughts with clever slogans like "protecting our borders" and other isolationist crap. He denies that he hates brown people, but you know when it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck and is covered in feathers...it's generally a duck.

His latest jihad has been about our Governor Eliot Spitzer and his highly controversial attempt to give those immigrants drivers licenses. To Spitzer's detriment, he has been going about convincing New York and the nation about the program. Nevertheless, on the face of it, I'd rather have someone that can drive safely after learning how to drive properly than just getting in a car without a license.

Lou doesn't give a flying ____ about the safety of our roads, just keeping people out of the country that come from south of the border. Spitzer was asked about Lou, and gave him an appropriate New York response.

From Crooks and Liars:

Download (1077) | Play (1384) Download (829) | Play (706)

SPITZER: Look, I’m not going to demean myself by getting into a back and forth with somebody who on TV spews venom, hate and fundamental misinformation. Of course not. He knows it.

As I said, it’s beneath me, it’s beneath my office, to, in any way, involve myself with Lou Dobbs. And I think his knowing spread of venom is beneath CNN as well.

Good for Spitzer, now if he could only communicate as effectively with New York and its legislators as he did with Lou.

Recruiting Illegal Immingrants

Out of the many horrifying scenes in "Glory," the worst one for me was not bloody or particularly violent. The part that scared me the most was how recruiters took immigrants right from the boats that got them there to the boats that would take them to the front lines of the civil war.

It looks like our military hasn't come that far since then:

Churches Fight Back Against Gov't Deportation Of Immigrants

Religious institutions have been under fire from the progressive community for sometime now due to the rapacious bloodlust of the religious right. The latest abomination was Dobson and many others charge to stop the Hate Crimes legislation from going forward. Today there is a refreshing story about churches around the country that are beginning to protect those that are less fortunate. That group is highly stigmatized because they are considered 'illegal immigrants.'

From The New York Times:

Recalling a movement that challenged United States policy in Central America in the 1980s, several religious congregations in New York and other cities will announce a campaign Wednesday to provide sanctuary to illegal immigrants who face deportation.

As of Tuesday, the organizers of what is being called the New Sanctuary Movement said that five churches in New York City had already offered assistance to two families — one from China and one from Haiti — and would provide them with shelter if the federal government moved to enforce the deportation orders filed against them.

“We’re launching now because we’re fed up with detentions, deportations and raids,” said the Rev. Dr. Donna Schaper, the senior minister of Judson Memorial Church in Greenwich Village. “We felt it was not morally possible to remain silent.”

Morality has been twisted by many on the right to protect the privileged few. Morality to them means keeping things neat and orderly for the white majority and to persecute minority groups, whether they be of another ethnicity or sexual orientation. Now that church groups are coming out to protect immigrants that face deportation, the church (or at least part of it) can be seen in their true calling. That is to protect those that are less fortunate and who need a helping hand.

While the government may be cracking down on 'illegals' it is still a moral issue and an American issue to give shelter to those that want to have a better life in America. That is the reason they came to this country much like the ancestors of those that are here today. It is so easy to forget where we came from and try to protect an illusion that new immigrants are out to get us. Many leaders on the right try to play on basic human nature and the instinctual fear to survive that we are genetically programmed with. Thankfully there are people that can see past that and realize that we are all in this together. That is what has made America the great place it is known as and will continue to be.

Sacrificing Illegal Immigrants

Another one of Colbert's brilliant ideas:

Satan Has Come To Utah

Just as I had stopped applauding the students at BYU for standing up to Dick Cheney, Utah got another demerit in my book. The protests showed me that there was hope all across the country, even in the Beehive state. Leave it to another Utahan to put my views back into place. A GOP delegate in the state recently made the claim that the problem of illegal immigration is not of this world, it is from the underworld.

From The Salt Lake Tribune:

Larsen, who did not return a phone call or an e-mail seeking comment Thursday, is urging the closing of national borders to illegal immigrants to "prevent the destruction of the U.S. by stealth invasion."

"In order for Satan to establish his 'New World Order' and destroy the freedom of all people as predicted in the Scriptures, he must first destroy the U.S.," his resolution states. "The mostly quiet and unspectacular invasion of illegal immigrants does not focus the attention of the nations the way open warfare does, but is all the more insidious for its stealth and innocuousness."

To be fair, most Republicans in the state are trying to distance themselves from Larsen as fast as they can. Yet the party will make a note to discuss his remarks at their annual meeting. Why? I have no idea. I guess if there a few bad apples on the Republican tree, you can definitely find one over in Utah. This Larsen needs to go, if he is a delegate, who supported that candidacy within the party? This hate has to come from somewhere so he cannot be alone in his views.

O'Reilly Complete Loses It

Bill O'Reilly is known for his monstrous ego and undying ambition to bully his guests into submission. No matter what the issue and which side Bill takes, he has to be right once he affirms himself to a position. Frequently Bill picks sensitive topics, comes to an off-the-wall conclusion and then beats his opponent over the head with it. He did this to Jeremy Glick, a son of a 9/11 victim, he's done this when the topic of Shawn Hornbeck was in the news and now his insensitivity reaches a new level.

Before you watch the video keep the facts in mind. Geraldo and O'Lielly are arguing over whether illegal immigrantion has anything to do with a tragic drunk driving accident that claimed the lives of two teenage girls in Virginia Beach a few days ago. Despite the family tragedy, Bill seizes the moment for political opportunity, without regard for the family of the victim.



Like Geraldo (of all people), Virginia Beach's mayor and the family did not take this lying down either, here's their response:

The mayor and Tessa Tranchant's father both said that making an issue out of immigration loses the focus that the girls were killed by a man that police said was driving drunk.

Ray Tranchant said, "We need to heal, and to bring immigration, that's disrespectful to a family who's just mourning."

Bill should be ashamed of himself....but of course he has no shame, so why bother?