Appearing on KOA 850-AM’s Morning News Jan. 13, Rep. Mike Coffman first said he doesn’t “see anything happening on immigration reform” in Congress this year.
Then he told radio host April Zesbaugh, “Certainly, I’ve worked hard in my congressional district to break that narrative” that “Republicans are anti-immigrant.”
So he declares immigration reform dead and says he’s not anti-immigrant.
The irony is, if Coffman and his fellow House Republicans weren’t anti-immigrant, immigration reform wouldn’t be dead right now. It would be moving forward, as laid out in the comprehensive immigration reform bill that Coffman opposed and was killed by House Republicans in 2013.
Millions of law-abiding immigrants would be starting to come out of the shadows and living like my own immigrant grandparents did. They’d be paying more taxes, working their asses off, and no longer living in fear of deportation. We’d be spending tens of billions more on border security and have 20,000 agents on the border, too, fwiw. The Chamber of Commerce would be happy. I would feel proud of our country, not guilty, when I see my daughter’s friend holding hands with her immigrant father.
Coffman would no doubt be standing up his his district and saying he actually accomplished something on immigration. As it is, he’s defined by what he’s not done and what he still opposes: birthright citizenship, bilingual ballots, comprehensive immigration reform, a path to citizenship.
With his Spanish lessons and criss-crossing votes for modest reforms, maybe Coffman has worked hard, in terms of rhetoric and smoke screens and cover up, to create a perception of hard work on immigration, but he was a roadblock to actually accomplishing anything when it really mattered most.
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But does a candidates positions and votes even matter anymore Jason. Throw up some smear ads about your opponent and lie about your record and slip by for another two years because of ingrained media bias towards incumbents. Actually doing your job as a public servant doesn't seem to matter with the electorate anymore.
Marshall McCluhan proven right, once again…
Its not about governing, its about entertainment….
Hey now, it still matters how they vote, what they say, what they do. And we're here on this blog to make sure of that!
I think it matters to the future what these politicians do Jason but does it matter to their election chances? Contrary to what Republicans say, we would be in a lot different world today if McCain and Palin had been in charge these last eight years so give voters credit for avoiding that nuclear bomb duo. Policy does matter in the real world but is it enough to sway anyone's opinion or vote now?
Keep in mind that Trump's high poll numbers are only 40% of likely Republican voters. That is 26% of the total electorate, per Gallup and Pew studies. Including independent Republican "leaners", that is 44%. Still not a majority. And not all of the Independents will vote for the reality TV candidate – many may actually break for Sanders or Clinton.
The Pew study broke down affiliation by gender, race, and age. Not surprisingly, Republican is the dominant affiliation for white males, especially those who are not college-educated. Women, millenials, black and brown and all racial and ethnic minorities, lean Democratic. I don't have to preach to the Pols choir that Democratic policies tend to more practical, more sustainable, more fair and less costly when all social costs are factored in.
So to answer your question, yes, policy matters, and it will sway some opinions and votes. We do not yet live in a world where image is everything and policy means nothing, where facts are just opinions, and Christianity is the only religion which has freedoms worth protecting. We do not yet live in the Hunger Games.