Where do Udall, Schaffer, Salazars, Musgrave, Lamborn stand on immigration bill?

7 thoughts on “Where do Udall, Schaffer, Salazars, Musgrave, Lamborn stand on immigration bill?”

1. what would constitute a workable piece of legislation?

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   1. Follow Tancredo’s recommendations.

      1. Close the borders to all but those with secure and trackable national identity cards, including truckers.
      2. Impose big fines on employers who hire illegals, knowingly or not. We don’t need to deport the illegals. They’ll go home if there are no jobs. The whole thing about deporting 12-20 million illegals is bunk.
      3. Require that illegals with dependent American-born kids take them home until they are over 18 and can return as American citizens.
      4. No free education nor health care for illegals or their kids, regardless.
      5. Require all immigrants to be educated and that their skills be needed by legitimate U.S. employers who must certify upon the pain of substantial fines that they cannot find comparable workers among American citizens at market wages and benefits.
      6. Anybody caught committing crimes in an effort to stay in the country illegally would be subjected to 25-years in federal prisons, working at hard labor in the most uncomfortable parts of the country with minimum health care and not the most pleasant food or living conditions. Illegals who committed crimes with weapons would be subject to more severe penalties.
      7. Temporary agricultural workers would be allowed to come into the country seasonally.
      8. Farmers would receive subsidies in the form of 2-year depreciation schedules on equipment that would replace farm workers as much as possible.
      9. Other industries would simply adapt to the new labor markets and do okay.
      10. Any non citizen caught voting illegally would be subject to five years in prison.

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2. This could be a really tough one for him, or if could shore up his moderate cred.  Will he seize the opportunity or trip over himself in DC double talk? 

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   1. The reason this bill is so complicated is because the stakeholders are so diverse…..include the economy, national security, unions, the public dole, the publics desire to achieve cheap products and services….you see what I mean.

      Don’t hold Udall up to an unreasonable expectation. Look to Tancredo, Lamborn, Dobson, Allard, and others for their views. I’m confidant Udall will hold his own in this very complicated challenge.

      There are other more pressing challenges. The illegal alien is not threatening our national guard, our standing in the world, our very Democracy…..the Bush administration is…..focus on that!

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      1. The opportunity is for Mark to disprove the boulder liberal wrap.  This could be a chance for Udall to reach out to conservatives and moderate business interests.  There’s really not much Udall can do about Iraq, but immagration is a strong cultural issue that could define mark and the race.

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3. AS, you and I agree on so much I don’t see why our two sides have to split.  As it turns out, I really don’t thing that the GOP is really as badly split as some suggest.  You and I ‘get,’ at a fundamental level, the key issues of our day and that should be enough to keep our arms locked.

   Anyway, about this “piece of shit bill” (as John Boehner put it)…

   This is potentially the most significant bill to come out of Congress since Bush took office in 2001.  It represents a major security threat that could undermine American soverignty in ireparably ways.  How can folks like Udall (whom you KNOW supports this crap) and Schaffer (who you KNOW opposes it) stay silent?  I expect Bob Schaffer–who I am just gaga over–to come out loud and proud NOW.  If Schaffer seizes this moment and leads opposition to this bill while proposing his own reforms, he could effectively come out as the frontrunner in the Senate race.  That’s how important this bill is.

   Beauprez lost, because, among other things, he came across as just an angry xenophobe on immigration.  Schaffer is more articulate on the issue and he can still win the Tancredo caucus over and not come across as anti-immigrant.  That could be the x-factor in this race, really.

   His campaign needs to be all about homeland security (not the bulgy department!)–immigration reform, fighting the war on terror, winning in Iraq, preventing another Iraq-style miscue, etc.  Here’s a good place to start.

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   1. Have the Dems unwittingly helped the Republicans in local and national races by creating a wedge issue?  As Skeptic pointed out above, Udall could come out against certain parts of this bill, express his displeasure at say, the border security part, and that would take some wind out of Schaffer’s sails. If Udall doesn’t than Schaffer can bring this up next year.

      Now with all that said, the Dems are going to look really foolish if they are unable to pass something THIS year.  If that happens, Republicans will say they scored a victory and it will further slow the momentum of the Dems in Congress.

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