Then: "We are a sanctuary city!!!!" Today: "NIMBY!"

[homersapien 11,361]

How Republicans Abdicated on Immigration Reform

If there is one thing that everyone actually agrees on in Washington, it’s that our immigration system is broken. Members of both parties have been saying it for years. Yet despite this consensus, legislation to update this system has eluded Congress for over thirty years. And at this point, it seems that only one side of the aisle is actually interested in solving the problem.

Even after Trump’s anti-immigrant policies lost at the ballot box in 2020, Republican policymakers in Washington only seem to care about exacerbating the challenges we face in immigration and at the border. Clearly no one expects Senate Republicans to endorse the Biden administration’s immigration reforms wholesale, but they aren’t even putting forth a competing vision anymore.

Since 2008, the Republican platform has become an almost caricature of itself; literally doubling down on border barriers.

• In 2008, the platform demanded a fence along the Southern Border.
• In 2012, the platform demanded a double layered fence.
• In 2016, the platform demanded a wall.
• In 2020 they didn’t adopt a platform of any kind, preferring to run solely on rhetoric.

Fast forward to today, and it seems fairly clear that Republicans are only interested in obstructionism, poison pills, and blame when it comes to immigration. As Democrats look to exhaust each and every avenue for reforming our broken immigration system, a look back at how a few key Senators have shifted shows just how far the party has strayed. While Republicans may have once been interested in a deal, they’re no longer interested in even coming to the table. For years they claimed that once the border was secure, they would come to the table. But at the height of the Trump Administration, when the border was restricted more than ever before, nothing serious came forward. And because of that, it seems increasingly clear why Democrats are pursuing immigration solutions through the reconciliation process. There should be room for bipartisan progress on immigration, but it can’t happen unless Republicans return to reality.

Marco Rubio

Once the promising new gentler voice on immigration for the Republican Party, Senator Rubio has fallen in lock step with the rightward swing it has taken in the Trump era. A look back at his positions shows that he could have led on key areas in immigration reform, particularly around Dreamers and guest workers.

• 2004: Rubio co-sponsored in-state tuition for undocumented residents while in the Florida legislature. He also blocked anti-immigrant bills as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives.
• 2012: Rubio proposed a compromise version of the DREAM Act that would have provided deportation relief, though not a pathway to citizenship.
• 2013: Rubio joined 8 Senators in crafting a bipartisan comprehensive immigration bill which passed in the Senate 68-32.
• 2016: Rubio defended immigration reform in the 2016 election primaries while then-candidate Trump campaigned on a wall and mass deportation.
• 2018: Rubio voted in favor of the Rounds-King deal on Dreamers which would have granted them legal status in exchange for funding for Trump’s border wall.

Despite Rubio’s promising stances and statements on immigration in the past, he’s seemingly abandoned immigration as a priority so as not to risk the ire of the Republican base. He opted to not join a bipartisan working group in 2018 and seems to avoid the issue as much as possible after he lost to Trump in the Republican 2016 primary. And if the starting point for bipartisanship doesn’t include the former bellwether on the issue, it’s likely not going far.

Lindsey Graham

While Senator Graham backed many of President Trump’s policies on immigration, he was one of the Senators most interested in making bipartisan progress on immigration not that long ago. He was the Republican champion for action on Dreamers for years and has continued to introduce bipartisan legislation to legalize that community with Senator Durbin every single Congress.⁴

• 2006: Graham co-sponsored the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act.
• 2013: Graham joined 8 Senators in crafting a bipartisan comprehensive immigration bill which passed in the Senate 68-32.
• 2016: Graham pushed back against candidate Trump’s rhetoric and proposals for a wall in the Republican presidential primary.
• 2018: Graham voted in favor of the Rounds-King deal on Dreamers which would have granted them legal status in exchange for funding for Trump’s border wall.
• 2021: Graham once again introduced the Dream Act again with Senator Durbin.

Like Rubio, Senator Graham has seemingly said the right things in the past and seemed sympathetic towards immigrants and the need to fix the system. But sadly, at this point, Graham has shown time and time again that given the choice between being a Trump loyalist and doing the right thing, he’ll choose Trump every time.

Chuck Grassley

Long serving as the Judiciary Committee chairman and a consistent vote against comprehensive immigration deals, Senator Grassley has still been persuadable on certain immigration measures. He may not have been a champion of broad-based reform, but he was hardly now in Trump’s camp on the issue. Like many, he has recognized the need to protect Dreamers and also had a more reality-based view of border policy.

• 2018: Grassley voted in favor of the Rounds-King deal on Dreamers which would have granted them legal status in exchange for funding for Trump’s border wall.
• 2019: Grassley opposed Trump’s national emergency declaration for border wall funding.

While Senator Grassley has clearly stood against reform compromises in the past, there are select areas around where he’s agreed we need action. Even in the height of the Trump administration, when a deal on DACA couldn’t be found and the administration was looking to restrict legal immigration, Senator Grassley supported adding more guestworkers to our economy.⁸ Yet predictably, like so many of his colleagues on the Republican side of the aisle, he’s now nowhere to be seen.

Conclusion

There were moments in time in the era before Trump where it looked like Republicans may have actually wanted to get something done on immigration reform. That’s not where they are anymore.

Democrats have tried for decades to negotiate in good faith with Senate Republicans to fix the broken system. If the former leaders on that side of the aisle on immigration reform refuse to engage, it’s understandable that Democrats will work to push forward solutions on their own.

 

https://www.thirdway.org/memo/how-republicans-abdicated-on-immigration-reform

[SaltyTiger 7,782]

4 hours ago, homersapien said:

Republicans are only interested in obstructionism, poison pills, and blame when it comes to immigration.

Thanks for the short biased article. Great the topic has been brought up again. Seemed to disappear after the daily bashing the Trump administration took “bad leadership”.

Now we have “solutions”.

[AUDub 11,147]

This thread is my daily reminder of how "conservatives" in this day and age are terrible people. 

[icanthearyou 4,462]

1 hour ago, AUDub said:

This thread is my daily reminder of how "conservatives" in this day and age are terrible people. 

Not all but,,, certainly most.

[AUDub 11,147]

1 minute ago, icanthearyou said:

Not all but,,, certainly most.

The scare quotes are there for a reason lol

[AUDub 11,147]

 

 

Edited September 17, 2022 by AUDub

[SaturdayGT 719]

2 hours ago, AUDub said:

This thread is my daily reminder of how "conservatives" in this day and age are terrible people. 

...its common way in how most deal with hypocrisy...

[DKW 86 7,419]

The Obamas will help them out, just like they helped out the kids during the Obama Adm...

https://babylonbee.com/news/obamas-construct-new-cages-to-hold-arriving-migrants-at-marthas-vineyard-estate?fbclid=IwAR3u4tZmGLxvT4kr0-vchwDx5bkShny7m8Pjq-Du1XOrioDYnvbjoq8Z7xo

Edited September 17, 2022 by DKW 86

[DKW 86 7,419]

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/9/16/migrants-flown-to-marthas-vineyard-moving-to-us-military-base

Like I said: NIMBY!

[DKW 86 7,419]

https://babylonbee.com/news/marthas-vineyard-lovingly-welcomes-immigrants-to-any-other-part-of-america?fbclid=IwAR1wEraVdQvMB9NH8tpBVfWGEZYOIGER59TD2lrjHvZ12PdaA0xlpu2KNMU

Martha's Vineyard Lovingly Welcomes Immigrants To Any Other Part Of America

[DKW 86 7,419]

When all that bull s*** virtue signalling suddenly comes home to roost...

You had 10-20-30 or more years to build homes, schools, infrastructure to house 10,000s of Refugees but yet never got off your ass to do any of that. That my friends is nothing but virtue signalling. That is pretending like you care, when you obviously do not, so as to pretend to be more caring and virtuous than others.  

 

Edited September 17, 2022 by DKW 86

[SaturdayGT 719]

5 minutes ago, DKW 86 said:

https://babylonbee.com/news/marthas-vineyard-lovingly-welcomes-immigrants-to-any-other-part-of-america?fbclid=IwAR1wEraVdQvMB9NH8tpBVfWGEZYOIGER59TD2lrjHvZ12PdaA0xlpu2KNMU

Martha's Vineyard Lovingly Welcomes Immigrants To Any Other Part Of America

...I mean...how could anyone not see this coming  lol...

 

[SaturdayGT 719]

6 minutes ago, DKW 86 said:

..So how do we get on the"kidppaing to Martha's vineyard" list?..hoping to get there and back before winter kicks in...lol

Edited September 17, 2022 by SaturdayGT

[DKW 86 7,419]

8 minutes ago, SaturdayGT said:

...I mean...how could anyone not see this coming  lol...

 

If you have two brain cells left functioning, you could see this from 3000 miles away. 

They need to force all these BS Faux Libs to just keep taking in more immigrants like they want to make TX, FL, AZ, NM, and southern CA keep doing for the last 60 years. Now, lets make everyone in the nation become first hand aware and uncomfortable with the REALITIES of the immigration problem. Send 50, then 500, then 5000. I mean all these caring BS artists in the Sanctuary Cities have been readying for this day for decades right? All the housing, schools, infrastructure, job training, job assignments etc will be ready to go day one right?

Right?

Edited September 17, 2022 by DKW 86

[DKW 86 7,419]

[SaturdayGT 719]

28 minutes ago, DKW 86 said:

If you have two brain cells left functioning, you could see this from 3000 miles away. 

They need to force all these BS Faux Libs to just keep taking in more immigrants like they want to make TX, FL, AZ, NM, and southern CA keep doing for the last 60 years. Now, lets make everyone in the nation become first hand aware and uncomfortable with the REALITIES of the immigration problem. Send 50, then 500, then 5000. I mean all these caring BS artists in the Sanctuary Cities have been readying for this day for decades right? All the housing, schools, infrastructure, job training, job assignments etc will be ready to go day one right?

Right?

I really  love the over the top emotional "ITS KIDNAPPING"...lol...when they go to Martha's vineyard, but just procedure when it's elsewhere lol

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[SaturdayGT 719]

Oh wait...our Military ran out the asylum seekers in Martha's Vineyard?....ohhhh shhht!!!

[bigbird 60,465]

6 hours ago, DKW 86 said:

The Obamas will help them out, just like they helped out the kids during the Obama Adm...

https://babylonbee.com/news/obamas-construct-new-cages-to-hold-arriving-migrants-at-marthas-vineyard-estate?fbclid=IwAR3u4tZmGLxvT4kr0-vchwDx5bkShny7m8Pjq-Du1XOrioDYnvbjoq8Z7xo

You mean those, "trump cages"?

[DKW 86 7,419]

6 hours ago, SaturdayGT said:

Oh wait...our Military ran out the asylum seekers in Martha's Vineyard?....ohhhh shhht!!!

I know, who knew that that American Liberal Elites didnt want to mix with the hoi polloi were going to go all NIMBY on the refugees. Answer: EVERYONE WITH A BRAIN.

So, 20-30 years of Declaring yourself a Sanctuary City and building homes for the refugees and making room in your local schools, and job and career NGOs and you send them to.... A MILITARY BASE. I thought all these so-called libs wanted them integrated into regular society??? Apparently not. They did not invest a dollar in any of this. It was all just BS talk...

[AUDub 11,147]

8 hours ago, DKW 86 said:

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/9/16/migrants-flown-to-marthas-vineyard-moving-to-us-military-base

Like I said: NIMBY!

They were welcomed, fed, clothed, housed and then moved to more appropriate accommodations (yes military bases are well equipped to handle large numbers of people in a hurry.)

If you think this is an example of Nimby-ism, you're dumber than a bag of hammers. 

Edited September 17, 2022 by AUDub

[DKW 86 7,419]

5 minutes ago, AUDub said:

They were welcomes, fed, clothed, housed and then moved to more appropriate accommodations (yes military bases are well equipped to handle large numbers of people in a hurry.)

If you think this is an example of Nimby-ism, you're dumber than a bag of hammers. 

You are not this stupid. You know as well as I do that "MILITARY BASE" is liberal dog whistle for NIMBY.

Where are all those homes they have built, jobs ready, schools ready, for the Refugees day one? I mean anyone that wasnt just having a Virtue Signalling Circle Jerk would certainly have all that in place, right? 

NIMBY:
Chicago - moved to a random smaller city OUTSIDE of the Sanctuary City.
MV - Moved to a random military base where they will never be seen nor heard from again that the people in MV have not a cent nor a moment of thought invested in.

 

Edited September 17, 2022 by DKW 86

[DKW 86 7,419]

[DKW 86 7,419]

[DKW 86 7,419]

[I_M4_AU 7,789]

36 minutes ago, AUDub said:

They were welcomed, fed, clothed, housed and then moved to more appropriate accommodations (yes military bases are well equipped to handle large numbers of people in a hurry.)

If you think this is an example of Nimby-ism, you're dumber than a bag of hammers. 

They were decently fed and then they were decently shot.  The Outlaw Jose Wales