tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848019524557525597.post7937162738752554155..comments2007-06-22T08:39:51.517-07:00SJEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02644452774478029883noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848019524557525597.post-87884310795492813542007-06-22T08:39:00.000-07:002007-06-22T08:39:00.000-07:00As to rottenchester's comment on the Southern border, I disagree. I see no reason why the border cannot be secured. It's not rocket science, and we've proven we can handle rocket science. Pardon the patriotic pride, but I don't see why American minds can't figure out how to build a decent wall.Ben Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16918218545040099232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848019524557525597.post-1359974237936564522007-06-07T13:32:00.000-07:002007-06-07T13:32:00.000-07:00Rottenchester:<BR/>Hispanic culture does tend to be more religious,however there are several facts that wipe that factor out:<BR/>A. Most voters vote with their wallets before they vote for social concerns. Since most of these illegals are poor,and come from socialist countries,why should we expect them to vote for small government conservatives? Even "conservative" parties like Mexico's PAN are quite fiscally socialist compared to even our Democrats.<BR/>B. Most Hispanics are Catholic (particularly Mexican voters). Mexico has a very strong tradition of separating the church and state. Similarly,American Catholics tend not to vote with the positions that the church holds. I've seen statistics that something like 61% of RC voters are pro-choice. Even at that, religion is at best a poor correlative to voting. We have to dig far deeper to see relevant voting trends (church attendance or denomination level).<BR/>I just don't see this Republican strategy of courting new immigrants as helping our positions. Will it help the GOP as they move to the center under pressure from waves of socialist voting immigrants who want more benefits? Sure,it will do that. But it won't help me as a conservative.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848019524557525597.post-19204326820099485802007-05-30T04:17:00.000-07:002007-05-30T04:17:00.000-07:00I agree with your last paragraph, assuming you mean "lock down" rather than "shut down" the border. However, I don't really believe that locking down the Southern border is possible. It's huge and remote. Security can be increased, but there will always be ways to cross it.<BR/><BR/>You don't mention this, but I think it's implied in your post: guest worker programs without a path to citizenship don't work. Europe (esp. France) has learned this and we should avoid their mistakes.<BR/><BR/>Your comment about Democrats trading anything for 10m votes is interesting. There's no reason why hispanics should automatically vote Democratic. Hispanic culture has a strong conservative, traditionalist streak. Unfortunately, the over-the-top rhetoric of a lot of Republicans, who fail to acknowledge hispanic "illegals" as hard workers and decent people, has lost Republicans a lot of the hispanic vote. Bush understands that hispanics could be potential R's, and his moderate stance on immigration reflects his desire to capture the hispanic vote. Unfortuately, a lot of other R's don't get it.Rottenchesterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419735121148289074noreply@blogger.com