Bush changing course on immigration?

President Bush is making another attempt to shore up his conservative base. He declared this week that his goal is eventually to expel “every single” illegal alien from the United States, The Washington Times reported. That seems to be a big change from his past calls to relax immigration rules and provide companies with needed labor. But conservative pundits are leery. Michelle Malkin reported on her blog that Bush “wasn’t referring to deporting all illegal aliens. He was in fact only referring to those OTMs (’Other than Mexicans’) caught at the border. Most of them are given a notice to appear and released into the U.S. and never heard from again. He pledged to end that ‘catch and release’ by adding new detention space.”
Posted by Phillip Brownlee

6 Comments

  1. R.D.Liebst
    Posted October 20, 2005 at 2:42 am | Permalink

    That explained it, for Bush to expell the cheap labor(Mexicans) would only upset some of his main backers.

    Coke, Wal-mart, every construcion company, Ok you name it depend of the illegals for a work force that will not complain about one dollar and fifty cent an hour.

    Gee if G.W. keeps selling off a piece of his soul everytime he turns around. What would he have left for God?

  2. Hammertime
    Posted October 20, 2005 at 4:45 am | Permalink

    Federation for American Immigration Reform:

    http://www.fairus.org

    Excellent site for research on legal/illegal immigration. A good starting point for anyone that wants to see better immigration policy in this country. Should be required reading for all politicians.

  3. JUSTA GUY
    Posted October 20, 2005 at 7:52 am | Permalink

    I wonder why these OTM’s are illegal aliens and the Mexican interlopers are Undocumented Workers. Wonder how many of the “Undocumented Workers” are on Dubbya’s ranch in Texas. We all know this is just another sound bite.lol

  4. Joe Williams
    Posted October 20, 2005 at 8:14 am | Permalink

    Yeah! I didn’t think he meant every single illegal, because that would mean millions of people and that would cost billions of dollars.

    OTM (First I heard of it) but it looks like that is going to stick.

  5. Galahad
    Posted October 20, 2005 at 3:13 pm | Permalink

    Right, RD. Bush wants to appear to be tough on illegals to placate the “don’t mess with Texas” blue-collar crowd, but he can’t alienate his true base–the “haves” and the “have mores.”

    Tough situation, but given the free pass on lying the press has given him so far and the near worship his supporters have for him, he has no real worries.

  6. J R
    Posted October 20, 2005 at 9:49 pm | Permalink

    I aint buying it,not one bit. He trotted Chertoff out there to shill an idea he has absolutely no intention of pursuing. Not new for him, and as usual not believable. See it comes almost simultaneously with the revelation that FAR more foreign visas were issued last year than was legally allowed for.

    Gotta keep that chea plabor flowing in from ALL directions.