Immigration: the dog that didn’t bark in the Republican primary
We’ve discussed the possible importance immigrant-bashing will have as a GOP tactic in the 2008. Other observers have pointed out that immigrant-bashing did not work very well for Republicans in New York State in 2007, even with all the hub-bub over Spitzer’s license plan.
With that in mind, it’s interesting that, even though Iowa Republicans listed illegal immigration as their leading “concern”, the two Republican candidates (McCain and Huckabee) who have done the best so far are the ones who use the least anti-immigrant rhetoric. If even the Republican base — surely the most xenophobic and racist demographic in our political system — isn’t excited by immigrant-bashing, then it’s unlikely that the larger voting public will be.
Are you listening, Steve Minarik and Randy Kuhl?
Minarik and Kuhl can’t hear you because they’re out guarding the border.