Tancredo Comes Out for "Reconquista"

Marisa Treviño has done a great job of covering the opposition to the Texas border wall among the border communities for us at FDL. These border towns now have Tancredo's pale ass pretty chapped:

"These mayors are jeopardizing national security with their not-in-my-backyard attitude," Tancredo said. "Congress approved the border fence with the overwhelming support of the American people to protect our nation from terrorists and illegal aliens and it will not be thwarted by a handful of rogue mayors."

The outspoken Tancredo, who is polling in the low single digits in national polls, also offered his solution to the problem, which is to "build the border fence north of these communities."

"These mayors have already demonstrated that their hearts and loyalties lie with Mexico -- perhaps they'd feel more comfortable if their cities were geographically located there as well," Tancredo said.

So sad to see kreeping dhimmitude infect the the chief Klansman in the Konservative Kongress, giving away US sovereign territory and all. Of course, as the race baiting destroyer of the California Republican Party (and Giuliani endorser) Pete Wilson should now know, this is all suicide for the GOP nationally. From The American Prospect (h/t LiveFromSilverCity):

Republicans' viability among Latino voters is even worse given the party's anti-illegal immigration stance. Tancredo's "Third World country" remark hasn't done much to help his image among Latinos, and neither have other candidates' promises of building border walls, shunning amnesty, and sending people back to Mexico. But despite the fact that "values voters" appeals have a chance to fare just as well among this heavily Catholic group, a recent Gallup poll found that only a third of Latinos are backing Republican candidates this election, and only 11 percent of Latinos now identify as Republicans, down 8 percent since 2005. The number that identify as Democrats has jumped from 33 percent to 42 percent, and most cite immigration as the chief issue driving them away from the GOP.

What should really worry Republicans is that the number of eligible minority voters is growing. More than 16 million Latinos will be eligible to vote in 2004, a 20 percent increase from 2000, according to the Pew Research Center. And while only 47 percent of eligible Latino voters went to the polls in 2004, according to the Pew Hispanic Center, voter registration drives by organizations like the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials and galvanizing issues like immigration, are expected to increase those figures. Growth in African American eligible voters isn't as rapid, but it is still increasing faster than the number of eligible voters in the general population, and the number of African American voters who turned out on Election Day increased from 57 percent in 2000 to 60 percent in 2004.

As people of color in the country continue to organize and build coalitions for progressive policies, and as a new generation of leadership takes hold in communities of color and their respective caucuses in Congress, a national progressive majority becomes inevitable, with real social justice and economic justice achievable. There are threats to alliances among different identity groups, but the more I talk with emergent groups of organizers and leaders, the more I think there's real potential to build better unity through a combination of enlightened self interest and shared progressive ideology.

For example, here's a story about some positive coalition building across class lines within a local latino community. Frequently, it's the fractures within groups who can support progressive policies that keep them from coming together across narrowly defined interests to develop collective power. Latino communities in Northern Virginia are coming together to recognize that soft ethnic cleansing in Prince William country is killing the local economy.

It's this kind of incremental awakening that is helping progressives begin to organize for collective progressive power in congress.

The responsibility to build coalitions is shared on all sides, for sure, so readers involved in their local communities should continue to look actively to build allies among local progressives, including communities of color. Ultimately, it's from the grass roots that movement building like this happens. As you see ICE stormtroopers bang on doors, awaken and arrest citizens in the middle of the night in your local communities, creating a climate of terror among people of color, stand up, get connected with others locally and be counted. One night it's your neighbor's door, the next night it may be yours.

Meanwhile, any time immigration comes up in politics, it actually hurts the GOP, no matter what Bush Dog Rahm Emanuel says.

And thank you, "reconquista" supporter, Tom Tancredo!

Pachacutec blogs at Firedoglake.

Comments

[MARTYB]

No illegal immigration, No Aztlan, No reconquista! I will help ICE whenever possible,as a native born Black/white i deeply resent people breaking OUR laws and then protesting when we assert our sovereignity, how galling! I applaud PW county and what they are trying to do and as for Mr. Tancredo, he does have some very valid points in regards to securing our border from people who seem bound and determined to undermine our culture and gloss over the fact that they are here illegally by saying ad nauseum: "we are hard working". Most criminals are, in a twisted sort of way.

[CLR]

We need to deport all ILLEGALS, heavily fine those who hire ILLEGALS, and return to the original intent of the 14th amendment and do away with anchor babies. We spend BILLIONS to educate and provide health care for ILLEGALS. We need to use this money on our own citizens!

[LeeNYC]

A lasting progressive coalition cannot be based on identity politics. It has to be built on class. Specifically, members of the working/middle class-- regardless of ethnicity, race, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, etc.

Tuffposh and Another McIntosh demonstrate why we need a class based movement. The pettiness over who suffers more--Latinos or African Americans is a red herring. Blaming the victim for the downward spiral of wages is a waste of time. 12 years of Republican rule made the minimum wage worthless. If the minimum wage was tied to inflation and there was strong enforcement, there would be fewer undocumented immigrants. Let us not forget--if labor law did not thwart union's efforts to organize workers, wages would also rise to a level that ensures income security.

In New Orleans, construction is being done by private contractors. Rather than hire the locals (or bring the locals back to New Orleans) they, in true cannibal capitalist fashion, brought in contract workers from south of the border. This abomination speaks to the Bush doctrine of privatizing tax money. If the feds were in charge, the workers would be citizens of New Orleans, making prevailing wage, and the rebuilding would be completed already.

ICE is utilizing gestapo tactics. The only illegals (sic) being targeted are Latino. What about the Irish? Eastern Europeans? Many are here without papers. No one seems to mention them. I wonder why? The legalist argument is without merit.

In the short term, it is good to hear that Latinos are turning Democratic because of the racist anti-immigrant Republican rant. It is a temporary plus. The long term is all about building class solidarity.

[lastyellowdogintx]

Let's give em Kansas. They can build a wall
around it.

[TuffPosh]

"pale ass"? It's a good thing that The Oppressed can't be racists, because that sure sounds racist to me.

The TAPPED link is from Kate Sheppard, a new contributor who continually embarrasses herself with ignorant, ThinkProgress-style posts.

The WaPo story is about race-oriented businesses who need illegal activity to make money. When we hear "Latino" should we think "supporters of illegal activity"?

And, the NYT story's portrayal of ICE as the Gestapo helps show that they've been lying about "reform". That "reform" would include enforcement, and they'd probably simply write future articles opposing "reform"-mandated enforcement.

Just so long as it cost those to whom they're linked money and political power, of course.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

Agreed.

These are the new racists and the new self-styled victims.

They want to ride on some of the historical coat-tails of those Americans who have genuinely suffered racial injustices in the past.

They want an economic foothold.

They want to show that they are superior to Americans on the basis that they are latinos who are not from this country. In contrast, some descendants of bona fide racial victims are Black. The new racists don't mind driving down the wages of Americans whether those Americans are bona fide Afro-Americans, Mexican-Americans, or whatever.

If they are not from this country and have suffered from economic injustices in their own countries, they should solve their problems down there. Regardless of whatever color we have and whatever color they have, we did not oppress them.

The position that latinos have been inherently oppressed by non-latinos is a racists one. As they drive down the wages of bona fide Mexican-Americans and immigrants who are here lawfully, if they claim all of their problems are due to the fact that they are latinos, they are nothing more than racists.

[JustAnotherJoe]

I've a solution. Let's build a wall around Tom Tancredo!

[ADVOCATE4ZPG]

In other words, stifle his exercise of 'freedom of speech.' The author(ess) of this piece proceeds from the premise that the establishment of a border with Mexico is, ipso facto, a travesty. She should peddle this idea more widely--especially in the small towns of NY, NJ, PA, NC, IL, CA, et al.--and she how well or ill it polls.

Why doesn't Pachacutec ADVOCATE for the reform of Latin America, spec., Mexico? For reasons she refuses to enumerate, tens of millions are seeking to leave--even at the expense of violating the sovereignty of a neighbouring country. What is there about Mexico, for example, that renders it UNABLE to support its indigenous population? What its GINI rating so high?