White House adviser Karl Rove is scheduled to speak tomorrow at the annual conference of the federally funded, left-wing, open-borders-advocacy group, the National Council of La Raza.
If he does not want his speech to look like an act of appeasement, he should confront La Raza on its opposition to commonsense policies designed to secure both U.S. borders and U.S. pocketbooks.
La Raza, which means “The Race” in Spanish, has denounced as “horrendous” and “appalling” the House immigration bill passed in December, which was sponsored by Judiciary Chairman James Sensenbrenner (R.-Wis.) and supported by the overwhelming majority of House Republicans. The bill, which calls for tough worksite enforcement of immigration laws and 700 miles of border fencing, was condemned by La Raza as a “laundry list of mean-spirited and intrusive provisions concocted by the most radical immigrations restrictionists in Congress.”
Will Rove defend the immigration reforms passed by President Bush’s party in the House and tell La Raza that House Republicans are neither “mean-spirited” nor “radical”? He should. House Republicans deserve Rove’s support.
Rove should also flatly and unapologetically tell La Raza their promotion of a liberal agenda under the guise of “Hispanic civil rights” is wrong.
La Raza, for example, supports in-state tuition for illegal aliens at public colleges. Rove should tell them that is a ripoff of U.S. taxpayers.
La Raza also opposes the Clear Law Enforcement for Criminal Alien Removal Act (CLEAR), which would merely empower state and local law enforcement to enforce federal immigration laws. La Raza argues this would “result in higher levels of racial profiling, police misconduct, and other civil rights violations.”
Rove should tell them President Bush has great faith in the moral and professional integrity of local law enforcement officers in this country and is ready and willing to sign the CLEAR Act into law.
La Raza also has denounced enactment of the REAL ID Act, which when fully operational will make it virtually impossible for illegal aliens to get driver’s licenses and photo IDs in any state of the U.S. that wants its IDs to be used for federal purposes. La Raza says the law “opens the door to widespread discrimination and civil rights violations.”
Rove should tell them the President is proud of having signed REAL ID and that the only type of person it discriminates against is an illegal alien who wrongfully tries to secure a driver’s license or photo ID in this country.
Rove should also chastise La Raza for its association with MEChA, an organization whose motto is: “For La Raza toda, Fuera de La Raza nada” (“For The Race everything, Outside the Race nothing”). Rep. Charlie Norwood (R.-Ga.) revealed in a piece published in the May 1 edition of HUMAN EVENTS that according to IRS records, La Raza has helped fund the Georgetown University Chapter of MEChA.
Furthermore, Rove should tell the La Raza conferees that the Bush Administration does not support granting tax dollars to groups that pursue legislative agendas. As Rep. Norwood also reported in HUMAN EVENTS, La Raza received more than $15 million in federal grants in 2004.
If Rove tells the folks at the La Raza conference these things, his visit will have been well worth it.
