One of the most striking characteristics of President
Obama’s victory last week over former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney was
the level of support the President won from minorities: about 73% of both the
Hispanic vote and the Asian American vote. This has led to calls from prominent Republicans to reexamine
the party’s stances on immigration issues. I believe that the first step should be a clear declaration
of support for legal immigration and enactment of the high-skilled immigration
bills currently in Congress.
The stark election results show the extent to which Republicans
have alienated Hispanics, the fastest-growing demographic. Mona Charen of National Review declares
that, “Conservatives and Republicans simply must address Hispanic voters in
terms that do not sound hostile.” While
there is no question but that Romney’s rhetoric on illegal immigration did much
to alienate Hispanic voters, the issue is a perception of hostility to all
immigration. Robert Zubrin, also
in National Review, states
that, “Over the past few years, some in the conservative movement have allowed
a legitimate concern over border security to become conflated with
anti-immigration politics.” This
is unfortunate in that there certainly exists a
conservative case for supporting legal immigration.
It is time for Republicans to clarify their support for
legal immigration by pushing for and enacting legislation that would further
it. As long as the rhetoric of
voices that cloak their opposition to all immigration in the guise of opposing illegal
immigration goes unchallenged, minorities will not differentiate between the
two.
Reinvention and renewal of the entrepreneurial spirit is what has set the
U.S. apart from other countries.
The acceptance and utilization of immigrants has played a significant
role, and Republicans should demonstrate their recognition of this by
celebrating legal immigration and striving to unlock the potential catalytic
power of immigrants.
While the newfound willingness of some Republicans to consider the issue of
illegal immigration beyond border security is encouraging, the intraparty
debate on this will likely take time.
Support for legal immigration would be a necessary (though not
sufficient) gateway to attracting minority voters. Making clear that they value the contributions of those who
are legally here would at least be a start in shedding the undeserved label of
Know-Nothingism. Working in a
demonstrably bipartisan manner to pass the skilled immigration bills before
Congress this year would be a fine start.
