Washington Times sinks to supporting John McCain, amnesty

The Washington Times - last seen imposing new, euphemism-friendly guidelines - offers the editorial "McCain's quest for the Hispanic vote". After a preliminary, and partially incorrect, intro describing the "Hispanic vote", they sink lower than they have in the past:

In an effort to attract Latinos and stem the tide of Hispanic disenchantment with the GOP, McCain's camp unveiled a Spanish web site this week, as reported by the Washington Times. The task of attracting Hispanics, while difficult, is not impossible. The majority of Latinos have conservative values; those beliefs can be used to the GOP's advantage. Mr. McCain's current tougher stand, which puts security first and denies blanket amnesty, is a good first step. Building a solid Latino coalition that can effectively communicate his plan - a plan that will ensure safety, security and a fair path to legal citizenship - is the next and most crucial one. In addition, Mr. McCain must recognize that Latino values are American values; he must clearly articulate his positions as a reflection of mutually shared convictions.

Pandering to race-based concerns is not the way to do things, especially because it will make future panders even worse and because it will give even more power to, in the WashTimes' own words, "Hispanic immigration activists". I.e., the National Council of La Raza, MALDEF, and so forth. Why would a Republican want to give in to those groups and give them any more power? The other parts of their suggestion involve demagoguing social issues like gay marriage and abortion. And, of course, they're sounding like president Bush and on down the line with their "blanket amnesty" word games. It's amnesty and it will be perceived as amnesty no matter what games McCain and the WashTimes want to play. And, the belief that part of our country belongs to another country, a belief shared by a good percentage of Mexican-Americans, is not in the least an "American value". That belief is not being confronted and opposed, and McCain would give those in the general sphere of those who hold those beliefs - such as the NCLR - more political power.

Politics · Thu, 05/08/2008 - 07:27 · · Importance: 1