Can you trust Kos of DailyKos (Markos Moulitsas Zuniga) on immigration? No, you can't. For some of the reasons why, take a look at "The big immigration backlash in Connecticut" (dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/3/27/113830/115).

1. He fails to note that, before working for the city of New Haven, Kica Matos headed a group that is/was working with the Mexican government to pass out Matricula Consular cards in that city. As with New Haven's cards, the MC cards let illegal aliens open bank accounts and the like. The bottom line in this case is the bottom line: that makes it easier for illegal aliens to send money home to Mexico and also allows banks to profit from money that was earned illegally.

2. He fails to note that the mayor of New Haven, John DeStefano, may have a financial interest in a local bank that would accept the New Haven ID cards.

3. The timing of the raid was certainly interesting and warrants more research. However, per the DHS (see the following NYT article), the planning had started months before the raid.

4. Kos fails to note that the New York Times article he links to ("Arrests of 31 in U.S. Sweep Bring Fear in New Haven" by Jennifer Medina, link) is heavily biased; the photo from that article was featured here.

5. The upper levels of the DHS may have intended there to be a "backlash". As with Kos, the Bush administration is a strong supporter of illegal immigration and Chertoff has hinted at conducting show raids in order to inflame the left and push for an amnesty. Kos doesn't mention that possibility.

6. Kos fails to recognize huge problems with a recent Quinnipiac University poll in Connecticut (link), which asked:

What do you think should happen to most illegal immigrants working in the United States - Should they be offered a chance to apply for citizenship, OR Should they be allowed to stay as temporary workers, OR Should they be deported to the country they came from?

There are several problems with that question. For instance, it leaves off another option of simply enforcing our laws and causing illegal aliens to self-deport. The first choice is also extremely ambiguous: when should they be offered that chance? While they're living here? After they return home for a while (see the Pence and similar schemes)? After having returned to their home countries voluntarily but not as part of a particular amnesty scheme? And, the poll also fails to note all the ramifications of the various options, such as the role the first two would play in leading to more illegal immigration.

7. Kos says "The vast majority of the public isn't interested in what Lou Dobbs, Fox News, the federal government, and Rahm Emanuel are selling." Obviously, he's extremely confused. During the big push for amnesty - the one that was blocked by the American public - Fox News was largely silent. Lou Dobbs seems to support some form of attrition rather than the mass deportations possibly (once again, it's ambiguous) implied by the last poll choice. And, of course, the Bush administration is as much a strong supporter of illegal immigration as Kos. I guess that's so difficult for him to admit that he has to lie.

BONUS REASON #8: The poll refers to "illegal immigrants working in the United States", but that certainly doesn't include all illegal aliens. Perhaps millions of illegal aliens are non-working children, spouses, or other family members, with some percentage being unemployed and some other percentage being career criminals and the like. All or most of those would have been amnestied by various past immigration "reform" schemes. Needless to say, Kos doesn't call Quinnipiac on yet another issue with their poll.