Fixing Our Broken Immigration System

The Supreme Court debate over SB1070 Arizona’s immigration law is likely to have a significant impact in the coming general election. The candidate’s stances on the law are sure to be litmus tests for many Hispanic voters. While the President is firmly against the law, Mitt Romney’s stance shines a harsh light on his ties to many of the authors of the bill, his serious problems with Hispanic voters, and further validates his reputation as a political opportunist.

By all accounts Romney was a moderate Republican Governor; however in a brutal primary in an attempt to placate Tea Party Republicans suspicious of his campaign he took hard right stances on immigration issues. A recent NBC/WSJ poll reports that Romney’s favorability gap with Hispanic is at 23 percent  favorable 42 percent unfavorable. A CNN/Opinion Research Poll reports that 71 percent of Hispanic’s polled are opposed to the bill. Unsurprisingly Romney has begun toning down his rhetoric on this issue, however what he is saying and doing has been two different things.  Nowhere is this more apparent than his stance on SB1070. 

To his credit Romney has begun to distance himself from immigration hardliners including Kris Kobach the author of SB1070.  Despite Romney’s statements to the otherwise, Kobach claims he still advises the campaign on immigration daily. Romney has also begun to embrace more Hispanic vote, as a senior advisor to his campaign.

He has even floated Florida Senator Marco Rubio as a possible VP pick, a decision that is already paying dividends.  Rubio recently gave Romney cover on a controversial statement he made in a primary debate about Arizona’s law being a model for the country. Rubio recently said that he does not believe that the law should be a model for the country. The Romney campaign then clarified his previous statement, saying that their candidate was referring to E-Verify, an employment verification tool, not SB1070 and that Romney’s views were consistent with Rubio’s.

Despite clarifying his comments on Arizona’s immigration law Romney is not shying away from his connections to the drafters of the policy. He has received the endorsements of the bills authors and main supporters in Russell Pearce, Kris Kobach and Jan Brewer. Why, because after alienating women and Hispanic voters, he needs the conservative wing of his party if he has any chance of winning this election.  In another example of actions speaking louder then his words two days before the Supreme Court was set to hear opening arguments, Romney held several fundraisers and a rally in Arizona. Since his campaign has skillfully obscured his position on the Arizona law, the real question for the general election is what roles are Sheriff Joe Arpaio, Governor Jan Brewer, Sheriff Paul Babeu and Senator Russell Pearce going to play in the national campaign this fall?  

For general election voters broadly and Hispanic voters in particular this is just another instance of Mitt Romney trying to have it both ways. He accepts the endorsement of the authors of the legislation, yet attempts to muddy his views on the legislation. Who knows exactly what Romney thinks as he is only speaking through his campaign, and they are parroting another politicians stance. In the end Congressman Xavier Becerra, said it best, “There’s a saying in Spanish that says it all: Dime con quién andas y te diré quién eres. Tell me with whom you walk and I will tell you who you are.  We now know who Mitt Romney is.” 

This piece originally ran on NBC Latino

Your Daily Border Bulletin is up! Stories from today's border bulletin include:

Mexico’s Slim aims for U.S. Internet TV this year The richest man in the world looks to expand his multimedia empire into the United States by launching a new television station on line by the third business quarter of this year.

Rep. Adam Schiff seeks new penalties for gun traffickers  Rep. Schiff has announced that he intends to to draft legislation which will propose harsh penalties for straw man purchasers of guns that are smuggled into Mexico.

Immigration advocates march to support immigration reform In Florida activists marched against state passed anti-immigrant laws.

Also make sure to RSVP for our event on Tuesday, March 20th which will look into the economic impact tourism from Mexico has on the US economy, and offer suggestions for how best to increase it in the years ahead. At the event we will also be unveiling a new NPI report, Enhancing Mexican Tourism to the United States by Facilitating Gateways and Corridors.

Joining us for this lunch time discussion on March 20th will be:

Rep. Charlie Gonzalez - Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chairman, (TX- 20th)  
Erik Lee – Deputy Director, North American Center for Transborder Studies
Eduardo Chaillo - Executive Director, Mexico Tourism Board
David M. Huether -  Senior Vice President, Research, U.S. Travel Association

Your Daily Border Bulletin is up! Stories featured in today's border bulletin inlude:

In Arizona Santorum Closes Gap  Mitt Romney crushing the field in Arizona a week ago has now seen his polling advantage diminish drastically with only 2 weeks left until voting. 

Mexico Billboard to US: No More Weapons! A billboard in Mexico made from pieces of crushed weapons flowing from the United States to Mexico implores the United States Government to stop the flow of assault weapons into their country.

U.S. tightens grip on remote Mexico border areas Finally the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency is currently refurbishing barriers in remote border areas.

Your Daily Border Bulletin is up! Stories featured in today's bulletin include:

Santorum Jumps into AZ Sensing weakness from floundering GOP front runner Mitt Romney in Arizona, Rick Santorum enters the race in the Grand Canyon state.

Hispanic Students protest Romney in AZ Meanwhile Romney campaigning in Arizona runs into protest from Hispanic students over his harsh stances on the DREAM act.

Romney Walks with Anti Immigrant Crowd Finally a withering New York Daily News editorial  highlights the perils Romney faces in bringing so many anti-immigrant advisers onto his campaign.

NDN/NPI’s 21st Century Border Initiative is proud to announce a luncheon discussion on March 20th with Rep. Charlie Gonzalez looking into the economic impact tourism from Mexico has on the US economy, and suggestions for how best to increase it in the years ahead. 

This event comes in time to help inform a recent Presidential Executive Order designed to significantly increase travel and tourism in the United States. 

Tourism from Mexico is already a major part of America’s travel industry landscape, delivering the second largest number of tourists into the US from any country in the world. As we look to increase domestic tourism, increasing tourism from Mexico should be a major priority for our new national strategy.  While with three times the population of Canada, Mexico only send one-fourth as many tourists.  Getting to the US is relatively easy from Mexico, per capita income is growing very rapidly, and with 10 percent of the US’s population now of Mexican descent, there is little doubt that with better strategies and more investment Mexican tourism into the US could grow significantly in the years ahead.  This event will take a deeper look at the economics of tourism from Mexico today, and offer up some ideas of expanding it in the years ahead.

For more on the dynamic economic relationship between our two countries which has made Mexico our 3rd largest trading partner, please review our new paper, Realizing the Value of Our Crossborder Trade With Mexico  And you can visit here to learn more about our 21st Century Border Program.

Lunch will be served at noon on March 20th, and the program will begin at 12:15pm.  All of this will take place at NDN’s offices on 729 15th Street, NW on the 1st floor.  Seating is limited, so please RSVP today to reserve your spot.  And look for information closer to the event’s date on how to watch a live webcast.

Your Daily Border Bulletin is up! Stories featured in todays bulletin include:

Homeland Security would see slight spending trim The President announced his budget today, the Department of Homeland security will only see a minor reduction in funding but will see core operations funded at the same level they were in 2012.

Arizona Accord aims to guide immigration dialogue A group of local businesses in Arizona have come together to create a set of five guiding principals to elevate discourse around immigration.

Labor Dept. Issues New Rules for Guest Workers In the absence of any movement forward from Congress on any sort of overhaul of our current immigration system, the Department of Labor unveiled new rules for guest workers.

Your daily border bulletin is up! Stories featured this week include:

Car makers asked to opposed Ala immigration law After several employers of  major car manufacturers were arrested as a result of Alabama’s harsh new immigration law, opponents of the state passed legislation asked the states three major international car dealerships to repeal the law.

Immigration & Latino Voters in Nevada After the Republican Primary in Nevada, a review of the data bears ill for the GOP come the November general elections. 

John McCain Slams Mitt Romney’s ‘Self-Deportation,’ Advocates ‘Humane Approach’ To Immigration Arizona Senator and former immigration advocate, had harsh words for Republican contender Mitt Romney’s stance’s on immigration.

Simon Rosenberg, President of NDN, Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America’s Voice and Ruben Gallego, State Representative, Arizona District 16  held a discussion:"A Changed Landscape: How Recent Events Have Changed The Debates Over Immigration, the Border and The Political Attitudes of Latinos"

It was the premise of this briefing that the events of the past year – immigration action at the federal and state level, new data about dramatic improvements in safety along the US side of the Mexican border, new polling of Latino voters – has created a new landscape for these issues very different than in years past.  Our three presenters will attempt to explains these changes, assess the new landscape, and review the challenges and opportunities ahead.

Please view the full video event below:

Your Daily Border Bulletin is up! Stories featured in todays border bulletin include:

Kansas bill seeks to pair undocumented immigrants, jobs Kansas city seeks to create legislation that will allow undocumented immigrants to fill jobs where employers cannot find local workers.

Romney is vulnerable with Hispanics On the eve of the Nevada Republican caucus Ruben Navarrette takes a look at Mitt Romneys woes with the Hispanic Community.

Bilingual Border Cities Challenge Movement To Make English The Official Language Cristina Costantini takes a look at how Congressional legislation in the House which would make English the official language of the United States has created an uproar from border communities in the southwest.