Underestimated: When I started reading Tom Friedman’s latest foreign policy op-ed, I didn’t think he’d have the space to say that if only Congress passed immigration amnesty Obama could stand up to Putin. He only has a few inches, after all. But he got there! …
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Ha: Republican operative-turned-Senate candidate Ed Gillespie is now running from various amnesties he’s championed over the years. Isn’t it time for the state GOP’s executive director Shaun Kenney to drive Gillespie from the party? He’s standing in the way of history! …
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It’s all about … : Am I too paranoid to think that one reason Speaker Boehner has chosen to reemphasize Benghazi (e.g., appointing a select committee to investigate) is to keep his base engaged and on board while he tries to smuggle amnesty by them? … P.S.: It is no accident, in this view, that Boehner would pick South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy to head the investigation, since Gowdy is potentially a significant amnesty sellout squish backslider who could use some prophylactic shoring up with core GOP voters. …
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Easy prediction: As the European parliamentary elections approach, a major pundit theme will be “Can there be an American UKIP?” Answer: Yes.** There’s a big opening for a U.S. party or faction that promises to raise living standards at the bottom and in the middle by encouraging growth (pruning regulations, approving Keystone, etc.) plus pushing against elite business-backed policies (wage-undermining immigration increases, corporatist deck-stacking, including Wall Street protection and various other forms of crony capitalism) while preserving the structures of Medicare and Social Security, which for many people provide the only framework of stability they have in a disorienting, degraded economy. …
**– That assumes the emergence of a U.S. version of Nigel Farage, the articulate British UKIP leader. I can’t think of anyone who currently fits the bill. (Don’t say Ted Cruz. He’s trying to have it both ways.) But the night is young. Nominations accepted. … P.S.: The Republicans could tap their UKIP potential if someone could wrest control of the party from the Karl Roves and Haley Barbours. More likely, a Perot-type candidate might eventually run as a third force. Remember, Perot got almost 20% of the vote, and he’s no Farage. …
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We Tease Because We Are Hanging You Out to Dry: By mocking Republican opponents of “Amnesty First,” House Speaker Boehner didn’t merely annoy members of his own caucus. He gave Obama and Nancy Pelosi a club with which to bash them ahead of the midterms–not just on the (second-tier) issue of immigration but on the larger point of whether they are willing to make “tough” decisions. It’s an opportunity Pelosi is already attempting to seize. … P.S.: Maybe Boehner doesn’t want Republicans to win big in November (a bigger, more conservative GOP caucus would be even harder to control). But does Mitch McConnell have a say ?
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Praxis: Another way to derail the ongoing amnesty-first push would be to scare potential Republican waverers with unexpectedly effective primary challenges. I’ve just donated to Frank Roche’s primary campaign against GOP incumbent Renee Ellmers, who’s been clumsily repeating the Boehner line on immigration (including endorsing Boehner’s pro-amnesty “principles”). If you agree with me, you can donate to Roche here. That primary is on Tuesday, so it’s almost (but not quite) too late. … Another highly leveraged investment would be the GOP primary campaign of Dave Brat against empty-suit positioner wannabe House Speaker Eric Cantor, who’s currently driving the effort to include a Trojan Horse amnesty provision in the must-pass defense bill. You can donate to Brat here. That primary is on June 10. ….
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