The Daily Signal devoted significant coverage to the congressional standoff over President Obama’s executive actions on immigration. Our report last week examining how the GOP’s legislative strategy ultimately failed prompted several of you to share your thoughts:
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Thanks for writing an in-depth reveal of how Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell conspired to dupe we “stupid” voters another time successfully.
This time is was to cooperate, support and encourage presidential violations of law and the Constitution with President Obama’s heinous immigration and amnesty giveaway.
And thanks for naming those who are actually working for our interest and representing us and not socialists and corporation emperors. A couple of years ago I finally realized that the Chamber of Commerce has sold out to their interest without any respect or regard for morals, ethics or the Constitution. Yikes!
So we have maybe 30 representatives in the Freedom Caucus? They are working to convince other Republicans and Democrats to come into the light and truth.
Dave Covert, Indianapolis, Ind.
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The last paragraph quoting Rep. Tim Huelskamp hits the nail on the head. The big Republican donors got their cheap labor.
“The biggest donors to the Republican establishment, they all are happy today. They got their amnesty,” Huelskamp said. “They just hope the issue goes away and somehow they think conservatives are still going to show up and vote for whoever the presidential nominee is.”
I can almost guarantee that conservatives will not show up and vote for whoever the Republican nominee is because we don’t see a difference between what I call “Republican elite” and Democrats.
I became a Republican in 1980 and voted for Reagan because as he said, “I didn’t leave the Democratic Party. The party left me.” That’s how I felt and couldn’t believe a man who was suppose to be intelligent, Jimmy Carter, could be so stupid with high inflation and unemployment. I was very young. Now I’m feeling the same way about the Republican Party.
I always felt voting for the Republican presidential candidate was the right thing to do even though I wasn’t always enamored with the candidate. This is the first time I won’t feel guilty about not voting for the Republican candidate because a message needs to be sent to the Republican elite. If Scott Walker is the nominee, I will vote; definitely not Jeb Bush. At this point, I’m unsure anyone else could get me to the booth; but I would look at Ben Carson.
Barbara C. Diehl, Palos Heights, Ill.
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I just read your piece about the strategy designed to fail, concerning Obama’s executive order on immigration. I thought I’d let you know that at least one person faults your proposed strategy, and suggests another.
I fully agree that Obama’s order was illegal and probably unconstitutional, like so many things that he does. I also agree that it’s infuriating that he and the Democrats have doubled down on progressive monarchy, even after being rebuked in the elections. But our conservative goal has to be to build a conservative governing majority, which means controlling both houses of Congress and the presidency, as well as having the ability to appoint judges who will apply the Constitution as written.
To me, this means that we must keep the conservative base relatively happy, while educating and converting the middle of the electorate, which is what decides virtually every election. Republicans generally do a horrible job of explaining to independent voters why conservative ideas are better for everyone, including the poor and working class. This is mostly the fault of those Republicans who either don’t really believe in conservative ideas, or are incapable of explaining them understandably. But it is partly the fault of low-information voters, who get what little information they have from the liberal mainstream media.
That is why I appreciate The Heritage Foundation’s efforts to craft approaches for government that are truly conservative, and its efforts to figure out how to explain and sell those approaches. But it’s also why I object to strategies and tactics that are likely to fail, and to fail in ways that will hurt us with the middle of the electorate.
We’d be much better off with Sen. Ted Cruz saying that the president’s immigration order is illegal and bad precedent, but that we have no way to repeal it as long as he is president. He could then join with his colleagues in passing great legislation on health insurance (including repealing Obamacare), financial regulation, military spending, Iran sanctions, etc.
While most of that legislation would be stalled by Democrats in the Senate or vetoed by Obama, those are losses which are both easily explainable, and which set the stage for 2016—asking voters which they’d prefer, the legislation we’ve tried to pass, or that which the Democrats have put in place.
Meanwhile, there are things that might get through the Senate, and just maybe past the president, like tax code reform, free trade agreements, etc., which allow significant victories, of the kind that never happened with the Democrats in charge.
So, while I object to Republicans who get elected on conservative platforms and then operate like Democrat-lites, that doesn’t mean that I want conservatives fighting battles that make them look bad and alienate the middle of the electorate, especially when there is so much that can be done that is truly conservative and educates the middle of the electorate.
Ed Robinson, Park City, Utah
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Thank you for your reporting on the failed attempt by Republicans to stymie the president’s unconstitutional rewrite of our immigration laws. As a conservative Republican, I am more than distressed over the embarrassing defeat of House and Senate leadership. I think that the Senate should have used the “nuclear option” similar to what the Democrats have done. I lay the majority of the blame on the Senate.
The depth and breath of the defeat cannot be overstated. The president, as you noted, has broken the compact of the Constitution within the branches of government and can now proceed without opposition. We have only the courts as our last barrier to protect our constitutional republic. This is the issue, immigration is only window dressing.
As the American people have voted for change, Republicans in Congress have again shone that they are not leaders. I really fear for our future. I believe that the pace of unilateral action by the president will only accelerate as his term comes to an end. To see leadership accept this devastating defeat only reinforces my fear for the future.
Tom Mulrooney, Hampton Bays, N.Y.
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I appreciate the story about the vote in the Senate. It is increasingly difficult to remain a Republican when it is evident that the “party” leans more toward the Democrats’ thinking.
The establishment Republicans are not as interested in correcting the flaws that exist in our government, as in manipulating Republican voters. The dishonesty of the message from Karl Rove is even worse than the honest opposition of the liberals.
It seems the tea party is trying to instill more honest dialogue into the Republican Party but are undermined by them. Having them appear too radical weakens their message and causes less voters to get involved with the true conservatives.
Barbara Johnson, San Diego, Calif.
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After reading several comments about the non-leadership of the GOP, I waned to send in my two cents. I have been a Republican since I was old enough to vote. My family were Republicans for decades; now, however, some have registered as independents or conservatives. I plan to do the same before the 2016 election.
The GOP leadership conceded their positions to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, even with congressional successes in 2012 and 2014. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Karl Rove, Rep. Peter King and too many others trashed the tea party unmercifully, even as we clung to the hope that at least a few of these RINOs would stop saying they “hate” us and that we’re a bunch of nuts.
I can promise that in 2016, the GOP will lose, no matter the nominee, unless it’s a Ted Cruz or, perhaps, Scott Walker. Otherwise, the GOP can kiss the presidency goodbye and possibly say goodbye to Republican majorities in Congress.
Why should we take the garbage thrown at us by our own party and then meekly go vote for the same people who slap us in the face time after time. It’s got to stop.
We will be no worse off with a socialist Democrat than we are now, since the GOP leadership apparently still takes orders from Pelosi and Reid. Might as well make it official and save ourselves the heartache of watching our hopes for constitutional government go further down the drain.
I’m tired. My family is tired. We don’t see any future for us, our kids, or, in my case, our grandkids. Why work hard, study hard and attain superior education when illegal immigrants, who by definition are criminals, get available jobs. We can barely afford to send our own kids and grandkids to college, yet now some colleges are doling out what is mostly our tax dollars to the children of illegal immigrants.
Starting in 2016, some of us will work diligently against the GOP in any way we can, unless McConnell, King, Rove, and the other elites apologize to the tea party and at least give tea party candidates a fair hearing. If the GOP thinks it can win without us, fine for them. Let them learn the lesson the hard way.
The country is so far gone that some of us wonder why bother to try anymore. Maybe there are other countries that will welcome hard work, fair play, no favoritism, and honest support and encouragement. Perhaps we will find a place that appreciates people who live within the law and within their means, people not looking for a handout or a “gimee” but merely a fair chance at making a successful life.
Marilyn Leiker, Syracuse, N.Y.
