Over the last several months Romney has repeatedly told his supporters that he would veto the Dream Act. The act would allow certain youths to earn a legal permanent residency, by attending college or serving in the military. When Obama recently introduced a program similar to the Dream Act, to allow some undocumented youths who arrived before age 16 and who are not older than 30 to apply for both work permits and a two-year protection from deportation, Romney attacked the program calling it a "stop gap" measure only.
Instead of the Dream Act or a Comprehensive Immigration Reform, which the President would like Congress to pass, Romney believes that the best way to resolve the dilema of having 12 million illegal immigration is to permit them to “self deport”. The concept was explained on motherjones.com as “the strategy behind the wave of anti-immigration bills introduced across the country in the last two years. The brainchild of anti-immigration groups like the Immigration Law Reform Institute, and its counsel, Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach (who recently endorsed Romney), self-deportation is the intended effect of laws and requirements (such as those passed in Arizona and Alabama) that would make it so difficult for undocumented immigrants to work, rent, or go to school that they will simply "choose" to leave. Anti-immigration advocates like this for several reasons: It has a free-market/free-will gloss to it. It purports to save money on deportation costs. And, most importantly, because it relies on states enforcing immigration via passing draconian laws rather than federal law enforcement/border efforts.”
Now as it happens, Romney is about to lose substantially all the latino votes.
Just before the opening of the Republican National Convention in Tampa presidential candidate A poll of Latino registered voters by Latino Decisions and impreMedia reveals that 65% would vote to re-elect President Barack Obama and 26% would prefer the Republican alternative offered by Romney
On Tuesday Mel Martinez, the former Florida Republican senator and chairman of the Republican Party, tried to minimize Romney's immigration strategy by telling thinkprogress.com that Romney will almost certainly reverse course and take a more “sensible view” on immigration. Martinez argued that Romney’s “self-deportation” policy was simply a product of the difficult Republican primary.
Martinez statement sounds hollow, as the Republican Party has attached it self to Mitt Romney's extremist immigration adviser Kris Kobach .
Kris Kobach, the Secretary of State of Kansas, authored the Arizona anti immigrant law, SB 1070. Kobach is an attorney for Immigration Reform Law Institute, the legal arm of the chameleon organization named Federation for American Immigration Reform, or FAIR. As Rachel Maddow revealed in a recent program, the founder of FAIR is a well-known racist. The seed money he used to start FAIR came from an infamous Eugenics (the same thing the Nazi’s did) outfit.
FAIR is just one piece of a vast and powerful anti-immigrant organization, created over the last 30 years, and orchestrated by John Tanton. His organization has been able to insinuate itself into many of the social and political debates of our time.
Tanton developed many different entities so that it appears that there are numerous advocates for what he sees and the ideal society. Another of his group, the Center for Immigration Studies, acts as so called "think tank" to the anti-immigrant movement. Some other entities he is invalid with is the Coalition for the Future American Worker , Progressives for Immigration Reform, NumbersUSA, Immigration Reform Law Institute, United to Secure America Coalition. These are just a few of his many groups that work in unison trying earnestly to modify America's thinking on immigration.
The Southern Poverty Law Center and Anti-Defamation League have connected these groups with racists, white supremacists, and political extremists.
The Tanton message is blatantly clear - no more immigrants in the U.S. and those that are here should leave.
One can only imagine the scope of the damage to the immigrant community if Romney becomes the president.
