EckerNet.Com

Smarting from the overwhelming defeat of the comprehensive immigration bill, the Bush administration has hardly behaved rationally. First they pouted for awhile, then threw a tantrum with their second attempt. Since then they\’ve tried to sneak in the bill piecemeal, but after the overwhelming outpouring of opposition to the bill, they are having problems finding a politician stupid enough to be the sacrificial lamb on the altar of Mexico.

It appears the Bush administration has finally realized it has an image and credibility problem. What took them so long to figure that out is beyond me. It\’s a concept that seems blindingly clear to well, virtually everyone else. Just take a look at some of these figures from a recent Rasmussen poll.

• 79% of American adults favor a proposal requiring employers to fire workers who falsify identity documents
• 74% believe that if a person wants to rent an apartment they should be required to provide documents proving they are in the country legally
• 68% of Americans believe it is Very Important to improve border enforcement and reduce illegal immigration
• 80% of Republicans, 62% of Democrats, and 64% of those not affiliated with either major political party believe it is Very Important to improve border enforcement and reduce illegal immigration
• 12% of Americans believe the federal government is doing enough to secure the border and reduce illegal immigration
• 71% say it is not doing enough
• 16% believed the Senate legislation would reduce illegal immigration
• 41% thought the Senate bill would lead to an increase in illegal immigration
• 28% believed that legalizing Illegal Aliens was Very Important

Wow….there certainly must be a lot of bigots and racists in America to poll that kind of numbers. But it certainly is a significant sign that not only does the American public put great importance on actually enforcing our borders and stopping illegal immigratio, but also that they don\’t trust the federal government to do it.

So it\’s no surprise to see that the Bush administration is planning to actually enforce the law…..maybe. I say maybe, because we\’ve seen this dog&pony show before. Before each previous attempt at amnesty, the Bush administration staged a few theatrical raids….never mind that most of the \”captured\” illegals were released before the story even hit the wires. This latest attempt at immigration enforcement is likely just the same thing, just on a grander scale.

Actually it wouldn\’t surprise me if the Bush administration even got over zealous in their enforcement attempts. Such a ploy would be calculated to cause just enough economic stress, that President Bush\’s ridiculous claims that we \”need\” illegal immigrants to survive might carry some credibility. Even if not a goal, such an outcome would be a side-benefit in the eyes of this administration.

However, I\’m fairly certain it is not likely to happen. Instead, the Bush administration will play make-believe for awhile, pretending they care about our borders. Then whey they feel the public is starting to let it\’s guard down, they sneak in some of their most cherished segments of the immigration bill. Indeed, Senator Specter is already waiting in the wings with a quasi-amnesty that will basically create a permanent underclass.

And of course it should be no surprise, that while publicly the Bush Administration is claiming it is being serious about enforcing the border, behind the scenes it\’s quite a different story.  Just like they did with agents, Ignacio Ramos and Jose Campeon, the Bush administration has created a habit of going after their own Border Patrol.  And not only do they use the questionable testimony of illegals to do it, but they allow the Mexican government to coach and intimidate said \”witnesses\” into creating the storyline they want.  But after all this time, should this really surprise us?

So while the Bush Administration plays it\’s little games with immigration, count me as underwhelmed, suspicious and vigilant….which is exactly the \”support\” they\’ve earned.