I am old enough to recall a time when the Obama administration did whatever it doggone well pleased regardless of statutory constraints- especially when the doing (or undoing) pertained to immigration law. But we are now supposed to believe -per our moral betters in the praetorian media- that the Obama regime is compelled to apply the law, and will do so by launching a series of raids against families that have been here illegally for a year or so. But why these raids against these select illegal aliens, and why now? The answer, as with most things that drive this administration, is optics and narrative.
Our national debate on immigration has shifted dramatically over the past several months, fueled both by the rise of Donald Trump (and his promised wall) and ISIS attacks in Paris and San Bernardino. The focus used to be on the individual stories of illegal immigrants facing deportation. This is what the left fed on, and what the media highlighted. Think of little Sophie Cruz (now with Mark Zuckerberg’s pro-amnesty organization) being trained for a year then flown across the country in order to be launched at the Pope’s motorcade. These sorts of stories are nullified by coverage of errors in processing the San Bernardino terrorist’s fiancé visa.
The debate on immigration has thus shifted to national security terrain, which places enormous pressure on Democrats and the Left, as well as their enablers in the media and their allies throughout the various religious and secular amnesty lobbies. In order to move the conversation back to pressuring conservatives on deportations and the wants of Big Business, there needs to be a reset. And that’s where the deportation rule comes in.
When I heard of the scope of the deportation order, I was reminded of the memo that leaked during the government “shutdown” of 2013, which directed agencies to follow the law in a manner most painful to the general public- so as to increase political pressure on Congress. Fast forward to 2015, and the tactic is at play again. It doesn’t matter that the Obama administration are the ones pushing for these deportations. Term-limited Obama has now created an opportunity for the Democratic field to separate from him and his failed immigration promises. Martin O’Malley and Bernie Sanders have denounced the deportations, and I expect that Hillary Clinton will soon follow suit.
Univision News jumped on the story from Day One, and will continue to push this immigration reset. With at least 100,000 families slated for deportation, there is the very real potential that these raids could yield the left’s own Elián González- and with it, a powerful, polarizing image that Democrats can leverage in order to shore up their fraying coalition in 2016.
In the absence of other, more substantive measures to secure our border, it should be clear to all that these raids are really nothing more than political grievance theater. It should also be clear to the Hispanic community that the Left is much more interested in the politics of immigration rather than in actual, meaningful reform. Savvy conservatives are encouraged to look through the political theater and seize a fresh opportunity for direct engagement.
