Final Solution

by digby

Dear God. Crooks and Liars caught the World Net Daily making explicit arguments that the US should use the example of Nazi Germany to expel illegal immigrants:

Not only will it work, but one can easily estimate how long it would take. If it took the Germans less than four years to rid themselves of 6 million Jews, many of whom spoke German and were fully integrated into German society, it couldn’t possibly take more than eight years to deport 12 million illegal aliens, many of whom don’t speak English and are not integrated into American society.

“Rid themsleves” is an interesting way of putting it, don’t you think? I’m not surprised at this. They are working themselves into a complete frenzy on the right over immigration. (Lou Dobbs is so excited about this speech he is frothing at the mouth and almost incoherent.)

These same people, not a year ago were obsessed with terrorism. I guess the thrill of screaming about the Islamofascists wore off. Now they want to follow lead of the Germano-fascists to “rid themselves” of the mexican vermin. It’s all part of the same great racist roar.

Glenn Greenwald notes the rising hysteria of the rightwing; some are now calling for Bush’s impeachment over this issue:

I think a lot of the Malkin types have become bored with the whole “War on Terror” business, which provided them good, strong emotional sustenance for the last four years. But September 11 is now almost five years away. There have been no good “battles” for a long time; we don’t even pretend to capture or kill any high-ranking Al Qaeda members any more; and while invocations of “war” will always be good for some blood-rushing excitement, the whole thing seems so distant and abstract at this point. It’s just not enough any more.

They’re also clearly tired of slogging through the political and ethnic complexities of Iraq. That country just doesn’t lend itself to any morally clear good/evil dichotomies. There are no good cartoon villains to hate. Calls for increased “ferocity,” less “sensitive” approaches (“bomb some more mosques!”), and less discriminate bombings can generate some temporary enthusiasm — as it did for a day or so with Shelby Steele’s column — but Iraq is so muddled and ambiguous, and not all that emotionally satisfying. It’s pretty depressing, actually, to think about how everything they said would happen there is not happening, and trying to figure out solutions, ways out, is just not very invigorating stuff for those who thrive on Hating and Warring Against Evil.

As a result, attention gets turned to immigration — Mexican immigration specifically. It entails the opportunity to rail against “appeasement” (of Vincente Fox); to create the anti-terrorist/pro-terrorist dichotomy on which they thrive; and to demonize a clear, foreign enemy as threatening not just our economic prosperity but also our national security (the “Mexican invaders”). And if the weakened, ready-to-be-tossed aside failure, George Bush, is one of the spineless appeasers this time, so be it.

Karl Rove today took a decidely different tack as he explained the administration’s position:

“I don’t care if you’re hunting deer in February or mowing the roads in the middle of the pasture in August, you’ll find somebody carrying a plastic jug and a plastic bag in the middle of the cold winter or the very hot summer, trying desperately to get north in order to earn money to put food on the table for their families. We’ve got to deal with that reality,” he said.

“And you also have to deal with the reality that we’ve got a border that is so porous and so insecure that who knows whether that is simply an illegal immigrant looking for getting a job in a landscaping company or throwing tar, or whether it’s somebody who wants to do something worse? So we need to get a better control on our borders. The only way to do this is through a comprehensive program,” he said.

As Greenwald shows, this is a huge issue for the base of the GOP. They are use it as their excuse to toss Bush overboard. Why would Karl Rove get all squishy about the mexican invaders?

Because he can count. Immigration may get his base out in the fall, and the issue may make this a closer election than we’d like. But history shows these immigration fevers come and go. Losing any hope of the hispanic vote with a bunch of Nazi talk about “ridding the country of its problems” is the end of the whole enchilada. The Republicans cannot be a majority is they lose the hispanics. Rove knows this better than anyone — and it’s got him dancing on the head of a pin unable to please anyone.

That is one atomic wedgie he’s feeling right now. But hey, when he and his pals decided to exploit racial fears way back when, they consolidated a bunch of people under their tent who have a proclivity for unpleasant behavior toward those of other cultures and races. They are demanding that their party kick some dark hued ass, preferably close enough to home where they can really enjoy it.

For those of you looking for some sane talk on immigration, check out the New Democrat Network’s Responsible Immigration Policy website. I don’t agree on every point, but overall is it a thoughtfuld, reasoned approach. These guys have turned to the hispanic leadership in the party for input and it shows — and they are engaging in massive outreach to the hispanic communities all over the country to explain the difference between the two parties on this issue. Karl Rove, representing the party of wealth, intolerance and racism, is simply not credible when he talks about having sympathy for the plight of people who just want to put food on the table. Democrats do.

Update: I’ve been meaning to blog about this for ages, and keep forgetting. Chris Hayes has written a most fascinating piece about the origins of the latest anti-immigration “movement.” There is much in it that will surprise you, particularly the fact that it was started by a liberal environmentalist who thinks that Mexican immigrants are akin to an alien species invading an eco-system. I cannot tell you how much this guy creeped me out. He and that World Nut Daily Nazi have a lot in common.

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