'Amnesty' by any Other Name

Senator Rand Paul is far too willing to support amnesty for illegal aliens. Paul pointedly replied to Breitbart News after their headline “Rand Paul: Let’s Compromise on Amnesty.” In response to that headline, Paul tweeted:

I will not let sloppy journalists characterize my position as “amnesty.” It is simply untrue. http://t.co/ToWmioTg0W

— Senator Rand Paul (@SenRandPaul) June 12, 2014

Well, Senator Paul, perhaps you should be worried that the public will not let sloppy politicians characterize their pro-amnesty positions as anything other than amnesty.

Here’s why Paul’s position amounts to amnesty:while speaking with David Axelrod, Paul agreed that he “would grant [the 11 million illegal aliens] a legalized status in the form of a work visa and allow them to await citizenship.” The 11 million [to 40 million illegal aliens] broke our law but they will be allowed to stay and become citizens instead of complying with the law. They will not be held accountable to the current law, but instead their illegal conduct will be rewarded. That’s amnesty -- in fact it is amnesty plus a perverse reward wrapped inside a terrible policy incentive.

For those inclined to agree with Paul on the need for “immigration reform”, it is instructive to note where Paul’s reasoning falls apart: Paul writes, “The Obama administration’s lawless executive orders legalizing people who came here illegally will only encourage more illegal immigration -- unless we act now with real, strong, verifiable border security.” But if  “executive orders legalizing people who came here illegally will only encourage more illegal immigration,” then wouldn’t a Congressional act “legalizing people who came here illegally” also“encourage more illegal immigration”?

Paul makes it sound as if America will benefit from amnesty because the border will finally be secure after “reform.” In other words, we should just accept that border security is being held hostage, and we should gladly pay the amnesty ransom. The truth is that we have a better option: force politicians to enforce our laws at threat of losing their jobs...

Calling a bad policy a “reform” is one of the oldest tricks in the book, and Americans just aren’t buying it. The trouble that elites like Sen. Paul face is that a conscientious citizen, with an hours’ worth of free time, can learn as much about immigration policy as the average Senator. In the eyes of many concerned citizens, the president, Congress, and Senate are failing their duty to protect our border and maintain America’s sovereignty. In that regard, Sen. Paul is just about as guilty as the president...

Paul and Obama have both invited illegal immigration; Paul is only slightly less blatant in his disregard for the rule of law on matters of immigration. Paul, Obama, and the rest of the “immigration reform” crowd have all made clear that if you cross our border illegally, you will be allowed to stay. This sends a message to the entire world that we don’t have enough discretion to protect our national boundary.

Senator Paul claims to be opposed to “lawless” immigration policy,which he calls “a beacon for more illegal immigrants.” What does he expect will happen if Congress officially declares that 11 million illegal aliens will be granted amnesty? How will that be any less of a “beacon”? A congressional endorsement of amnesty will signal that we have largely abandoned enforcement of our immigration laws...

What Paul needs to realize is that no politician in this day and age will be given the benefit of the doubt when they recite platitudes; few politicians command even a shred of trust. This is especially true on immigration matters. So when Breitbart’s Tony Lee writes that Paul supports amnesty, sensible conservatives are prone to believe Lee’s characterization. That’s because, more often than not, politicians tend to obscure the facts while outlets like Breitbart tend to bluntly state the facts, and most readers recognize as much. Politicians, including Paul to an extent, have simply lost credibility. 

Paul is not entitled to any deference because of his family name. In fact, it looks as if he might need a dose of the Cantor treatment..

John Bennett (MA, University of Chicago, Master of Arts Program in the Social Sciences '07) is a writer whose work has appeared in The Daily Caller, Townhall.com, World Net Daily, Human Events, Liberty Unyielding, Accuracy in Media, and FrontPage Magazine, among others.  He has appeared as a featured guest on the Laura Ingraham, Jerry Doyle, and Lars Larson programs.