October 18, 2005

Whoa.

Howdy. I've been in communicado for a while (Communicado, Okla., pop. 459) but it doesn't look like I've missed much. Miers is a cipher, steady progress in Iraq, media are weasels, Bush is on the ropes and flailing...

Oh. Wait. Looks like he's connected, with a strong right to the "Bush is a squishbag" conservatives:

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said his department aims without exception to expel all those who enter the United States illegally.

"Our goal at DHS (Homeland Security) is to completely eliminate the 'catch and release' enforcement problem, and return every single illegal entrant, no exceptions.

It's about time. If I were a real grouch I would say Bush doesn't get any points for this, since he's just agreeing to enforce existing law. And I'm still skeptical enough to "trust, but verify" on this statement. I want to see some how and when to back up the what.

But if this pans out, it's great news. Even better is that this news comes straight from the top at Homeland Security. While immigration-legal and illegal- is a complex problem, it is primarily a national security issue. It was important in peacetime, but after Sept. 11 there's no excuse for incentivizing illegal immigration--and failing to control the borders-- as we have done. Even the CIA has said so.

Just this rhetoric alone shows that the Norm Mineta racial pussyfooting that crippled aviation security doesn't still paralyze White House thinking.

PS I wonder whether this was in response to the Right's piling on Bush about Miers? Is this a sop to pacify his base? If so, sop me some more. Sop me real good, and sop me hard. Sop me like I've never been sopped before.

PPS I am, like Rusty, in a seasonal/sporadic sort of business that is gearing up somewhat this month. So I regret that my own posting here must be light, at least until this [delete]new shipment of primo Colombian toot gets safely in the warehouse.[/delete] thing I have to do gets done.

By See-Dubya at 01:30 PM | |