Shrewd AND Right

George Bush will not be running for re-election in 2008. He couldn’t, even if he wanted to. Like it or not, that is the fact imposed by the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution. But as long as he holds the office of President, he is the embodiment of the Republican Party. His strengths will help and his vulnerabilities will hinder the party’s efforts at winning the 2006 and 2008 elections. Shrewd politicians on both sides of the aisle know this.

Bill Richardson is a shrewd politician. And it is no secret that the Governor of New Mexico is one of several prominent Democrats who are making plans for their own run for the White House three years hence. No doubt, this played a huge role in his decision to take very public action to address the problem of illegal immigration in his state.

Last week, Governor Richardson declared a state of emergency in four New Mexico counties that border Mexico, in view of growing problems within those counties that are the direct result of the illegal entry into the U.S. by Mexicans. Additionally, as reported in the Washington Times, he has offered to discuss the issue with a leader of the Minuteman Project, and called on the Mexican government to destroy an abandoned town just south of the border that has served as a staging area for illegals.

These actions – taken by no less than the nation’s only Hispanic governor – while mostly symbolic, give at least the appearance of a high-ranking government executive who believes, as do most of his fellow U.S. citizens, that illegal immigration is a very real threat to Americans’ personal and national security, the flow of which must be somehow stemmed.

And it is one of those areas of George Bush’s vulnerability referred to at the beginning of this piece.

The fact of the matter is that few within the highest levels of government have a stellar record on this point of American security, and Bill Richardson is no exception. But then, how many average Americans are going to remember his record as a member of Congress who consistently voted against measures to crack down on illegal immigrants? Who will remember the irony of his strong stance with regard to security today when compared to his performance as Bill Clinton’s Secretary of Energy during some of the worst security scandals in that department’s history?

And that is the whole point of stances like this that Governor Richardson has made, and that, no doubt, other Democrats will make as the nation moves toward the congressional elections of 2006 and the presidential election of 2008. Getting tough on illegal immigration is something that most Americans favor, and it is something that President George Bush has simply not done. Thus, a door of opportunity opens for those who will seize it – especially those on the Democrat side of the aisle.

This is because, while it is true that there are some Republicans who have spoken out forcefully on the issue, it is just as true that the party that has been in power on Capitol Hill since before George Bush rode into Washington has not yet convinced Americans that they are doing all they can to address it. And the level of frustration on the part of the populace is climbing. Eventually somebody will be called to account for the apparent lack of progress, and it’s safe to bet that it will be the person, or in this case, the party, that has been in power for over a decade.

But it even goes beyond the notion of what is done on someone’s watch. Appearing solid on this issue, that is important to both their base as well as those who don’t generally vote their way, is vital to any man or woman in either party who aspires to high office in either of the next two elections. Because it is an issue on which a candidate can reach across the aisle to appeal to voters from “the other side” while at the same time not alienating one’s own base, as was the case with Bill Frist’s recent comments on stem-cell research.

Bill Richardson is a Democrat governor who comes across as someone who not only lacks the extremism of a Nancy Pelosi, but also as a generally nice guy to both Republicans and Democrats. And he has now become the first high-ranking government official to exercise what power he has to address an issue on which there is widespread agreement among Americans. And while it is true that anger over previous inaction could be directed at either party, what will matter in the future is what each party does to create the perception that they’re going to start to do better. Score one for the Democrat here.