Immigration Schmimmigration!

Please excuse that horrible post title-- I am on the road, in a Motel 8 in the middle of Nebraska, and a little weary. In any event, I have to comment on all the hullaballoo surrounding the recent yet not surprising emergence of immigration as a "wedge" issue in the election. I agree that this issue is problematic for Democrats; however, I do not think it's as big of a deal as some make it out to be.

Republicans will almost certainly be able to skillfully utilize the issue of immigration as a diversion from topics such as the war, the economy, etc. once the general election campaigning is under way. I do not think it is as complicated an issue for Democrats during the primaries, however. E.J. Dionne said in yesterday's Post that "the issue is especially problematic because efforts to appease voters upset about immigration -- including a share of the African American community -- threaten to undercut the Democrats' large and growing advantage among Latino voters." I do not think the candidates need to appease voters "upset" about immgration. Here's why: for groups like African Americans who are arguably only tangentally affected by immigration (at least in comparison to Latino voters), it is not going to be a critical issue. The Democratic candidates should be able to have progressive stances on immigration and maintain their support among groups like African Americans because of their positions on other topics.
Dionne cites a study-- being repeatedly cited in the media-- that says most people think our country is "going in the wrong direction" because "our borders have been left unprotected and illegal immigration is growing." I think this response was the most popular simply because of the wording. In my opinion, suggesting that "our borders have been left unprotected" is a little extreme. This poll may not be the best way to gage the importance of the issue of immigration to voters.

So basically, immigration will mostly become a critical issue later on down the road, but for now, it looks like a bunch of media hype to me.