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People and Politics by Patrick Roberts

Bill O'Reilly and Lou Dobbs praise Arizona immigration bill

Posted on Wednesday, May 12, 2010 at 06:27 PM

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Lou Dobbs is the voice that has been missing these past few months as immigration has exploded as an issue in American politics once again.

So a hearty welcome back for Lou who popped up on the Bill O'Reilly Show to give his take on the Arizona law that has caused such ructions.

Did Lou Dobbs defend or defame the Arizona law?

I won't keep you in suspense-- he played utterly true to form.

That was hardly surprising but you never know these days.

With rumors of a senate run in New Jersey in 2014 Dobbs has been more constrained on this issue in recent times.

O'Reilly in his usual expert way drew him out, pointing out that Bush did no more to seal the borders than Obama is doing. O'Reilly, of course, supports the Arizona bill

For the record here is what Dobbs said in relation to the Arizona law;

"Arizona has every right to take these steps, particularly where this government is quite conscious, this administration, is refusing to enforce immigration law either internally or at the border.

“It’s entirely defensible and it will withstand any challenge by the justice department or by any group that wants to,” he said.

It’s actually surprising that Dobbs has not been front and center on Fox News on this issue or indeed that he does not have his own show.

All of which leads me to believe that Dobbs may actually be serious about a political run.

Frank Lautenberg will be almost certainly out of the frame in the next senate election in 2014 unless he pulls a Strom Thurmond.

Watch this space.

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41 Comments

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DennisQ | May 20, 2010, 04:02 AM EDT

The "probable cause" provisions in the Arizona law are so nit-pickety that they amount to whatever the police officer decides is suspicious-looking. The most likely probable cause will be a Mexican-looking appearance, followed by a more plausible explanation which the officer invents after the fact.

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irishwxman | May 18, 2010, 12:36 PM EDT

I would confront him any day of the week and twice on Sunday. He doesn't scare me. I'm not member of his parish, so he really can't do diddly squat to me anyway.

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ritmomente | May 17, 2010, 09:38 AM EDT

irishwxman, I'd like to see you confront Cardinal Mahoney and see who gets excommunicated.

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DennisQ | May 17, 2010, 01:37 AM EDT

These absurdly restrictive laws create a permanent underclass not as a side effect, but as the actual intended effect. It's oppression of the poor, a sin the Church denounces as "crying to heaven for vengeance."

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irishwxman | May 16, 2010, 06:30 PM EDT

Dennis..."So called 'Illegal Aliens'"? Do you not understand the immigration laws? When you enter this country "illegally", you are considered an "Illegal alien". No ifs, ands, or buts. Cardinal Mahoney should be excommunicated from the church. The worsd liberal and catholic are not synonymous.

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allentown | May 16, 2010, 11:57 AM EDT

..It's exploitation of the poor, and the Catholic Church rightly condemns such mean-spirited policies. Viva Cardenal<< Follow the money. Cardinal Mahoney's Los Angeles diocses owes $ 600,000,000 for his priests sexual abuses. Bless those hispanic donations.

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DennisQ | May 16, 2010, 01:20 AM EDT

We don't want to get rid of so-called "illegal aliens." We want to keep them doing the grunt work they do, and we don't want them organizing labor unions. The real purpose of absurdly restrictive immigration laws is to create a permanent underclass. It's exploitation of the poor, and the Catholic Church rightly condemns such mean-spirited policies. Viva Cardenal Mahoney!

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allentown | May 15, 2010, 07:57 PM EDT

>> Fix the broken law so we can weed out the criminals from those that are looking for a line to join to get citizenship or a guest worker visa << There is no law to fix. If you are an illegal alien--------you leave the country. We already have a guest worker program that is titled H2A. Read it.

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DennisQ | May 15, 2010, 05:28 AM EDT

It's entirely up to you how seriously you take the teachings of the Catholic Church, which retains significant moral authority even in secular America. Oppression of the poor - the unstated but actual purpose of America's absurdly restrictive immigration laws - is one of the sins which the Church teaches "cries out to Heaven for vengeance."

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DennisQ | May 15, 2010, 05:08 AM EDT

The immigration laws are effective for their actual purpose, which is to create a permanent underclass and to head off any possibility of a labor movement among so-called "illegals." We've always had immigration; and always needed hard-working immigrants. What's different today is that the absurd restrictions oppress the poor, and are INTENDED to oppress the poor. The Catholic Church gets this one right.

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IrishAndProud | May 15, 2010, 04:40 AM EDT

Dennis, America's immigration laws are NOT 'absurdly restrictive;' they are absurdly LAX. And now, finally -- and in accordance with the vast and growing American majority -- Arizona has enacted a law which merely mirrors already-existing federal law, but which the feds won't enforce. Mahoney -- and YOU, Dennis -- are both WRONG on this. Viva Arizona!!!

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grimchieftain | May 15, 2010, 12:51 AM EDT

I don't see the big deal here; if you're in the U.S. legally then there will not be a problem. If you're here illegally, then State governments can take measures to remove you. This isn't something new...every country has some sort of immigration laws in place, not much different than Arizona's.

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DennisQ | May 15, 2010, 12:34 AM EDT

No, I don't think my remarks are falling on deaf ears. This is an important venue to oppose America's absurdly restrictive immigration laws. The purpose of these laws isn't to protect Americans; they are there to create a permanent underclass of so-called "illegals." The Catholic Church gets one right - these laws exist to oppress the poor. Viva Cardenal Mahoney!

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irishwxman | May 14, 2010, 11:53 PM EDT

Dennis...go spew your liberal garbage someplace else. It is falling on deaf ears here. Its propaganda and everyone with a brain knows your are telling non-truths. You want to know why we want to crack down on immigration?? Does 9-11 ring any bells??

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DennisQ | May 14, 2010, 07:30 PM EDT

The nation-state does not mean what it did in the 19th Century - or indeed in the 20th Century. Absurdly restrictive immigration laws impede workers' ability to sell their labor at a market price. It's easily seen why so-called "conservatives" want to keep a permanent underclass. They want the fruits of other people's labor, but they don't want to PAY for it.

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