By: Daniel Nardini
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (Republican-Florida) is not known for being “soft” on the undocumented. Unlike the hardcore, extreme rightwing Republicans who want no immigration reform, Rubio is willing to allow and work for immigration reform. He will allow those who are currently in the United States without documentation to become legal provided these undocumented pay fines, back-taxes, and wait ten years before they can become legal permanent residents. Contrary to what many of Rubio’s extremist critics say, this is not amnesty. However, there are those within and outside the Republican Party who do not see it this way.
A group calling itself the Dustin Inman Society has put up a signboard that accuses Rubio of being a “leftwing extremist just like Obama” and a “traitor.” According to the Anti-Defamation League, the Dustin Inman Society is named after a 16-year old boy who was killed when an alleged undocumented person crashed into the back of the Inman’s family car in 2000. The founder of the organization, Donald Arthur King, has basically accused Latinos of being responsible for the “invasion of illegals into the United States.” The rhetoric of the Marietta, Georgia-based group is extreme rightwing and King himself has been alleged to have ties with the blog VDare—a blog that has been known to publish racist, anti-Jewish and anti-immigrant articles.
That the mainstream news media even carries news of this group’s activities as legitimate is a cause for concern. Rubio is far from wanting to “open” the floodgates of an “invasion from Mexico” as the Dustin Inman Society alleges. He is one of the few Republicans at this time who wishes to find some realistic policies in reforming a badly broken immigration system. If any Republican lawmaker takes these rightwing extremists seriously, one can only shudder at how much such groups have gained influence in the whole debate about immigration within the ranks of the Republican Party and in society. This group has targeted Rubio in an effort to silence the whole question about immigration reform and cause an atmosphere of fear. The Rubio witch hunt has begun.
The Rubio Witch Hunt
By: Daniel Nardini
A group calling itself the Dustin Inman Society has put up a signboard that accuses Rubio of being a “leftwing extremist just like Obama” and a “traitor.” According to the Anti-Defamation League, the Dustin Inman Society is named after a 16-year old boy who was killed when an alleged undocumented person crashed into the back of the Inman’s family car in 2000. The founder of the organization, Donald Arthur King, has basically accused Latinos of being responsible for the “invasion of illegals into the United States.” The rhetoric of the Marietta, Georgia-based group is extreme rightwing and King himself has been alleged to have ties with the blog VDare—a blog that has been known to publish racist, anti-Jewish and anti-immigrant articles.
That the mainstream news media even carries news of this group’s activities as legitimate is a cause for concern. Rubio is far from wanting to “open” the floodgates of an “invasion from Mexico” as the Dustin Inman Society alleges. He is one of the few Republicans at this time who wishes to find some realistic policies in reforming a badly broken immigration system. If any Republican lawmaker takes these rightwing extremists seriously, one can only shudder at how much such groups have gained influence in the whole debate about immigration within the ranks of the Republican Party and in society. This group has targeted Rubio in an effort to silence the whole question about immigration reform and cause an atmosphere of fear. The Rubio witch hunt has begun.