The Tea Party’s Achilles’ Heel

By: Daniel Nardini Lawndale News Chicago's Bilingual Newspaper - Commentary

                                The Latino vote was not the only thing that helped determine the 2012 presidential election. Eighty percent of Asian Americans also voted for current President Barack Obama over the Republican opponent Mitt Romney. A number of Republicans in the Republican Party are now beginning to realize that if the Republican Party wants to get the Latino and Asian vote, they need to change their political platform in regards to Latinos and Asians. However, there is resistance from a quarter of the Republican Party that seems to be preventing this.
                                    The Tea Party movement, which was founded after Obama’s health care reform legislation, has also been opposed to what it calls “amnesty for illegals.” In the view of the Tea Party, the current U.S. immigration laws are fine, and that those “illegals” who broke the law should be deported. Even after the 2012 presidential election, the Tea Party still sees nothing wrong with the current immigration laws. In fact, the Tea Party movement is calling on the U.S. House of Representatives to resist any attempts at immigration reform. In the view of the Tea Party, any revamping of the immigration process will only provide “amnesty” to the undocumented and weaken America’s borders.
                                  This stance has in fact not helped the party with regards of recruiting Latinos and many Asians. Having personally dealt with the immigration system, it is in desperate need of reform. I am far from being the only one with this opinion, and the calls for immigration reform has grown louder than ever even though I do not see it happening this year. But since the Tea Party movement has a great deal of influence in the Republican Party (talk about the tail wagging the dog!), the teabaggers will do what they can to influence their Republican lawmakers to reject what they call “amnesty.”
                                 Because of the Tea Party movement’s influence and clout in the Republican Party, you can be sure that not many Latinos and Asians will be joining the Republican ranks either. There is already a major struggle going on in the Republican Party, and the Tea Party movement is the most extreme part of it. The major problem with the immigration system is that it is too difficult to get through it without a lawyer and too costly and time-consuming for the average American. When something like this does not work for those trying to apply legally, the system needs reform. That the Tea Party movement at this late date is refusing to find any common ground in trying to reform a largely unworkable solution for immigration reform will hurt the Tea Party’s attempt to influence Latinos and Asians. In the end, it will also ruin chances that the Republican Party might have in changing with the times.

Comments are closed.