When Limbaugh calls the Kyl-Bush-Kennedy amnesty the “The Comprehensive Destroy-the-Republican-Party Act,” he’s repeating what Democrats have been saying for some time:
To get a citizenship bill through Congress, President Bush and the Democrats probably need to convert a large bloc of anti-immigration Republican members, perhaps 40 in the House and 20 in the Senate. “Somehow,” said a Democrat lawmaker who is trying to build Republican support, “we have to convince them that voting for comprehensive reform does not amount to ‘enfranchising their defeat,’ “ a reference to the likelihood that two of every three new Latino voters would cast Democratic ballots. “Our problem,” he admitted, “is that we are hoping that the legislation will build the Democratic electorate.” (“Border Politics,” National Journal, Feb. 10, 2007)
“As the number of legal Hispanics increases, the number of Democratic votes increases as well. … Taking immigration off the table as a red-meat issue for conservative Republicans would be very helpful in a presidential year.” (Democratic “insiders”, National Journal Insiders Poll, April 14, 2007)
Top Democratic leaders and activists see Hispanic migration as a long-term opportunity for the party. The arrival of additional immigrant workers is “bad for blue-collars,” Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, told National Journal late last year. But immigrants can help elect Democratic majorities, and “if [a Democratic Congress] were to significantly strengthen unions, then you would offset the negative effect on the income of workers,” he said. (“Immigration Economics,” National Journal, May 12, 2007)