During a debate I did earlier this month, Dan Griswold of the Cato Institute objected to the proposition we were asked to debate – “Let’s Stop Welcoming Undocumented Immigrants” – as a “when did you stop beating your wife” kind of question. (The edited version of the debate that ran on NPR is here, youtube clips are here, and the complete transcript is here.) Dan’s implication was that no one really wants to “welcome” illegal aliens.
Well, here comes a politician who admits to just that. Gerry Connolly, chairman of the Fairfax County, Va., Board of Supervisors, told the Washington Post that he would resist any efforts to cooperate with the federal government in enforcing immigration laws because “We’re not going to essentially roll back the welcome mat.” This is not a gaffe, but simply a statement of fact – by effectively making Fairfax (where I live, incidentally) a sanctuary county, Connolly is indeed welcoming illegal aliens, just like Rudy Giuliani did in New York, just like Los Angeles does with its Special Order 40. Only when we roll up the welcome mat will illegals get the message that they need to leave.