It’s beyond embarrassing that Utah’s Republican leaders would lead troops into the Texas border.
(Eric Gay | Associated Press) Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (seated center) stands behind Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (seated center) with his fellow governors during a news conference along the Rio Grande to discuss Operation Lone Star and border issues Sunday. Utah Governor Spencer Cox is standing on the far left. , February 4, 2024 in Eagle Pass, Texas.
I’m neither a Democrat nor a Republican. Nevertheless, for me, having served as a Republican Utah state senator and other elected politicians and government officials, it seems to me that in an election year that’s tough on immigrants and immigration, it’s hard to believe that there is a lot of pressure on immigrants and immigration to woo populists. It is not difficult to criticize politicians and their cynical behavior. federal government.
The latest act of despicable politics was when Utah’s governor, with support from Congressional leadership, ordered the National Guard to protect the Texas border from immigrants who instinctively flock to the state to seek protection from the state, seeing it as a promised land. This is what the Highway Patrol officers were ordered to do. Dangerous politics and poverty.
I respect Utah’s Republican leaders, and in some cases consider them friends, but their senseless performative stunts are increasingly common among today’s political class. is very perplexing. Their political two-step measures with truth are aimed at fooling voters into blindly believing that something of actual value is being done for them.
Knowing some of these leaders as I do, I can unequivocally testify that their recent statements and actions are far below their dignity. It’s amazing how toxic our politics has become and how much it hurts good people. Certainly, what our government and political leaders are bringing Utah into these days is not the so-called Utah Way they so often tout.
It’s beyond embarrassing that Utah’s Republican leaders would lead troops into the Texas border. Especially when a bipartisan legal immigration bill was poised for passage until Trump and his MAGA friends in Congress withdrew the bill. This bipartisan bill is exactly what we need to solve the border crisis, and everyone in Congress knows it, at least those who took the time to read it before voting against it. .
Instead of doing something serious and productive, like persistently pushing Utah’s congressional delegation to support a bipartisan immigration bill that would solve the border crisis, Utah’s Republican leaders are pushing hard to get Texas’ They rushed to the southern border, taking up arms with politicians. It challenges the federal government’s constitutional powers and responsibilities regarding the border and immigration, particularly the Supreme Court’s decision that ordered Texas to halt the lawsuit. So much for Utah Republicans who respect the rule of law. So much for their oath of office to uphold and defend the Constitution.
The Texas border insurrection is a vestige of previous events that became violent rebellions against the federal government, the U.S. Constitution, and the rule of law. The revolt was sparked by Donald J. Trump’s now infamous words: “I’ll be there with you…We’ll walk to the Capitol…We’ll fight like hell, and if you don’t fight like hell, we won’t have a country anymore.”
And what did they fight for? They fought to block the constitutionally required certification of electoral votes by the vice president, which is necessary for the peaceful transfer of presidential power.
Between Trump’s show in Congress and the show at the Texas border, one might get the impression that Republicans are not very serious about solving the immigration crisis. Republicans may be forced to believe that they want the crisis for continued political advantage in elections. Of course, such an impression would be quite ironic. But wait, isn’t that exactly what Trump said he wanted when he ordered the repeal of the bipartisan immigration bill?
Speaking of cynical, I have to admit that the Trump-produced Congressional show was actually pretty funny — and it’s because Congress, which has been working hard to pass bipartisan immigration legislation aimed at immigrant relief, If not a sad and painful disappointment for these honorable men and women. Solving the border crisis looks a lot like the Utah approach we hear about.
It’s completely upsetting to those of us in the peanut gallery to see the very Republicans who initiated, negotiated, and wrote this bill turn around and oppose it, citing President Trump’s orders. It’s laughter.
Any peanuts people?
File photo Sen. Stuart Reed, R-Ogden.
Stuart C. Reed He is a former Republican state senator from Utah and lives in Ogden.
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