I’ve often said we’d be much better off if the Republican Party really was composed of soulless opportunists willing to do anything to stay in office. If that were true, they would actually pursue good policies out of sheer self-interest. Unfortunately, Republican politicians seem to be composed of people willing to take principled stands on issues deeply unpopular with everyone except corporate donors. Mitch McConnell practically threw the election by making sure Americans didn’t get a survival check until after the Democrats took over.
On an issue where Republicans have the people with them, they still won’t act. Thus, we never get a serious move against affirmative action, even though a referendum to reinstall it in California failed in November [Why California Rejected Racial Preferences, Again, by Conor Friedersdorf, The Atlantic, November 10, 2020]. Any serious move to oppose Critical Race Theory or the general deconstruction of the United States must begin with abolishing racial preferences in jobs and education. It would also be a powerful check on the lunatics running the asylums that are America’s universities. Yet we know Republicans will never do it.
Voter ID is an even more slam dunk issue. Rasmussen reports that 75% of likely U.S. voters support laws that would require photo identification before people can cast a ballot. This includes a majority of Democrats.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 75% of Likely U.S. Voters believe voters should be required to show photo identification such as a driver’s license before being allowed to vote. Only 21% are opposed to such a requirement…
Support for voter ID laws has actually increased since 2018, when 67% said voters should be required to show photo identification such as a driver’s license before being allowed to vote.
Eighty-nine percent (89%) of Republicans support voter ID requirements, as do 60% of Democrats and 77% of voters not affiliated with either major party.
[75% Support Voter ID Laws, Rasmussen, March 17, 2021]
Of course, Voter ID is not nearly good enough. What we should do is adopt something like Article 43 of Mexico’s General Law of Population.
“The admission to the country of a foreigner obliges him to strictly comply with the conditions established for him in the immigration permit and the dispositions established by the respective laws.”
In other words, foreign nationals are not allowed to participate in the political life of the country. Illegal entry is punished. And, to use words from Mexican law, immigration law is partially based on “preserving the national demographic equilibrium” and the “economic interests of Mexicans.” Substitute “American” for “Mexicans” and you wouldn’t need anything different.
These measures are popular. An appeal to Mexican law would be a devastating attack ad. Why don’t Republicans do it? Answer: they are more interested in losing politely and going on to the lucrative job in the private sector. Once they can cash in, they will. The last thing they want is to spend a lifetime fighting for constituents most of them despise and want to replace.
