Posted by
Larry Gee on Thursday, January 31, 2008 11:19:32 AM
The subject of illegal immigration is an issue during this election cycle I cannot ignore. I've listened to all of the candidates position on all of it. I guess in my heart I'm a Law and Order type. I was brought up with those common mid-western values. Follow the rules. Keep your nose clean. Be respectful to police officers, religious leaders (regardless of the denomination). When disagreeing, be firm but concede that there are more than one viewpoint and approach to the problem.
However, it seems that as a people, we Americans seem to be in favor of having a fence between us and Mexico. It seems that the old adage about "Good fences make good neighbors" is true. They ensure that my stuff and your stuff don't mix, my garden isn't disturbed by your wandering cows, your apple trees are picked by my kids and so forth. So, why is it that when so many people are in favor of the fence that it isn't yet built. I've been hearing for over a year that it's on then off again due to some bleeding heart messing with it's funding or other such Washington based nonsense.
That brings me to my point. Now that it seems the race for the republican nomination has narrowed to either John McCain or Mitt Romney, it becomes trivial to compare and contrast their positions on something so fundamentally desired by we Americans. Which of these two is going to get the fence built?
McCain says he will build it, but he usually says so while looking like he just got a large dose of Syrup of Ipecak and is ready to vomit. I see the same face when I tell my teenage daughter to clean her room.
Romney says he will build it, but unlike McCain, it seems that he actually WANTS to build it.
With the presidency on the line, do I want the candidate with the attitude of "Fine, I'll build the (expletives deleted) fence, now can I be President?" or the one that appears to be saying "Can I be President so that I can build the fence you all want?"
Good fences make good neighbors. Good people get good fences built, for the right reason and with the right attitude. Maybe a good President doing the right things for the right reasons might even inspire my teenage daughter to clean her room.