The Consequences of Inaction

I find the reactions to the President's speech last night most instructive. It now appears that nothing short of "DEPORT THEM. ALL OF THEM." will satisfy the Republican "base". This I fail to understand. Mass deportation of the millions of illegals is not feasible in any sense of the word: in terms of the manpower and infrastructure, in terms of political will, in terms of likely humanitarian consequences.

We should all deplore the lassitude and inertia that has brought us to the present circumstance. But inaction, like action, has consequences. We must accept these consequences before we can effectively chart a new course.

I found the principles of the President's position both reasonable and just (indeed, it all sounds remarkably similar to what I myself proposed). The question remains of how these principles translate to action. You may call a "guest-worker/earned citizenship" program whatever you like, but absent strict enforcement of the existing border, it will become precisely the amnesty that the President says it is not. This is unacceptable, and it is the fear of this which, I suspect, drives the hostility of conservatives.

Because we have one of three options. The first is to set forth a plan that will simplify immigration and secure the border, and then follow through on it. The second is to annex Mexico. The third is to do nothing and hope it all will go away.

Option three is the worst, and conspicuously, the one we are likely to engage in. But a third-party candidate who was solidly behind the first, this man I might give serious consideration too.