1Republican City Councilmember Peter Koo rang in the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Dragon, by becoming Democrat City Councilmember Peter Koo. This might seem very appropriate as Dragons are said to be highly ambitious, driven and unafraid to take risks.
That is good, because this just may be the biggest gamble of Koo’s short political career. Koo was said to be worried about re-election in a district where Democrats outnumber Republicans five to one. Afraid that very popular Assemblymember Grace Meng might run against him, Koo seems to have wowed Democratic leaders and now the word is that Meng will look to run for Borough President with party support.
But all might not be secure, for now Koo has to worry about Democratic Primary challengers, who might be able to exploit Koo’s party switch with hardcore, primary-voting Democrats. Party switchers are rarely successful if their switch comes while in office.
Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter is a perfect example. Complaining that the Republican Party was too conservative for him, and afraid of a challenge from his right, Specter finally switched and became a Democrat. Seen as untrustworthy by both sides, Specter was easily defeated in a Democratic primary.
Koo cited differences with national Republicans, and the slate of presidential contenders specifically, especially as it pertains to immigration, as a major deciding factor in his switch. At Koo’s registration change press conference, Assemblymember Rory Lancman arrogantly remarked, “he’s a nice guy, he likes people, he likes the immigrant community.” This was meant to be a slap at Republicans playing on Koo’s immigration excuse.
Meanwhile, only Republicans have actually offered solutions to the problems surrounding illegal immigration. With discussions of guest worker programs, amnesty and making the byzantine immigration process easier and less costly, Republicans are proving to be more immigrant-friendly than Democrats, who seem fine with the status quo of millions of immigrants living in the shadows and being exploited in sweatshops or as slave labor.
Koo also complained about Republican Party outreach in the Asian community. Meanwhile, it was Republican outreach that led to Koo being sought out and asked to run for office. It was expected that Republicans could work with Koo to register Republicans and build a strong Asian following in Flushing. That never quite materialized, and unfortunately never will.
However, the Koo experience was a valuable one for Queens Republicans. It set the blueprint for Republicans on how to reach out in immigrant and minority communities. It showed that by working with respected members of the community who share the majority of conservative, pro-family, pro-business beliefs held by most Republicans and also by most immigrants, Republicans can be successful in immigrant communities.
*On Saturday, January 28, the Queens GOP is holding a Candidates School at the Adria Hotel in Bayside from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Anyone interested in running for office anywhere in Queens should attend. Details are on their web site at www.QGOP.org.
Robert Hornak is a Queens-based political consultant, blogger, and an active member of the Queens Republican Party. The views expressed here are his own.
TAXPAYERS ARE THE PAYEE FOR ILLEGAL ALIENS
It’s not condescending, but if you came to America by whatever means without permission of the People via the US government, you are violating this country’s sovereignty rights? I doubt if there is any country on Mother Earth, where you would not be imprisoned or immediately deported? Mexican laws have very strict statutes, that illegal entry is punishable as a Felony. Congress and being owned by special interests money doesn’t impose a felony. It’s a walk away “slap-on-the-hand punishment and then unless it’s a second entry after deportation, you can now walk away from being incarcerated–thanks to the executive order from President Obama. Life has been made so easy for foreign nationals, which they can even demonstrate in the streets, demanding rights without any recourse from ICE? They shouldn’t even be here, but they are able to ride the welfare programs through a poor interpretation of the 14th Amendment. People come from every hemisphere after waiting years for a visa, but others steel in disguised as a tourist with unborn babies or just steal across our perforated border fence. Then they go about stealing somebody’s Identification to get a job, procure that persons credit.
Our once praiseworthy schools are now poorly recognized for performance, as they were 30 years ago. The top State for education originated in California and now it is somewhere around the bottom of the barrel. Millions who swarmed into Los Angeles County have turned it into miles of poverty stricken neighborhoods, without any countermeasures from the immigration police. Hospitals are hurting from unpaid treatments and Border States saw many of these institutions go bankrupt—another good example of unfunded mandates. Prez Obama is on hunt for more votes in 2012, so it makes major sense to fly off to Nevada, heavily populated with illegal aliens and a very poor set of voting regulations. Every American must be involved to oversee the outcome of every precinct and the value of Absentee Ballots that are easily forged. How can the United States government expect to support, the senior citizens, along with veterans, homeless and infirm citizens, when they are subsidizing 440 000 illegal alien infants annually. Why patriotic Americans who speak up for themselves should, be forced to feel guilty or defend their stance on illegal immigration. The Tea Party doesn’t–that for sure, and rigidly holds the line on another blanket amnesty, sanctuary city policies, and dream acts, family chain migration or any other law, which eventually falls to the taxpayers in supporting unfunded mandates.
I think the President is in for a rude awakening as pro-illegal alien Democrats, Republicans lawmakers start to lose their seats in the Senate or House in the forthcoming months. Why should Americans be forced by the law courts to be the payee for the rest of the world? No matter for what issue, whether foreign or domestic policies? We must look to employing our own low income, white and blue collar labor and stop the incessant pandering to lawbreakers. Our Immigration laws are not broken as the Liberal press assures us, as they are either eating out of the hands of the newspaper owners or carefully manipulated by unions, non-profits and radical groups. With probably the most important Election in decades we must be seriously vigilant of no real movement on behalf of this administration, to stop non-citizens voting. They will and have driven by the re animated ACORN organization who are accomplished in fraudulent canvassing for votes. All would-be presidential candidates should be well aware of illegal aliens voting, specifically when they are very likely to be issued a deportation order. Of course if other states akin to Arizona are crushed by the iron hand of the Department of In-Justice, run by Liberal progressive Eric Holder who reputation is ruined by his involvement in the gun running carnival, which killed a US border Patrolmen? Simple and with no cost to taxpayers is the well documented “ATTRITION BY ENFORCEMENT.” Self-Deportation will commence when Aliens cannot support their families, with the implementation of Mandatory E-Verify.
Mitt Romney is certainly correct about E-Verify and its powerful influence would drive the illegal aliens home and nothing need be done except multiple lightening raids by ICE on businesses. His minions in the Justice Department have sued any state that has been fighting for financial survival and then plagued Conservative Governors Jan Brewer as she in most frontier States have been forced by the liberal judiciary to subsidize any impoverished person who squats in that state.
Two bills are ready to arrive at the floor of the House of Representative, which could injure the mechanism that awards criminal acts of illegal immigration. E-Verify –The “Legal Workforce Act” that can contain the 8 million working illegal aliens and will halt them in their tracks. The E-Verify program must be succeeding as 4 Democrats have now co-sponsored this bill and you should contact your federal or local lawmaker at 202-224-3121. A simple method of identifying who is hired by companies, that doesn’t want to become a victim of incompetence,. They know full well that when this law is passed, they will be facing heavy fines, loss of assets and even time behind bars. A few citizens or authorized or lawful residents, which fall through the cracks, can find relief by going to the local Social Security office; aliens will flee, rather than entering a federal agency. Another bill less publicized by the Liberal press or other media, is the “Birthright Citizenship” amendment, which would offer no more foothold for the illegal parent or parents of children smuggled into America. No more easy preference for a pregnant Mother so she can immediately get public assistance, hospital birthing, food stamps or anything else given freely by our indifferent government. Whoever wins the presidency–Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum or even Ron Paul must be held accountable, for every promise they declare to the public audience.
Make your own judgment for who you will vote for, whether a new state governor, a new state senator or those in the highest levels of government who have been secretive in pouring billions in taxpayer money to support the 20 million and more who have settled here illegally. Any search engine such as Google Yahoo will show you hundreds of reports on the real costs, graphs and other statistics. The power of the American people, that is the TEA PARTY, is sickened by the complete abuse of laws from the founding fathers. NumbersUSA has displays of grafts and the presidential hopeful’s grades on illegal immigration. Want to know how minority speaker deceived the system through her corruption; it is well illustrated in the legal watchdog pages of Judicial Watch. Want to know the nauseating cost if President Obama slips through a blanket amnesty, that’s found at Hermitage Foundation.
The TEA PARTY does not alienate any race or nationality as the Liberal media would like you to think? It just requests the 1986 Immigration law (IRCA) enforced and not altered to pander to illegal migrants and immigrants.
President Obama is pandering to these people for votes–illegal or a legal immigrant. Neither non-citizen can vote but WILL unless we introduce federal possession of a picture ID to vote. Learn more at NumbersUSA