On Oct. 3, The Hesperian published an abysmal op-ed titled “Martha’s Vineyard Deserved It,” by Jordan Rosenberg, which perfectly characterizes the cognitive and philosophical decline of the political right. There are a myriad of interesting quotes in Mr. Rosenberg’s article. First, he credits illegal immigration as a root cause of “drug overdoses, rape, and murder.” He also blames coastal elites for immigration: “it is about time that East Coast elitists, who live in their privileged bubble, wake up to the problem of illegal immigration.”
The Republican Party has seemed to follow the mental deterioration of their beloved President Donald Trump, a man who some may describe as a corrupt plutocrat with a bad wig. Statistics show that from 2007 to 2017, the number of undocumented Mexicans living in the US dropped from 6.9 million to 4.8 million; from 2010 to 2019, there was also an overall decline from 11.7 million to 10.3 million illegals in the country. Furthermore, the amount of unauthorized immigrant crossings has been on a steady decline for the last 10 years. In addition, over the past decade, the amount of immigrants living in immigration hotspots like California has decreased by millions.
Therefore, the Martha’s Vineyard fiasco is a convenient talking point for the right and a distraction from real progress, away from the reactionist “Trump Right” towards centrist moderation. “Moderate” may not be a popular word in 2022, but moderates will continue to be proved correct as the Republican Party disintegrates before our very eyes, and Mr. Rosenberg’s article is a perfect example of this terminal decline. Well, guess what? Mexicans have just as much a right to be in Martha’s Vineyard as wealthy conservatives from Newport Coast do to vacation in Cabo. So why are conservatives so angry about Mexicans visiting Martha’s Vineyard, one of America’s most luxurious places? This indicates a more significant issue with the Republican Party: they claim to represent down-to-Earth, middle America, while pulling funding from billionaires, corporate lobbyists, and the elite. While climate change destroys crops, these same elites drive gas-guzzling monstrosities (think your typical Jeep Cherokee or Cadillac Escalade) while decrying electric vehicles.
It’s convenient to cherry-pick anecdotal evidence and generalize it to seem part of a more significant trend. Real Republicans are more concerned about pressing issues such as energy prices and America’s stagnating economy than race-baiting. And let’s face it, that’s what this is. Govs. Ron DeSantis and Greg Abbot worry more about political points than real issues, like a child who didn’t get the gift he wanted for Christmas.
-A Concerned Republican
Interesting article coming from a “concerned Republican” who could’ve better spent their time attacking Joe Biden’s failed policies and broken track record rather than another Republican who decided to call out problems facing our country. I guess Trump’s “mental deterioration” matters more than the President’s, especially considering he has his hand on the nuclear briefcase for at least the next two years.
To say that illegal immigration has gone down is a fallacy – it has only increased since the start of Biden’s presidency.
Statistics compiled by U.S. Customs and Border Protection reveal 2,150,639 encounters between law enforcement officials and people entering the country illegally at the U.S.-Mexico border in the first 11 months of the fiscal year, which concludes at the end of September.
With each of the past six months bringing an additional 200,000 border crossings, the number of illegal migrants intercepted at the southwest border will likely approach 2.5 million for fiscal year 2022. By contrast, the first 11 months of the fiscal year 2021 saw just 1,542,685 encounters. The two previous years saw 400,414 and 924,963 encounters in the first 11 months. The fiscal year 2018 saw 396,579 encounters and 2017 saw just above 300,000 – years when President Trump was in office.
I also think its rich for the article’s author to compare Americans who legally travel to Mexico and contribute to the local economy with Illegal immigrants who flagrantly violated both US and Mexican federal laws by engaging in an illegal crossing – something which the cartels benefit off greatly, especially for underage sex trafficking.
The author also states “Real Republicans are more concerned about pressing issues such as energy prices and America’s stagnating economy than race-baiting” while then going on to bash gasoline-powered cars that produce less emissions than EV’s during and after the manufacturing process up until after 8 years of ownership.
I guess its race baiting to point out that drugs and sex trafficking come from the southern border, and we as “moderate republicans” should let anyone into our country and completely ignore the fact that the rest of the world does not tolerate this – apart from a few countries that the author of this article should consider living in if they so choose.
https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/southwest-land-border-encounters
https://insideevs.com/news/549267/manufacturing-evs-70percent-more-emissions/
https://www.kcbd.com/video/2022/09/21/an-inside-look-human-trafficking-border/