Freedom of Speech: The Long, Slow Death Is Here

Just when the people of America thought the debate over the McCain/Kennedy immigration bill was over, and the bill was dead, the politicians are trying to resurrect it & push it through before the July 4 recess, despite widespread protest from the people! Frankly, this is criminal behavior, and should be stopped.

Trent Lott was quoted last week as saying, "Talk radio is running America. We need to deal with that problem."

No matter what your political views are, talk radio cannot be a problem in a nation that truly honors free speech. And the simple truth of the matter is that without talk radio, millions of Americans would not have heard about this immigration bill, which the Congress tried to slide in under the radar, and those same millions would not have known what a travesty our Congress is trying to make out of U.S. border security & our immigration system.

Throughout the debate over this immigration bill, those who oppose it have been unfairly smeared as being racists: a bunch of anti-Hispanic bigots who may as well be wearing bedsheets & forming lynch mobs.

The truth is that the vast majority of Americans oppose this travesty of an immigration bill. If our Congress truly wanted to fix our immigration system, this bill would be one of the last pieces of legislation they would consider. But instead of trying to fix the problem, our politicians have decided that "father knows best," and that they don't really have to serve the interests of the American people.

For years now, conservatives have been hoping to see President Bush stand up to those on the Left who have constantly opposed his positions on everything from the War on Terror to abortion and stem cell research. The problem with the Bush administration, though, is that the only times when President Bush comes out strongly against his opponents is when he does something that is bad for America, and he ticks off his conservative base. It happened when he nominated Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court...and it's happening again now.

In a press conference a few weeks ago, President Bush stated that "a comprehensive immigration policy cannot be made piecemeal." The only reason that could even be remotely true is if your immigration policy is driven by an agenda other than doing what is best for America. Most of America would be in greater support of a piecemeal immigration policy that starts with securing the border. Despite what the Left continues to say, a secure border is not racist. It touches on many issues, but race is not one of them. It is an issue of drugs. It is an issue of terrorism. It is an issue of security. It is unquestionably not an issue of race.

It's time for the people to take this nation back from the politicians. It's time for the people to march in the streets, crying out the old mantra:

"POWER TO THE PEOPLE!"