Of course, it is too late for Tom Tancredo’s presidential ambitions. And yes, he’s a loon. But still, this advertisement he aired in Iowa repays watching. This sort of thing is terribly unpopular – and vulgar – in Washington, but there are plenty of people who will agree with the guts of what Tancredo has to say here. And not all of them are Republicans. [Thanks to Garance for the spot].
If one were to compile a list of all the issues in which elite – and, er, libertarian – opinion is most completely out of touch with “ordinary” people’s concerns, there’s a more than decent chance immigration would be at the top of the list. As Garance reports from Iowa, it may also be the last issue with which Republicans can credibly thrash Democrats. People (like me) in Washington are relaxed about immigration – including illegal immigration – but that’s not true in the mid-west, to say nothing of the south or parts of the south-west. Which is why the question of drivers licenses for illegal immigrants is a topic