“But even more telling was the presence ofPeter Brimelow, a former Forbes editor and founder of Vdare.com, anextremist anti-immigration Web site. It is named for Virginia Dare, thefirst white baby born in the English colonies, which tells you most ofwhat you need to know. The site is worth a visit.”
Therelentlessly harsh Republican campaign against immigrants has alwayshidden a streak of racialist extremism. Now after several high-wateryears, the Republican tide has gone out, leaving exposed the nativismof fringe right-wingers clinging to what they hope will be a wedgeissue.
Last week at the National Press Club in Washington, a group seekingto speak for the future of the Republican Party declared that itsNovember defeats in Congressional races stemmed not from having beentoo hard on foreigners, but too soft.
The group, the American Cause, released a report arguing thatanti-immigration absolutism was still the solution for the party’s deepelectoral woes, actual voting results notwithstanding. Rather than“pander to pro-amnesty Hispanics and swing voters,” as President Bushand Karl Rove once tried to do, the report’s author, Marcus Epstein,urged Republicans to double down on their efforts to run on schemes toseal the border and drive immigrants out.Continue…