political : IS THE TEXAS GOVERNOR DOING A TEXAS TWO-STEP ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION? [+] serious ballot by cranky ACTIVE Thu Dec 07, 06 - Tue Sep 01, 09 Perry softens tone on border He calls wall on Mexico border 'preposterous,' pushes for plan for guest workers Houston Chronicle, Dec. 7, 2006, 11:05AM AUSTIN — Gov. Rick Perry focused on strengthening border security in his re-election campaign, but Wednesday he emphasized support for a guest-worker program for illegal immigrants and said a fence along the border with Mexico is a "preposterous" idea. Perry also said proposed legislation designed to end birthright citizenship for the children of undocumented immigrants is divisive. "Any of those types of legislation that create divisions are bad," Perry said. "We need to look at ways to be bringing people together rather than driving wedges between them." There were no real changes in positions in Perry's remarks to the Texas Border Coalition, a group of mayors from Texas cities across from Mexico. But the speech did mark a significant change in tone from his re-election campaign. Perry ran millions of dollars of television advertising portraying the border as an open zone of human and drug smuggling, and as a potential pathway for terrorists. He launched a program to put live Internet cameras along the border and said he would ask the Legislature for $100 million for border security. The campaign was widely seen as an effort to appeal to a Republican voting base angry at the federal government for failing to act to halt illegal immigration. Wednesday, Perry told the Texas Border Coalition that the national anti-immigrant rhetoric of the political campaigns was not constructive. "We just concluded an election year that was very heavy on immigration rhetoric, and, I might add, very light on comprehensive solutions," Perry said. He said the campaign rhetoric did not foster good relations with Mexico. "Good neighbors do not foster fear and engage in divisive appeals," he said. "They seek solutions." Perry said he is opposed to building a fence or wall along the entire border with Mexico. "Strategic fencing in certain urban areas to direct the flow of traffic does make sense, but building a wall on the entire border is a preposterous idea," he said. "The only thing a wall would possibly accomplish is to help the ladder business." Perry said the federal government needs to quickly enact immigration reform, and he said he supports a guest-worker program that would bring illegal immigrants out of the shadows. "Our economy is greatly impacted by migrant workers. Let's create a guest-worker program that takes these workers off the black market and that legitimizes their economic contributions without doing the same for their citizenship," he said. Perry said afterward that there needs to be a program that gives illegal immigrants in this country an "expanded period of time" to register for work, indicating they do not have to be on a citizenship track As for the proposed birthright-citizenship legislation, the author, state Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, said Perry's comments opposing the idea disappointed him. Berman said his bill is designed to serve as a basis for a legal challenge to an interpretation of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that gives automatic citizenship to anyone born in the U.S. "At some point in time, if my bill passes, he (Perry) is going to have to make a decision, and a lot of people are going to be intervening in that decision," Berman said, referring to Perry's power to veto a bill. "The children of illegal aliens should not be getting automatic citizenship." * * * * * * * * So, before the election, Perry was talking tough about the border, illegal immigration, and security. Now, after the election, Perry is coming out strongly against the border wall, in favor of a guest worker program (i.e. amnesty by another name), in favor of the children of illegals getting automatic citizenship, and is worrying about offending the Mexican government, which has been encouraging and facilitating illegal immigration from day one. Does it seem the Gov. Perry has done a bit of a flip-flop on immigration? Yes, Perry does seem to have done an about face No, being against and for illegal immigration is the same thing Ballot #106539 : SEE RESULTS Comment: show your vote with comment?

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