I am not happy about this state of affairs, but the "I like laws" reason is totally absent from any of the rhetoric I am hearing from either the elected officials (who mainly make allusions to "border patrol" without making any coherent statement of their values that some could object to) or the spectrum of media outlets (who appear to be stirring fears of cultural incompatibility and the cartels). That opinion is kind of like the libertarian position from a few years ago, "the government has no business regulating marriage at all," in that it's a clever alternative to what I can only with any objectivity call the winning answer, that is found nowhere in mainstream politics.

Yeah, I am aware how absurd it is that "if we want more immigration we should increase the number of work visas awarded to less skilled laborers plus many other things like that, not turn a blind eye to a second class citizenry" is a fringe way of looking at the problem, but that's the cake that's been served us.

They've been doing a pretty good job of making caricatures of themselves since 2016. My memory stretches back far enough to videos of Trump rallies where people screamed "keep out those dirty beaners!!" etc at mention of "the wall". I remember "taco trucks on every corner". I remember the notion that Mexico is "sending" people.

I remember the Muslim Ban, the hate against Syrian refugees, the popularity of Trump among people who believe in the "great replacement" theory. I remember family separation, and supposedly God-fearing "conservatives" proudly saying that the suffering of those children were the parents fault for trying to flee ravaged societies and give their kids a better life.

Wanting to crack down harder on illegal immigration is a valid political position and a reasonable goal. But that wasn't all what that shit was about. I don't know if you've truly fooled yourself, but you're not fooling me. I'm never forgetting, and I'm never forgiving.

Nah, they don't like legal immigration either. It is not like their "I object only illegal" was in any way believable.