Republicans , with Texas Governor Abbott’s export of migrants to Blue states, Media focus on immigrant crimes and Trump/Miller hardline ON immigtaion Have Democrats rethinking their not so hardline on immigtaion policy….
Trump and Miller ARE going too far right now….
But Democrats DO have to move to the right on their policy it would seem…
Immigration IS Good for America,,,,
But?
How much?
And how to handle those here already?
Democrats want to regain credibility among voters to win back the House majority in 2026, said Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D), who spearheaded the framework and is known for flipping a GOP-held district along the New Mexico-Mexico border that has repeatedly supported Donald Trump for president.
“I think we do have to acknowledge that the American people have lost faith in the Democratic Party when it comes to border security,” he said in an interview. “We have to look to folks in border communities and border districts to pull the Democratic Party in the right direction.”
Democrats are at a disadvantage with voters on the issue of immigration. A YouGov poll conducted in May found that Republicans had a seven-percentage-point advantage on the issue that month, down from a 12-point gap in an August 2024 YouGov poll. A July Wall Street Journal poll found that 45 percent of voters believed Republicans in Congress were best able to handle immigration, while only 28 percent of voters said the same for congressional Democrats; 17 percent of respondents said they trusted neither party to handle the issue.
House Democrats believe they have an opportunity to reclaim the narrative as voters’ favorability toward Trump’s handling of immigration continues to drop. An Economist/YouGov poll released last week showed 53 percent of U.S. adult citizens disapproved of Trump’s handling of immigration, an increase of three percentage points compared with July.
The Trump administration’s success in clamping down on border crossings has been overshadowed by a slapdash approach to mass deportations, particularly the detainment of undocumented migrants without criminal records. And that is rankling Hispanic GOP lawmakers who fear they could face political backlash during the midterms next year.
Stephanie Valencia, chief executive of Equis Research, said this “creates a moment of opportunity” for Democrats to seize by reframing the debate with a “proactive vision for the future,” but she warned that “Democrats can’t just be against what Trump is for.”….
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Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-New York), who flipped a GOP-held district in early 2024, credits adopting a strict message on border security enforcement that included deporting criminals and closing the border temporarily to asylum seekers for his success. Rep. Laura Gillen (D-New York) ran on a similar platform and successfully flipped another GOP-held district in Long Island in November. But their harder-line positions were not adopted by the Harris campaign, which argued for striking a balancebetween acting with compassion toward migrants and upholding immigration law.
“The American people were frustrated with the lack of action and with the disorder they saw [at the border]. And they, I think, voted accordingly,” said Rep. Greg Stanton, a Democrat who represents a district on the Arizona-Mexico border and drafted the initial framework for the group.
The resounding loss for Democrats during the 2024 election led many in the party to advocate that Democrats take a more aggressive stance on border issues. Roughly 50 House Democrats supported GOP bills earlier this year that instructed immigration officials to detain noncitizens who had committed a crime and that made it illegal to flee from border agents near the U.S. southern border. And House Democratic leaders began reiterating that their caucus supports border security enhancements…
Also,it is noteworthy that that around 40% of Hispanic voters supported Trump.
As a straight political matter?
It is hard to see how a pro immigration stance is helpful in presidential and congressional elections.
In my view,it’s past time for a little benign neglect by Democrats on the immigration issue.
New York Times says that after next census the Electoral College will tilt even further away from Democrats.