The Alamo

State Rep. Debbie Riddle camps out for 36 hours to introduce Arizona-style immigration reform in Texas.

Texas

The overwhelming defeat of the Democratic Party in Texas ranks highly among the greatest spoils of the 2010 midterm elections. The GOP now has a near supermajority in the Texas state legislature. That means bills which have failed in previous sessions – notably, immigration bills – now have a much greater chance of passage.

A whole slew of important bills have been filed by Texas state lawmakers. This is real “comprehensive immigration reform”:

– Sanctions on businesses that hire illegal aliens.

– Allowing police officers to check immigration status on the basis of “reasonable suspicion.”

– Requiring state agencies to report on the costs of providing social services to illegal aliens.

– Requiring photo IDs at polling places.

– Denying state funding to sanctuary cities.

– Prohibiting state agencies from printing signs or documents in any language other than English.

– Requiring proof of citizenship to get a driver’s license.

– Requiring Texas employers to participate in the E-Verify system.

– A challenge to birthright citizenship.

Needless to say, the stakes are high. This is our best shot ever at achieving real immigration reform in Texas. We can’t afford to let this opportunity go to waste.

Whites are already a minority in the Lone State State. This legislative session could determine whether Texas follows the Arizona model of driving out illegal aliens or the California model of becoming a magnet for them.

Granted, these are only half measures. In Arizona, these half measures are working at making life uncomfortable for illegal aliens. Since 2007, hundreds of thousands of illegals have fled the state. Many more are expected to leave if SB 1070 (and its inevitable successors) is ultimately upheld in the federal courts.

If these bills are passed and signed into law, they will inevitably invite legal challenges from the Obama Justice Department, the ACLU, and Hispanic activist groups. The national controversy that was set off by Arizona worked to our advantage. An even bigger polarizing national showdown in Texas will embolden other states and active implicit Whiteness all across America.

Victory will encourage Texas state lawmakers to push the envelope even further. Defeat will have just the opposite effect.

The Heroine

A heroine has emerged in the Texas immigration debate. State Rep. Debbie Riddle, R-Tomball, camped out in the Capitol for 36 straight hours to file Arizona-style immigration reform in Texas.

“I would have waited a month if I had to do so,” said Riddle. “The overwhelming majority is saying that they want something done. They want their families to be safe. My constituents want to see that their representative is just as serious about getting the job done this session as they are. They’ve got a real fire in their bellies.”

Texas voters consider immigration the most important issue facing the state. 53 percent of Texans want to adopt Arizona-style immigration reform.

The Villain

The state cheap labor lobby is opposing all the immigration reform measures. “The bottom line is, Congress needs to act and pass comprehensive immigration reform. We’re sympathetic to the fact that Congress hasn’t acted. We’re frustrated, too,” said Bill Hammond, President of the Texas Association of Business.

As in other states, a coalition of Hispanic activist groups, big business, and labor unions are desperately trying to thwart the will of the people. Politically, their center of gravity can be found in the Democratic Party which is dependent upon the Hispanic vote. The conservative base of the Republican Party is united in its support for real immigration reform.

The Opportunist

Gov. Rick Perry's presidential fantasies should be encouraged ... for now.

Gov. Rick Perry, no friends of ours, stands in the way of pushing through several of the most important of these measures. Earlier this year, he went on record saying he opposed bringing Arizona-style immigration reform to Texas. Lately, he has refused to comment on whether he would actually veto popular legislation that crosses his desk.

Fortunately for us, Perry is nursing his own presidential ambitions of following Dubya to the White House. He has a new book out and has been trying to look tough on border security. When Obama landed in Texas over the summer, Rick Perry made national news when he confronted him over his handling of drug violence along the border.

Appearing on the Greta van Susteran show, Gov. Perry recently labeled Obama and the Democratic Congress “abject failures” for their handling of border security. His own record on that subject is rather unimpressive. The most we can hope for out of Rick Perry is that nursing his vain fantasy of becoming president will force this opportunistic politician to sign our bills.

In 2008, the Huckster signed the NumbersUSA pledge in a desperate attempt to court the restrictionist vote. His record on immigration was a sore point with the conservative base.

The Alamo

Get ready for a fight in Texas over immigration early next year.

We are going to invest a lot of time and energy in doing what we can to make an impact on the outcome of this debate. This is a practical way that our Texas readers can do something to move the political spectrum in our direction. The most likely course of action will be to bombard the dithering Rick Perry with faxes and emails to ensure we get our way.

White Nationalists were late to the party in Arizona. In Texas, we know the stakes of inaction. This time around we will have months to prepare for the final showdown on immigration.

The men who died at the Alamo were willing to give their lives for a free and independent Texas. It would reflect poorly upon White Nationalists if we are unable to spare a few minutes of our time to send an email or make a phone call.