The American Spectator

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Speaking of Pence

11.6.06 @ 12:01AM

VISA PROBLEMS?
Re: Philip Klein's Promote Pence:

You must be kidding, promote Mr. open borders, comprehensive immigration reform, illegal alien amnesty, Mike Pence? What in God's name is the matter with the author of this article, is he so elitist and out of touch with middle America that he actually believes that Mike Pence would be an acceptable speaker?

Let me explain something to the author. In 2008 the number one issue on everyone's agenda will be immigration, both illegal and legal, including those who come here on H1B visas. Do you really want the Republicans to have as their leader in the House a person who is associated with amnesty/comprehensive immigration reform. If you want to see an example of what's coming on the immigration front, watch what happens to the candidacy of John McCain. If the Republicans are actually unconscious enough to nominate this guy they will go down in flames during the '08 presidential election and we will end up with a Democrat in the White House. The trouble with most pundits is they are located in the DC/New York corridor and have little understanding of the rest of the country which they so often disdainfully refer to as flyover country.
-- Paul Martell

Amen to Philip Klein's article on Mike Pence. I don't know a great deal about him but what I've seen I like.

The trouble with Hastert is he is devoid of any charisma. It's as if he was picked to appease the Democrats.

My Senator, Frist is about the same. Since he is leaving anyway a new leader is going to be appointed.

I hope it is as majority leader but if we lose it will be because some of our base stayed home because of a lack of leadership.
-- Steve Smith
Chattanooga, Tennessee

If there is one act of Bush and the Republicans that has utterly demoralized their conservative political base, it is the concerted effort to give citizenship to illegal aliens. If there is one item that Pence is infamous for, it is his illegal immigrant plan that is in fact an amnesty: cross the border, queue up at a jobs center, and return with a guaranteed path to citizenship. For all Hastert's failings, at least he led the battle to kill amnesty. Assuming Republicans are ever in a position to appoint a Speaker, Pence will be the man to permanently cripple the Party.
-- David Sisk

Mr. Klein is undoubtedly right about the GOP in the House of Representatives needing new leadership. I think that it is a certainty that the leadership ought to come from the members of the Republican Study Committee.

As for Mr. Pence, has he learned his lesson about the immigration issue? Since that is one of my top three issues, I would want to know that he has given up on that silly amnesty plan that he was putting forward. Yes, it was an amnesty plan, no matter what you misnamed it. I would want to know that he fully understands that complete border control (or as complete as humanly possible) was in place, implemented, and actually working, before ANY program of any kind that granted citizenship to someone that was here already was passed into law. We should NOT start out by granting "a path to citizenship" to people that are criminals by virtue of breaking any of our laws, including being here illegally. I would trust Cong. Pence on any other issue.

I do think that it makes a difference whether you are talking about electing a Speaker of the House, or a Majority/Minority Leader of the Republicans. The two jobs, and therefore the requirements, are quite different. In my mind, that is why Newt was a fine Minority Leader, but not a good Speaker of the House. The Speaker must be absolutely iron willed and iron fisted, while seeming non-partisan and completely reasonable, a creature of the House that knows the rules and workings inside and out and unafraid to apply them against anyone on either side of the aisle equally and consistently, and yet someone the appears to be constantly seeking negotiated consensus between all parties, in both Houses and at the White House. Note, I only say that he or she must "appear" or "seem" to be so nice and reasonable. The Speaker must always be ready and able to visit the wrath of God upon a Congressperson that strays beyond the bounds, but it must only be done face to face, behind closed doors, with no witnesses and no paper trail.

Majority/Minority Leader, on the other hand, is a partisan post, and would be ideal, it would seem, for someone of Cong. Pence's credentials.

At any rate, I think that Mr. Klein is on the right track in prescribing new leadership in the House for the GOP. The current team has shown that they leave something to be desired in both partisan activities and in governing.
-- Ken Shreve

I will predict that my congressman Mike Pence will turn down an opportunity to be House leader. I suspect that he has sights on the "Big job" as Hoosiers would say. Though he would accept the second slot in 2008 "top of the ticket."
-- T.J. Voegele
Oldenburg, Indiana

SNOWE BIRDS
Re: Marlo Lewis's The Snowe-Rockefeller Road to Kyoto:

Letter to the Editor

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