In his libertarian appeal to Tea Party, Senate candidate Rand Paul likes to talk about his support for the Constitution. He writes, “The Federal Government must return to its constitutionally enumerated powers and restore our inalienable rights. America can prosper, preserve personal liberty, and repel national security threats without intruding into the personal lives of its citizens.”
Yet, as much as Paul likes to pose as pro-Constitution, he also is savvy enough to know that he’s got to please the right wing voters of Kentucky in order to win the election. So, when it comes to the details of supporting personal liberty, Paul is willing to throw the Constitution under the bus when it’s convenient.
On the issue of immigration, Constitutional liberty isn’t convenient to the Rand Paul campaign. The facts are mighty pesky too.
The fact is that the rate of people illegally crossing the border into the United States from Mexico appears to have dramatically decreased in recent years, to about a third of what it was ten years ago. Rand Paul’s campaign ignores that fact, and supports the standard Republican concept that illegal crossings are increasing across a loose border. “Millions crossing our border without our knowledge constitutes a clear threat to our nation’s security,” Paul writes.
What does Paul intend to do about that clear, diminishing threat? He wants to force people to speak English, making it the official language of the United States. When Paul said that he didn’t want government to exceed its constitutional authority, he apparently meant to exempt the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech. If we can’t choose which language to speak, the government is telling us that only a limited range of words and syntax are allowed. That’s not free speech.
Rand Paul doesn’t talk about Arizona’s new anti-immigrant law, SB 1070, which directs law enforcement officials to use the color of citizens’ skin as a criterion for suspicion of criminal activity. He does, however, suggest a position of support, saying that “I support local solutions to illegal immigration.”
