I have met Joel, and he is even better in person. Last year, he got a few minutes of fame by making Barney Frank look stupid at a Harvard Law School forum. His opponent , Jan Schakowsky, makes Nancy Pelosi look conservative.

My only reservation is that I had vowed never to vote for a Harvard Law School graduate. Joel has made me realize that it is possible to go there without being brainwashed.

He seems like a reasonable candidate in some respects, but I’m not impressed with his views on immigration matters.

He says we must “open the door” and “make legal immigration easier” (which of course sounds good) but is he aware we already have an extremely generous and liberal immigration policy, admitting well over 1 million legal immigrants annually?

Is he aware of the fraud in the H-1B visa and TPS programs?

Regarding illegal immigration, while he opposes “blanket amnesty” (which even many pro-amnesty Democrats say), it sounds like he in fact supports some kind of “path to citizenship” amnesty for illegal aliens who don’t want to return home, after “paying a fine,” and accepting “guest worker” status etc.

This sounds similiar to the amnesty proposals we have seen in the past (e.g, the failed 1986 IRCA, 2007 Bush/Kennedy amnesty bill).

If he truly wants to respect our own laws and discourage future illegal immigration, this candidate will insist that first and foremost we enforce existing immigration laws (and not just against criminal aliens) — without this enforcement being tied to any form of “pathway” or conditional amnesty.

I actively support conservative candidates and politicians who have a firm understanding of illegal immigration and properly want the focus to be on enforcement of current laws, and not sure-to-fail amnesty pathways after allegedly “paying a fine” etc. This is the same old amnesty nonsense that Charles Schumer and Lindsey Graham will likely start peddling soon.

I agree with Jeff Sessions, Lamar Smith, Steve King, Duncan D. Hunter, Mark Levin, Roger Hedgecock and many others in this regard, all of whom can hardly be called “lefty.” And if you think illegal immigration is a single issue, I respecfully suggest you read more on the fiscal, tax, and national security etc. implications of open borders and decades-long lack of real immigration enforcement.