Illinois Democrat Luis Gutiérrez Is Ready for a Border Wall

Well, this is a shocker.

Kind of.

One of the most fierce, open-borders warriors, Chicago Rep. Luis Gutiérrez, is ready to give up and give in to allowing for Trump’s magical, mystical, mystery wall – if Trump will agree to amnesty new protections for the “Dreamers.”

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Speaking on Saturday, he suggested that he’s not just willing to give Trump that wall, but he’d pitch in and help build the thing.

“I’ll take a bucket, take bricks, and start building it myself,” Gutiérrez told reporters in the Capitol.

“We will dirty our hands in order for the Dreamers to have a clean future in America.”

Does Gutiérrez have a proper background in construction?

I don’t know, but his position is telling. It shows that there are some cracks in the Democrat armor. They’re feeling the pressure to get something done.

Getting past Trump’s hardline, alt-right base, who want a full wall, deportation, and absolutely no amnesty is going to be the real obstacle.

The concession comes as other Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (N.Y.), have said they could agree to a wall in exchange for protection for the Dreamers, immigrants brought to the country illegally as children. Schumer has said he was close to a deal with Trump before the White House came forward with additional demands.

By “…White House came forward with additional demands” some are suggesting that the talks to avoid the shutdown that went on between Schumer and Trump were on the verge of a successful end, until Stephen Miller got in Trump’s ear and changed his mind.

Democrats overplayed their hand on Friday night, knowing any government shutdown would blow back on the party in control, right now. With midterm elections months away, it could spell bad news.

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Some Republicans joined the Democrats in seeking to have DACA protections added to the spending bill, even though it’s not a spending item and it had a March 5 deadline before it had to be touched.

It was unnecessary.

“We have been, and we continue to be, willing to work together in good faith on immigration,” Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said Saturday on the House floor.

And it’s not that Democrats are softening to the idea of a wall. You can believe there will be campaign ads for ages about any wall that may go up.

Gutiérrez pointed out that he sees the wall as an insult, but recognizes that to get protection for the illegals brought here as children, some allowances need to be made.

“For me, why don’t you just take your middle finger and point it at Mexico? … Because it’s the same thing,” he said. “I really don’t believe that it’s about security. It’s about saying, ‘Brown people stay out of the country.’ And the president’s said as much.”

Gutiérrez said he sees the wall as a price the Democrats will have to pay to secure the DACA protections — one he’s now willing to pay.

“We’ve stopped arguing that it’s unnecessary, because it’s ransom,” he said.

Well, no. Ransom is when you hold somebody against their will and demand money for their return.

I’m almost positive nobody is holding any illegals here, and they would probably return them for free.

South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham and Illinois Senator Dick Durbin have a bipartisan bill that pairs tougher border security measures with DACA protections. It’s up for a vote on February 8.

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It has to get past the House Freedom Caucus, however.

Trump has said that he needs the support of both Rep. Mark Meadows and Senator Tom Cotton before he’ll agree to sign anything.

“The president has consistently said that he wants to make sure Tom Cotton and I can embrace a deal that he cuts,” Meadows said Friday. “And I trust him at his word.”

Hardliners on both sides are keeping things from moving forward.

Gutiérrez further suggested that the bill offered by Graham and Durbin should have included more, in order to entice the president over to their side.

“I don’t know why the president, when Durbin and Graham walked it, why he didn’t just say, ‘Double it, and I want it in the first year,’ ” Gutiérrez said.

Because he’s got somebody else in his ear, telling him what to do.

“Done. Let’s move forward.”

Maybe. In the meantime, keep your bucket and your bricks handy.

 

 

 

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