The-Asterisk

A view of Kennett Square, Pa. “Mexicans are leaving, and that’s bad news for everyone,” an employer said. Credit Craig Warga/Bloomberg, via Getty Images A recent New York Times article about how immigrants are leaving small town America underscores the ripple effect of any immigration policy changes. The author continually uses the word "immigrant" to describe the individuals who are abandoning these rural towns. I can only assume that he is referring to undocumented aliens and not green card-holding guest workers. I actually feel sorry for these people, I truly do. The United States has done a gigantic head fake to these Mexicans and Central Americans. Since Reagan's 1986 amnesty program legalized approximately 3 million illegal immigrants, the US policy has been "talk loudly and carry a small stick". For two decades, the border remained porous and enforcement of labor and hiring laws was lax to non-existent. The past decade has seen increased enforcem

Newt Gingrich won Saturday's South Carolina Republican Presidential primary with 40% of the vote. Mitt Romney came in a distant second with 28% of the vote. This was a big win and it underscores the roller coaster season that this primary has given us. Many of the pundits on the right are coming out against Newt. Conspicuously present in this attack is Ann Coulter and S.E. Cupp, but they are just the most verbal. Most in the punditocracy are decidedly anti-Newt. This puzzles me. Do they know something that I don't know, do they fear that Newt cannot win against Obama, or does he threaten their turf? I have liked Newt for a long time. I remember distinctly the night that the Republicans took over the House in 1994. The Rs had been out of power for so long, they had gotten comfortable living in the shack behind the big house. Newt riled them up, got a whole new crew elected and they stormed the mansion. This move affected politics in DC for the next 10-15 years. When I heard