The president's secret Thanksgiving trip to Iraq prompted predictable gushing from major media. As we head toward a presidential election, mainstream media and their pundits are telling us Bush will be difficult to beat. What mass media don't discuss much is their own role in public opinion and public ignorance, two measures that run hand in hand.
That half or more Americans think Iraq was involved in the 9/11 attack -- perhaps the most media-covered event in our history -- stands as a horrific indictment of U.S. media today. Such levels of ignorance can't be found in other countries.
Americans who are fundamentally misinformed about 9/11 provide the bulk of those tallied in polls as supporting Bush and the Iraq war. Subtract them from polls and Bush is an unpopular president -- widely seen as having accomplished a bait and switch, redirecting U.S. anger and vengeance toward a country that did not attack us.
The run-up to the Iraq war offers a case study in news bias: how mainstream media, especially television, were incapable of getting the truth out in the face of administration lies and innuendo about Iraq's 9/11 role and weapons of mass destruction.
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New York Immigration Lawyer Marina Shepelsky, located in Brooklyn, assists clients from the New York metro area and across the United States in all immigration and naturalization matters http://www.e-us-visa.com
The Candidates on Immigration
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Sam Brownback
Sen. Brownback (R-KS) favors providing illegal immigrants with a path to citizenship (AP). He has also said that the Social Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security should collaborate in investigations of illegal immigrants. After voting for the Secure Fence Act, Brownback said, "Building 700 miles of fencing along the most vulnerable sections of our southern border goes a long way toward securing the border, and I hope we can use passage of this bill as a starting point toward long-term, comprehensive immigration reform."
Editor's Note: Sen. Brownback withdrew his candidacy for the GOP presidential nomination on October 19, 2007.
Rudolph Giuliani
Giuliani supports some type of path (NYT) to citizenship for illegal immigrants. "If you have twelve million people, to thirteen to fourteen to fifteen million that are here illegally, it is much easier for terrorists and drug dealers to hide," he said recently. He also said that he is in favor of a border fence and a database with which to keep track of all immigrants. Giuliani opposed the recent Senate immigration deal, which he called a "typical Washington mess."
As former mayor of the large immigrant melting pot of New York, Giuliani has sought to balance a law-and-order approach with practical measures to handle the illegal immigrant problem. Giuliani has said that House legislation making illegal immigration a felony punishable by up to five years in prison "could not possibly be enforced." (NYSun) He has said he backs comprehensive immigration reform, as envisioned in the Senate's 2006 bill.
As mayor of New York City, Giuliani opposed a law (NYT) that would have prevented illegal immigrants from receiving Social Security, food stamps and health care benefits.
Mike Huckabee
Huckabee has avoided some of the harsher language about immigrants used by his fellow Republican candidates. Instead, the former Arkansas governor has a record of sympathetic gestures for illegal immigrants. He has advocated prenatal care for pregnant immigrants and has proposed a scholarship program for illegal immigrants who graduate from Arkansas high schools (Arkansas News Bureau). He also criticized a 2005 federal immigration raid (AP) in Arkansas. Huckabee has expressed support for a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants under some conditions. In an interview with ABC-TV's George Stephanopoulos, he said, "We should have a process where people can pay the penalties, step up and accept responsibility for not being here legally." He added: "The objective is not to be punitive. The objective is to make things right."
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