Letters: Romney feels the heat on immigration

Re “Romney crosses the immigration divide,” Opinion, Sept. 23

Tamar Jacoby writes that many Republicans feel Mitt Romney “went too far in the heat of the primary and are glad to see him clarifying his position” on immigration.

“Clarifying”? Shouldn’t that be “changing” his position? During the primaries he touted, among other things, the self-deportation of millions of immigrants, an absurd proposal.

And where does the idea come from that the primaries’ heat is an excuse to spout any old nonsense, however mean-spirited or offensive, and then “clarify” it into a position less repugnant or inflammatory later?

If the heat of the primaries muddled Romney and his message, how can he be trusted to cope with the pressure of being president?

Tony Motzenbacker

Los Angeles

It was the Democrats who really got the immigration “restrictionist” movement going. In 1993 — the same year Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) introduced his own “immigration stabilization” bill — President Clinton appointed former Rep. Barbara Jordan (D-Texas) to chair the U.S. Commission on Immigration Reform. Jordan recommended ending extended-family immigration and lowering to 550,000 the number of people who could legally immigrate to the U.S. every year. Regrettably, neither idea ever became policy. To the contrary, we’ve admitted about 1 million people per year.

Now they say we should pursue “comprehensive immigration reform.” Well, Reid’s and Jordan’s ideas were spot on then, and they’re more so now.

Harvey Pearson

Los Feliz

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