Owens jumps into immigration debate. The Post dutifully follows.
There are a lot of ways the free market fails us. But job creation isn't one of them. That's why the Governor Bill Owens-backed plan to let private employment agencies apply for visas for illegal immigrants sounds like it could make sense.
But there are a lot of things wrong with the way the Denver Post reported the story in today's paper.
First, the Post's front page article never mentions that the group that authored the plan is a partisan think tank. You have to turn to a separate article on page eight to learn that information.
Second, the subhead says Owens' proposal "seeks to balance debate." Only after a couple hundred words do you learn that the "balance" is between different factions of the GOP, not between conservatives and liberals.
Third, the article plays into the Republicans strategy: Scream immigration and hope it makes everybody forget the Republicans' foreign policy failures, inability to balance the budget, and healthcare mess.
Obviously, Owens is trying to restore the conservative credibility he lost during the Referendum C and D campaign. The Denver Post's conservative credibility, on the other hand, is well established.
Immigration is a big issue. But not nearly as big as people make it out to be. Illegal immigration is a threat to our healthcare only because market driven healthcare is costly and inefficient compared to a government voucher system. It's a security threat only because our intelligence networks aren't working. And it's abillity to drive down wages is overstated compared to the overall impact of globalization. And yet the wingnuts have succeeded in making it a major focus of the 2006 election cycle. Democrats have to find a way to keep the focus on their plans for the environment, the economy, healthcare and national security.
But there are a lot of things wrong with the way the Denver Post reported the story in today's paper.
First, the Post's front page article never mentions that the group that authored the plan is a partisan think tank. You have to turn to a separate article on page eight to learn that information.
Second, the subhead says Owens' proposal "seeks to balance debate." Only after a couple hundred words do you learn that the "balance" is between different factions of the GOP, not between conservatives and liberals.
Third, the article plays into the Republicans strategy: Scream immigration and hope it makes everybody forget the Republicans' foreign policy failures, inability to balance the budget, and healthcare mess.
Obviously, Owens is trying to restore the conservative credibility he lost during the Referendum C and D campaign. The Denver Post's conservative credibility, on the other hand, is well established.
Immigration is a big issue. But not nearly as big as people make it out to be. Illegal immigration is a threat to our healthcare only because market driven healthcare is costly and inefficient compared to a government voucher system. It's a security threat only because our intelligence networks aren't working. And it's abillity to drive down wages is overstated compared to the overall impact of globalization. And yet the wingnuts have succeeded in making it a major focus of the 2006 election cycle. Democrats have to find a way to keep the focus on their plans for the environment, the economy, healthcare and national security.
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