Gingrich ‘rewrites 9/11 history’
A new advertisement by Newt Gingrich linking the threat of terrorism to the immigration debate “rewrites 9/11 history.”
It never ceases to amaze me that someone so obviously intelligent as serial DUMB@$$ AWARD wiener Newt Gingrich is so willing to ignore historical reality in the name of partisanship. Gingrich, who has shown himself willing to say anything that he believes will advance his own partisan Republican agenda, is at it again, this time weighing in on the immigration debate.
“Mohamed Atta, and several other 9/11 hijackers were in the United States illegally,” Gingrich begins the ad. Photos of Atta and other 9/11 hijackers appear and the word “Illegally” ‚Äö√Ñ√Æ printed in bold, red letters ‚Äö√Ñ√Æ flashes over the screen.
“Today, more than five years since that tragic day, our borders remain open to gangs, drug dealers and terrorists,” says Gingrich in the ad.
Here’s the problem with Gingrich’s argument, though…Atta was in the country legally. In fact, all 19 of the 9.11 hijackers had entered the US legally on tourist or student visas. Gingrich’s argument is specious, ill-informed, and just plain wrong- not that his mugging of the truth is about to change the emotional impact of his commercial.
The problem with the way Gingrich and his ilk have handled the immigration debate is that their primary tactic seems to be appealing to the lowest common denominator. Fear and anger play a large part in the immigration debate, but fear and anger are damn poor tools for crafting an effective and fair policy. When the Right is engaged in inaccurate propaganda and outright lies, how can we hope to have a rational discussion about immigration? The reality is that we can’t…not as long as demagogues like newt Gingrich are willing to twist the truth, mix it with fear and anger, and convert it into raw propaganda.
Here’s a question that probably should be answered, but you know never will be: With all of the emphasis on walling off our southern border, what’s being down to secure our northern frontier. The US-Canada border is the longest undefended border in the world, and yet all you hear from Republicans is the need to keep the evil, insidious Brown People out. I mean, they’re taking our jobs, using our tax-funded services, sleeping with our women. Of course, a bigger threat by far is our porous northern border, but Canadians look like us, eh? It’s so much easier to hate and fear Brown People.
Memo to Newt Gingrich: You know, “freedom of speech and expression” doesn’t necessarily have to mean “freedom to mangle or ignore the truth for partisan gain”. Then again, being a Republican means never having to say you’re sorry…or bother with anything as incovenient as fact-checking.
