See also

by Pádraic O'Bannon

Immigration patriots already defeated House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, but this is just the beginning. To mangle a line from Michael Corleone, if history has taught us anything, it’s that a good challenger can defeat any incumbent. The Ruling Class is desperately trying to pretend the Cantor election wasn’t about immigration, but other rationales (including the despicable suggestion of anti-Semitism) are thoroughly implausible given Cantor’s seven prior election victories in his rural district. Next target: Bob Goodlatte of Virginia’s 6th district, chairman of the Judiciary Committee

Beneath the usual GOP Leadership mendacity about immigration, Goodlatte also backs the “Latino” conquest, and has pushed Cantor’s Kiddie Dream Act. In May, he told Jonathan Karl of ABC News that a “grand bargain”—meaning an Amnesty/ Immigration Surge—is coming:

“The grand bargain here is, we need to have an agreement that if we find the appropriate status for people who have been here a long time and pay back taxes and pay a fine and do some other things … allow them to stay here, but for the future, there would be zero tolerance of illegal immigration.” The United States should also focus on attracting skilled foreign workers, who are often educated at U.S. colleges and universities, Goodlatte told Karl. “We want them to stay here and create jobs here,” he said. [Top Republican Refuses to Predict When Congress Will Vote on Immigration, by Erin Dooley, ABCNews, May 2, 2014]

This might be a “grand bargain” for “Latino” illegals, but not for the rest of us. And no, we don’t want them to “stay here” , take jobs, and vote Democrat . But that doesn’t matter to Goodlatte

Writing about the Judiciary Chairman’s reaction to the Cantor “stunner,” George Will supplied one reason Goodlatte loves foreign colonists: He’s an immigration lawyer—from the very heart of the Treason Lobby. It’s not surprising that a man who built a career on the immivasion wants to keep the gravy train rolling.

Hilariously, Goodlatte accuses the Democrats of using the immigration issue for political gain. Will writes:

Goodlatte believes that piecemeal reforms—addressing border security, high-qualification immigrants and other matters separately—would be possible if many people, including Obama, were not holding all progress hostage to the chimera of “comprehensive” reform. Goodlatte has come to the conclusion that many people, including Obama, do not want reform but “only want the issue” of immigration for its political advantages. Goodlatte, however, will continue the Sisyphean task of pushing the immigration boulder up Capitol Hill. The subject is, for him, personal. Immigration cases were about half his practice as a lawyer before he came to Congress in 1993, and he strongly sympathizes with his former clients—persons who conscientiously tried to become legal immigrants while others, ignoring legality, “would go right around them.” He does not think “anybody” among House Republicans believes we are going to deport 11 million people. And he thinks a large majority of illegal immigrants would be largely satisfied with legislation providing a pathway to a legal status short of citizenship. [George Will: How Eric Cantor’s defeat will strike other Republicans, Washington Post, June 11, 2014. Emphasis added.]

Goodlatte has another self-interested reason to push Amnesty—campaign donations. He has been raising money in Silicon Valley where high-tech plutocrats are fanatical about cheap labor and, in the words of one, are demanding a “timetable” for amnesty “before I write my check.” [ Goodlatte to Fundraise in Silicon Valley as Tech Community Pushes Immigration Fix , by Meredith Shiner, Roll Call, March 14, 2014]

No wonder Goodlatte told Juan Williams for Fox News Latino that he’s chomping at the bit for “reform.” “Republicans in the House [are] now ready to move,” he told Williams. “And I'm ready to move now. I'm ready to move after the election. I'm ready to move in the next Congress.” And he laid out specifics.

“We’ve already passed four bills out of the committee,” he said. “I believe that there is bipartisan support for those and for other bills that would come along behind those bills. And so I think the appropriate thing is to take the next step in this step by step approach that we outlined when I became chairman last year, and that is to start moving legislation to the floor of the house.” [Congressman Bob Goodlatte Says He’s ‘Ready to Move’ on Immigration Reform, by Juan Williams, FoxNews, June 16, 2014]

Williams spoke to Goodlatte before Cantor’s defeat, meaning that whatever Goodlatte says now, this is his real opinion. He’s just waiting for the opportunity to betray his conservative constituents.

Immigration patriots need to retire Bob Goodlatte—fast.

Can he be defeated? Goodlatte’s district is reliably Republican but the “experts” say that he will not face a serious challenge from the “far right.” [Analysts: Goodlatte Safe From Far-Right Challenge, by Preston Knight, DNROnline, June 12, 2014]

He’s won easily in the past. In the 2012 primary, Goodlatte defeated Ron Paul Republican Karen Kwiatkowski, who despite being earnest and intelligent (but hopeless on immigration) captured only a third of the vote.

This year’s erstwhile opponent: Paul Bevington, a high-school teacher endorsed by Americans for Legal Immigration who admitted that he was a nervous and nescient tyro. But Bevington “failed to file as a Republican candidate” according to Ballotpedia so he never really was in the GOP primary, and he failed to gather enough signatures to get on the November ballot as an independent.

Typically for the 6th District, the Democrats are sitting the general election out. Their candidate dropped out in February. [Democrat drops bid to challenge Goodlatte, Roanoke Times, February 12, 2014 ] Goodlatte’s only noteworthy challenger is a 27 year old libertarian from Staunton.[ Hammer to oppose Goodlatte this fall as Libertarian, Roanoke Times, June 3, 2014]

Another minor candidate, Elaine Hildebrandt, is so out to lunch she refers people who want to know her positions to her husband’s web page. He’s running for Congress too—in Virginia’s 5th District. Do husband and wife live in two districts?

In six elections, including this year’s, Goodlatte has faced no Democrat opposition. The closest any Democrat has come to beating him was Stephen Musselwhite in 1992, who lost, 40 percent to Goodlatte’s 60.

That said, Goodlatte’s history of victories resembles no one’s as much as Eric Cantor. After his tough primary fight in 2000, Cantor faced just one primary challenger other than Brat and handily defeated all Democrats.

The Cantor race has already proved the “experts” wrong. The question for Goodlatte’s 6th Congressional District is—can a credible candidate could do what David Brat did?

Goodlatte has never faced a challenge specifically on the immigration issue, nor faced a candidate like Brat capable of explaining the horrific effects of mass immigration on other issues, including spending, crime, and education.

If a challenger can defeat the House Majority Leader with a mere $200,000, someone can take down the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

2016 is around the corner. And the playbook has already been written.

Pádraic O'Bannon, [Email him] a writer and drinker like many of Celtic blood, thinks deep thoughts about politics, culture and religion.