Rosy retrospection: Is the GOP Too Grand - and Too Old?

Nativism has risen and fallen throughout American history. We have experienced periods of great xenophobia including the World Wars, the Red Scare, the McCarthyism movement, and the most recent upheavals today as the immigration debate continues. But no matter how many times we may try to deny it, immigration is ingrained in the American soil. It is the life-blood of the American Dream.

True as that may be, many Americans are concerned that immigrants will take jobs away from U.S. citizens, eat up health care benefits, and violate the laws that maintain order in our society. As Donald Trump put it, "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best...They're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime, they're rapists." And Trump is not alone; all of the 15 Republican Presidential primary candidates advocate some kind of border strengthening to prevent illegal immigrants from entering the country.

While many Americans agree that something needs to be done about immigration (84% of Republicans and 44% of Democrats are unsatisfied with the current level of immigration), the reality for the Republican party is that even as they gripe about the number of illegal immigrants, that number is increasing, and so is the percentage of non-white voters. If the GOP does not change its stance, it could alienate a huge portion of the voting population.

This past week, David Brooks addressed this issue in his article "The American Idea and Today's GOP." In it, he argued that America has always been striving to improve itself and provide its people with a better future. Today, he maintains, the Grand Old Party has lost that direction. Instead of looking towards the future, many Republicans are hoping for a return to the past.

If you don't believe him, just look at some of the 2016 Republican Presidential candidates' campaign slogans:

• "Make America great again" (Donald Trump) 
• "Heal, Inspire, Revive" (Ben Carson)
• "Reigniting the Promise of America" (Ted Cruz)
• "Restore American Prosperity Today" (Jim Gilmore)
• "Restore the American Dream" (Rick Santorum)

Brooks argues that in this mindset, the GOP is losing the very principles it once stood for. He explains, "American free market and religious conservatives have traditionally embraced a style of nationalism that is hopeful and future minded. From Lincoln to Reagan to Bush, the market has been embraced for being dynamic and progressive." But, in the last few years, the Republican party has spent more time and effort trying to undo the past than influence the future. For example, they have continued efforts to kill the Affordable Care Act and have been working to try to overturn Roe v. Wade (the 1973 Supreme Court decision that ruled that women can abort babies up until the third trimester).

Furthermore, Brooks contends, the data surrounding the immigration issue does not support the Republicans' fear. "Today’s immigrants are assimilating as fast as previous ones. They are learning English. They are healthier than native-born Americans. Immigrant men age 18 to 39 are incarcerated at roughly one-fourth the rate of American men." So all of this hullabaloo about rapists and criminals has no base in reality. The people who are coming from other countries are the people who always have: those looking for better lives. Our ancestors came here with the same ambitions. Is it not fair to give these people the same benefit of the doubt?

Either way, if Republicans don't open their minds to the future, they may very well be a party that goes extinct.

Photos compliments of:
Nevele Osteog
Boss Tweed
takombibelot