BY DAVE PARRO
It's nice to see that 14th Congressional District candidate Jim Oberweis has learned from the mistakes of his previous failed campaigns and is toning down the rhetoric. His hard-line stance on illegal immigration in particular got him into trouble in the past.
But his latest campaign mass mailing is a bit too soft. While it still tackles the tough issue of illegal immigration and the threat unsecured borders pose to our national security, Oberweis' "Plan for Securing America" loses some credibility because of the smiling Swede pictured on front.
Yes, that's our biggest problem: those terrorists and illegal immigrants from Sweden.
The mailer claims that, "In the 21st Century, this may be the most important weapon used to secure America." The focal point of Oberweis' platform is the Secure Authorized Foreign Entry (SAFE) Card, which all foreigners would be required to carry. The mock card shown on the flier pictures Mikael Svensson, a 40-year-old man from Stockholm, Sweden. He is 6-foot-3 and weighs 225 pounds.
While Oberweis is obviously trying to avoid profiling by picturing a foreigner from Mexico or the Middle East, does he really think voters don't know who he's really talking about? Are we really supposed to believe that Oberweis is overly concerned about ALL illegal immigrants, not just those stereotypically known for stealing American jobs and bombing tall buildings?
In addition to the SAFE Card, Oberweis' mailer actually presents many proposals worth debating, such as a national database that would allow businesses to verify employment eligibility and legal status; stronger employer sanctions; and English as the official language. But let's call a spade a spade and stop pretending that this debate isn't about a couple groups of immigrants in particular.
After all, you can't fill Soldier Field every week with illegal immigrants from Sweden.
What about the Romanians?
Although my father was Irish, my mother was a blonde Swede from Batavia. As such, I take umbrage at the suggestion posed by Mr. Oberweis and suggest that he stop the advertising shell game and get to debating the issues.
I do believe he means every illegal immigrant. It is a fact that in our area, it is one nationality that has the most illegal ones. To me, he is showing that this is for all illegals, not matter what race, creed or color. My ancestors are not from this country, either, but I do not find fault in what Oberweis has done. Something has to be done. Companies are sending their jobs, to Mexico now-Hersheys just did it-but, they keep coming over illegally and we do not see a drop in prices. I, for one, will not buy Hersheys anymore, and have called and told them. There is nothing wrong with English being the national language, and if it was to be another one, why should it be Spanish? Why is it the other nationalities are willing to learn English, but still keep their own and their cultures, without trying to enforce theirs on ours? Yes, there are other nationalities here illegally, but they are not trying to get it all for themselves. Also, it is not fair to any other immigrant that has come here and did the right things to become a citizen. Before anyone comes back at me, my ancestors are German, Irish and Dutch, and now in our family we have Hispanics and Indian loved ones.
I belive that Mr.Oberweis is wrong.. true theirs illigal immigrants but they come here to work and have better lifes here in America their not taking jobs from anyone if you could see in california their the ones picking the fruits from fields and they do does jobs becouse no one will do them even though they get sick and their kids get sick aswell..they come because in places like Mexico theirs no jobs,no money.And here they have the oportunity to work and give their kids what they didnt have.I know for a fact that my people dont study in school and ive seen it at my school many classmates dont do their homework miss behave in class but thats what they see in their familys if they see a dad drinking thats what they will turn out to be.They need parents who cares about their education to find better carrers and do better in school and in life.I really hoped Mr.Oberweis will stop saying things about immigrants because everyone from the United states are IMMIGRANTS! we migrated from diffrent places to the new world(america) the ones that were here first were native americans.
I come from a family of immigrants, legal immigrants. My long Irish ancestry had a change over 80 years ago, when a family member married a wonderful, Mexican immigrant, who was LEGAL and came here through the appropriate channels. He rose to many challenges facing immigrants these days, yet never faltered in his approach on handling the many obstacles that have come his way.
Jim Oberweis is a great person, humanitarian, and is being treated unfairly by the mainstream media, no doubt that his opponents are behind this nefarious effort to destroy his good name. Whatever happened to hard work, earning a living, treating people of all nationalities with respect and dignity, now THAT's the Jim Oberweis I know. I also received that mailer and thought it was an excellent representation of his willingness to remain tough on crime and oppose illegal immigration, not just from the countries that border this great nation of ours, but from everywhere.
I say Amen to Jim Oberweis and his efforts, he has my support.
A daughter of Mexican grandparents.
I applaud Oberweis for tackling this very important issue without the rhetoric. What he put out there is a detailed plan with a lot of good ideas for figuring out who is here legally and ensuring that we are keeping tabs on who is entering our country. How can you be against that? How can you be against having a system that helps to identify who is coming into our country and who is here illegally?
I am glad that he put this proposal forward and did so in a reasoned way.
On the other hand, Beacon Blog could stand to learn some professionalism. Would you rather that Oberweis put a Latino, Arab or African on his ID card? You would have had a field day with that. Seems like you all just couldn't resist taking a shot at him.
I voted for Jim Oberweis both for Illinois Senator and Governor, and I regret that he did not win. The state of Illinois and the people of Illinois were the big losers. Mr. Oberweis is a strong defender of life, 2nd amendment rights, strong military defense, and immigration laws to keep our country safe. We don't need another 9-11 attack on our country. Mr. Oberweis will work in Congress to ensure we don't experience another terrorist attack. He has run very successful companies and has the intellect and confidence to defend the rights of his constituents. I am very proud to support such a true American patriot, Jim Oberweis.
For the past couple weeks, I have been reading people’s comments and concerns regarding Jim Oberweis and his stance on illegal immigration. It is obvious to me after reading the comments that most people either do not understand or do not want to understand the point he is attempting to make. Immigration is the biggest topic facing our presidential candidates today and none of them will take the time to address this important issue. I am proud to have a candidate running to represent me who will address it and not back away from the pressures of this hot topic. Jim Oberweis supports immigrants, he wants people to come to this country, but he does not want people coming to this country by breaking the rules and possibly endangering their own lives or the lives of others. If it is the U.S. laws that need to change to make LEGAL immigration easier, then Jim is willing to work hard to change these laws. For all who think Jim is a racist or against all immigration, then you need to look again.
What a bunch of bunk! Of course, Swedes are not the problem, but if Oberweis had run the ad with Muslims or Mexicans, you'd be hollerin' bloody murder. He tried to avoid it with Swedes and you still moan. What you really mean is that you don't want this issue discussed. But, you know what? Tough. For 20 years (since the last amnesty), this country turned a blind-eye on the issue. We're now in the fix we're in because of this inattention. Now, we need to come up with a solution, and amnesty is not a solution.
Enough is enough with Jim Oberweis. Does he have any other issues on which to base his campaign? These ideas on immigration are not exactly unique to Oberweis, and his ridiculous inflammatory rhetoric a few years back just hampered efforts at real immigration reform. Oberweis has never been a leader, just a candidate. Speaker Hastert noted that in 2004, saying Oberweis was unfit for office. Isn't it remarkable that Oberweis won't speak anymore without consultants holding his hand. If you want a candidate who has an actual record fighting for immigration reform, and is willing to speak on his own behalf, then Chris Lauzen is the only one in this District willing to get the job done.
I think people are spending way too much time focusing on the wrong part of this issue. We all know that this isn't the first time that Jim Oberweis is running for public office. It seems that most don't understand that what happened in the past is just that, in the past. We all make mistakes and at least Oberweis is man enough to admit that he's made his fair share of mistakes. But, like anyone else, he learned from them and moved on. The piece of mail that I received a couple weeks ago looked like a very intelligent, realistic, and sensible plan as to how we should deal with the problem of immigration. He wasn't just spouting out a bunch of crazy ideas that will never happen. And if everyone who thinks the only thing Oberweis can do is talk about immigration, than you obviously don't follow politics that well. Oberweis may not have the voting record people think is so important but he is an experienced businessman who knows more about the real world and this country's needs than most of these "career politicians" who claim to introduce so much but can't speak to very many accomplishments. Jim Oberweis is the best chance we have to keep honest, hard-working individuals who care more about the people than about making himself a career politician in Congress.