A Republican super PAC is urging conservatives to stop using incendiary terms when discussing immigration. The Hispanic outreach arm of the American Action Network emailed House Republicans telling them to not to refer to immigrants with such phrases as “illegals”, “aliens” or an “anchor baby.” Instead, the group recommends using “undocumented immigrant.”
The talking points also advise GOP Congressmen, when asked about securing the border, to avoid phrases like “send them all back”, “electric fence” and “build a wall along the entire border.” Conservatives should replace those phrases by saying “enforcement of our borders includes more border patrol, technology, and building a fence where it makes sense.”
If this is the status of immigration discussions in the House GOP, senators hoping for agreement on a reform bill are facing a steep climb.
Alex Wagner and the NOW panel discussed why the Republican Party will have a hard time exorcising the divisive and derogatory rhetoric toward immigrants in America, and what that means for the prospect of meaningful immigration reform.
Joshua Chaffee