The double edged sword of Republican anti-immigrant political ads

David Vitter, Republican Louisiana Senator, begins his political ad, "Charlie Melancon, thanks to him, we mightas' well put up a welcome sign for illegal immigrants" and ends with a group of dirty Mexican illegal immigrants gleefully cheering as they drive off in a black limo. The message that David Vitter wants to convey is clear; Charlie Melanco supports illegal immigration and should therefore lose the Senate seat. This is just one of a few highly controversial political ads’(Rick Perry, Texas*,and Sharron Angle, Nevada) that have surfaced as midterm elections approach.

These ads are being highly criticized for enforcing racial stereotypes of illegal immigrants as a political tactic to win voters over. Whether you call it racist or anti-foreign, these sentiments are very real in many voters, 76% of Americans agree that illegal immigration should be decreased, and it is a successful strategy. However, it has the potential to backfire, as no candidate wishes to be called racist, and this in fact can lead to loss of support. For example,in 2009, Florida Republican Committeewoman Carol Carter, was forced to resign after sending a racist e-mail that compared the black people who attended Obama’s inauguration to those stuck in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. Republicans want the best of both worlds--to draw on racist sentiments in society, while avoiding the tile of racists themselves. The issue of racism is then a double edged sword.

This midterm election Hispanic votes are expected to be low, approximately 6.8% a drop from 7.4% in 2008, especially since they are told not to vote. Although it is obvious that most Hispanics will not vote for a candidate whose ads assert racists messages towards Hispanics, it is also a crucial problem for non-Hispanic voters who will vote against the Republican Party for racist remarks. Additionally, this is problematic for all Republican candidates because voters have a tendency to vote based on the general party image. This is especially true in the media, because newspapers and television news shows like to personify political parties and make one individual the political celebrity that represents the entire party. Perhaps Republican candidates will be able to convey the positive image of protecting American citizens against excessive illegal immigrants that threaten jobs in the current detrimental U.S. economy. But, if this image is construed as racist, then the Republican Party will lose many voters this November.

*Rick Perry's campaign committee seems to have pulled this video from youtube and I can't locate it elsewhere, perhaps they read my blog :)