The immediate impact of Tony Snow

Rhetorical question--how many speeches has President Bush given specifically regarding illegal immigration? Uno, dos, zero? Now, only days after new press secretary Tony Snow has arranged the pictures on his desk we hear about an upcoming speech on the topic, coming Monday. Coincidence? Hardly.

Tony Snow probably understands the public's mood better than anyone at 1600 Pennsylvania. As a radio host he's seen and heard the groundshake caused by this issue, from both the city and country perspective, and has apparently convinced the Commander-in-Chief of the urgent need to address it before it puts everybody there in the unemployment line. Before laughing make sure you've read LaShawn Barber.

The Pajama folks tipped everyone to a good read from someone across the pond who doesn't hate us. His insight regarding our immigration problem juxtaposed with Europe's is worth the read, especially in light of recent demonstrations both here and there. Mindful of those, the fact Bush didn't immediately commence a national address after illegal aliens poured into the streets says a lot, something that Snow probably pointed out quite forcefully.

The icing on the cake was the latest story about Border Patrol giving the Mexican government intel about the location of the Minutemen. True or distorted, it's something that needs addressing.

So we have a speech, but the true test will be the content. Americans will easily spot any posturing political BS, besides, the backlash from that could be worse than saying nothing. No, this must be an action speech with plans, such as placing military assets or National Guard on the border to quell the tide. That's the only way his guest worker program has a chance.

Actually, his handling of this will affect his poll numbers, which affects the November elections, which affects his ability to get anything passed the rest of the way. A real legacy moment. Should be interesting.

MORE 5/13/06

Here's a tip on the Monday speech. That's definitely some action, but after having just watched "Escape from New York" the talk of drones, concrete walls, and virtual fences is a bit too much action for the moment. Think I'll go clip the hedges.