High Profile Immigration Hardliners Who Lost at the Polls

CNN reports on immigration hardliners who suffered defeats in Tuesday’s midterm elections.

Republican Kris Kobach — who became a national celebrity in some circles for his attempts to assist cities and states pass laws designed to facilitate immigration enforcement and kick out undocumented immigrants — lost his bid for governor of Kansas. The Southern Poverty Law Center referred to Kobach as “a leading light of the nativist movement.”  Kobach was the principal drafter of Arizona’s immigration milestone SB 1070, which the Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional.

Republican Lou Barletta — who also drew national notoriety and touts his support for an anti-immigrant agenda as the mayor of Hazleton, Pennsylvania, and enlisted Kobach’s help to defend it — lost his bid for a US Senate seat.

As Shareblue reported, “Barletta’s loathsome views and statements about immigrants have catapulted him onto a list of America’s 11 most anti-immigrant Republican nominees, compiled by Mother Jones.”

Republican Dave Brat — who has championed efforts to limit immigration and won in 2014 after making it a focal point of his campaign — lost his re-election bid for Congress in Virginia.  Congressman Brat’s website states the following about immigration:

“When addressing the issue of immigration, we must start by securing our border.  An open border is both a national security threat and an economic threat that our country cannot ignore. I reject any proposal that grants amnesty and undermines the fundamental rule of law. Adding millions of workers to the labor market will force wages to fall and jobs to be lost. I supported legislation that will secure our border, enforce our current laws, and restore an orderly and fair process to allow law-abiding individuals to work towards becoming citizens of this great nation. I also introduced legislation to address asylum reform to ensure families stay together at the border.”

KJ