This article has just been completed and is currently in the editing stage, it will soon appear within several on-line and traditional publications, as always your comments are welcomed, enjoy Amo.

Billy and Hillary and Eliot! Oh my!

by Robert Amoroso

November 3, 2007

When Bert Lahr (The Cowardly Lion), in The Wizard of OZ, uttered those immortal words…”Lions and tigers and bears, oh my”! Little did we realize those words would become synonymous with a frightful apprehension of the unknown. That path down the Yellow Brick Road, much like today is fraught with danger.

Nothing was more apparent of the danger that lies ahead then watching Hillary Clinton, unravel when asked if she approved of giving illegal immigrants driver’s licenses. Obviously, in the heated exchange of a national debate, it is perfectly understandable to misspeak on a critical issue; however, Tim Russert who was moderating the debate asked once again if she agreed with Gov. Spitzer’s plan to license illegal aliens?

He continued, “You told the New Hampshire paper that it made a lot of sense. Do you support his plan”? Now I would imagine that most of us would answer a direct question, with a direct answer, not Hillary. She smiled, she pouted, she opened her eyes wide, and she even admonished Russert, by stating, “You know, Tim, this is where everybody plays “gotcha”. It makes a lot of sense. What is the governor supposed to do”?

Finally, we got the answer, to the question that was asked, or did we? In the same debate, when again pressed on the issue she declared, “I did not say that it should be done, but I certainly recognize what Governor Spitzer is trying to do”.

For a moment, I thought I was back in the glory days of President Clinton, when he peered directly into the camera and with an earnest and pained look on his face declared that he didn’t have sex with “that woman”. However as talented as Hillary is in parceling words she’s no Bill Clinton.

Incredibly when asked once again a day after the debate, she still was unable to give a clear “yes” or “no” answer, and the statement issued by her campaign only helped in confusing her original statements further.

What is truly ironic is that Hillary Clinton is a perceptive media driven politician, who has spent millions of dollars on focus groups and professional pollsters. One can only assume that she’s keenly aware of the poll numbers when it comes to the issue of licensing illegal aliens, in that over 70% of New Yorkers think it’s a bad idea.

When pressed yet again on the issue she once again stated that the “crisis caused by this administration’s failure to pass comprehensive immigration reform” is at the heart of the issue. However, wasn’t the fact that congress and this administration had tried to pass a comprehensive immigration package, the reason for its failure?

It seems to me that when a majority of the populace believes that border security is more important to our national defense then a comprehensive immigration reform package, then someone in Washington should listen. Alternatively, when over 70% of New Yorkers think that licensing illegal immigrants is a bad idea, then perhaps the Governor of the state of New York should reconsider.

What is truly at issue is that none within this administration or in the Governor’s office seems to recognize the dangers that lie ahead. Incredibly, the Governor’s own county clerks (last month) revolted against the Governor’s executive order, and by a 30-to-3 vote, denounced the plan as ill advised. The ground swell of opposition within recent weeks has grown to such a degree that the Governor finally agreed to revise the plan, to conform within a federal ID program.

However, this has not stopped the continued backlash, against this foolish and dangerous order. Several groups representing current and former border patrol officers are demanding that the Governor “reconsider this appalling proposal”. To complicate matters even further the D.C. based political watchdog group Judicial Watch has threatened to file a law suite against the Governor, arguing that the policy would violate state laws requiring a Social Security number for applicants seeking driver’s licenses.

Ironically, both Senator Clinton and Governor Spitzer govern and preside over the only American city to be brutally attacked, by a foreign entity, in the history of this republic, and yet both seem to have forgotten the tragic events learned on that faithful day. Perhaps when we finally come to the end of the “yellow brick road” we’ll need to once again look behind the certain, and remind the “Wizards” of Washington, once more…who’s in charge.

Published in BrooWaha New York

Copyright © 2007 Robert Amoroso