Beware of the Times Bearing Gifts

By Mark Krikorian on February 2, 2009

The New York Times editorial Saturday foreshadowing the "growth" in office by New York's junior senator included this precious line: "Ms. Gillibrand's House votes on immigration amounted to a repudiation of New York's special gift to America." In addition to demonstrating yet again the insufferable arrogance of the Times, this hilarious "special gift to America" stuff shows a central problem in immigration policmaking: In the minds of supporters of open borders, it's always 1907. Tax laws have changed since then, along with foreign policy, state-federal relations, the social status of women and blacks, the speed and cost of communications, etc., etc., etc. — but the immigration policy under which our grandparents were admitted must remain forever unchanged. It's true enough that today's immigrants aren't really that different from your nonno from Sicily or your bubbeleh from Vilna, but America is.