Some quotes in an important new Greg Sargent WaPo article on immigration/border

I worked with Greg Sargent on what became a terrific new essay today on the need for Dems to start taking control of the immigration debate. Here’s my contribution:

As Democratic strategist Simon Rosenberg points out, the four border states are represented by five Democratic senators and only two Republican ones — and by three Democratic governors. Big gains in the Southwest are one of the party’s biggest political success stories. Shouldn’t the immigration debate reflect this?

“It’s important that these voices become much louder,” Rosenberg told me. “Democrats have to stop allowing the debate to be dominated by Republicans and extremists.”

Most of the southwestern regions of the US, outside of Texas, is now represented by Democratic governors and Senators. We’ve worked hard over the past 20 years to make these gains. It’s now time to use this power we have to take control of the national discourse around immigration and the border, and work this year to get a good bill through the Congress.

For more on the gains Dems have made in the Southwest and with Hispanic voters more broadly see my presentation and related readings. I also found these two articles very helpful:

Biden’s shift on immigration acknowledges the obvious - David Ignatius, WaPo

Biden’s Visit to the Border Is Bound To Be Awkward - Farah Stockman, NYT