Tuesday, December 4, 2007

"Romney fires landscapers for illegal immigrants"

Republican candidate for president Mitt Romney fired landscapers (Community Lawn Service of Chelsea, Massachusetts) working on his home's lawn for hiring illegal immigrants. He gave them a second chance this year to fire their illegal workers, but when they didn't comply he got rid of them.

"Romney said the company's failure to comply with the law is "disappointing and inexcusable, and I believe it is important I take this action."

Romney has also criticized Republican candidate Rudolph Giuliani, the former mayor of New York, for not being tough enough on illegal immigration. Romney accused Giuliani of "turning a blind eye to illegal immigration in New York." This is just one of a series of criticisms Romney has had of other candidates.

Is Romney contrasting?... Attacking?... Or just using a political maneuver to create a situation that makes himself look more consistent in his beliefs? Was his firing of the landscaping company a purely political move, or was that this genuine belief?

Link: http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN0455219020071204

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

umm...who the hell cares?
I mean, I'm not voting based on if a guy fires his landscapers - I think his policy stances are a wee bit more important. And of course I think firing them was a political move to get attention - I mean, if it was a regular guy hiring the landscapers, who would care if their landscaper was ilegal or not? I mean, you might care, but enough to brag about it on the news? Come one.

Anonymous said...

It is very relevant. Life is the sum of one's choices, and it just shows that Romney sticks to the laws on immigration very strictly. Though, I agree that it is unnecessary to boast his actions and that it may even have been a publicity stunt. He just wants an edge over his opponents, and any news might pull up his popularity (it is free publicity after all..).

But what if he did not fire the landscapers for hiring illegal immigrants, and his opponents found out about this situation? The other candidates could also have easily reported on this "news" to discredit his tough stance on illegal immigration.

Ziva said...

I heard about Romney firing his landscapers this morning. I think that when he said that he didn’t fire the company earlier because he gave them a second chance to fire their illegal workers is complete bunk. I think he only fired the company for Public Relation reasons and because he got caught in a hole during the last Republican debate. Also, I think he is now bashing Giuliani for not being strict enough on illegal immigration to deflect the spotlight away from himself. But yes, I do agree that he is attacking Giuliani on this specific issue in order to create a situation that makes him look better than Giuliani. I think he is also trying to separate himself from the pack of Republicans.

But on another note, who says that the other candidates don’t have landscapers who hire illegal immigrants? Also, there are tons more gardeners who are illegal in this country, and I don’t see the point to him firing his landscapers, even if it was for PR reasons.

Anonymous said...

Romney was obviously trying to set an "example" for the rest of the country. You have to start some where if you want to stop illegal immigration; the primary reason illegal immigrants come into the US is to get a job. And though there are tons more gardeners who are illegal in this country, it does not give people the right to hire them. I'm pretty sure there are gardeners who are legal in this country who would love to have those jobs.