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Conspicuously absent from the campaign trail this election season has been the old standby issue of border security. The Trump administration did what none before has done and essentially shut down illegal crossings on the southern border. It remains quiet, and there is no longer the chaos of migrants arriving in droves.
This was a Republican win, and the silence of Democrats about the wall tells just how successful it was. In fact, when Democratic candidates speak to us about the border, it's all in favor of security. And plenty are now quick to blame President Joe Biden for failing to act.
The problem today is the Trump administration's irresponsible overreach. Voters wanted a secure border, not the widespread arrests of immigrants with no criminal history or the aggressive tactics of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, including incidents in which U.S. citizens have been killed.
ICE is just part of the political problem. With the border secure, the GOP lost a potent political issue that had broad support.
Instead of filling the gap with substantial concerns that also could get broad support, Republicans turned to made up enemies like legal immigrants and transgenderism.
Fake mailers from a purported trans rights group are the strongest example of a desperate effort to gin up voter anger, but Texas Republicans have also falsely claimed there is an election fraud problem in our state, with little evidence, despite exhaustive audits and investigations.
Lately on the campaign trail, they have made Sharia a priority despite no evidence that communities are using this religious framework to replace civil law. The consequence is anti-Muslim discrimination.
Open racism like Railroad Commission candidate Bo French's targeting of American students of Indian descent marks another low that shows making enemies is the main political strategy.
And so much for courting the Hispanic vote that helped turn border districts red.
In Starr County, with a heavily Latino population, voters along the U.S.-Mexico border favored Trump by 16 points in the last presidential election. But polling suggests the GOP is now facing an uphill battle.
These voters are no different than a majority of Americans, who favor a nation of laws, but also a nation of decency and balance. That includes a respect for the dignity of all people, including migrants.
Under Trump, Republicans enjoyed great policy success on the border. All they have done since is squander the advantage.
— The Dallas Morning News