Potential passage of the DREAM Act raised tension on campus Tuesday when the College Republicans at Texas sponsored a talk by conservative commentator Michelle Malkin.
What started out as a summary of topics discussed in Malkin’s recent book, “Culture of Corruption: Obama and His Team of Tax Cheats, Crooks, and Cronies,” ended with a testy back-and-forth about the DREAM Act in a crowded room in San Jacinto Dormitory.
Malkin took a clear stance against the DREAM Act — coining the phrase “It ain’t over till the alien wins” — to say that illegal immigration is an issue of national security. The act would allow undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as minors to earn conditional permanent residency after attending college or serving in the military for two years.
“If you start undermining the rules of eligibility to get into the military, you’re going to lower the quality of people [in uniform],” she said. “If you open your doors up to an untold number of people who are illegal aliens, there is no way to regulate the legitimacy of potentially fraudulent documents.”
Addressing a student’s question about Malkin’s apparent disdain for immigration, the conservative author assured the audience that she is not anti-immigration.
“There is nothing wrong with immigrating legally, but there are people who want to come here to pursue the American dream and people who want to come here to destroy it,” she said.
Despite her disagreements with Malkin, government junior Michelle Uche said she knew wanted to see the author for herself.
“I’ve heard her before, and I knew she spouts off Republican and conservative talk, but this was even more than I expected,” she said.
Malkin’s comments about the DREAM Act grabbed Uche’s attention, like other audience members who spoke up during the Q-and-A session.
“She was talking about the DREAM Act as if she’s certain it was designed by Democrats to gain voters when it was Republicans who came up with it in its early stages,” Uche said.
Government senior John Chapman, spokesman for College Republicans at Texas, said he was not surprised that people would disagree with Malkin’s talk. He said they sought out Malkin because she takes a stance that is rare at UT.
“We know UT is a very liberal environment, so we want to make sure we bring as many perspectives as possible” he said.
Chapman said the College Republicans were glad to have Malkin speak as they prepare to increase their efforts to show Republican support on campus.
