So Reince Priebus didn’t say Romney’s self-deportation comments were “racist”, he said they were “horrific” and that talk like that “hurts us” — “us” here being the GOP.
Correction, 12:26 p.m. ET: An original version of this story said that Reince Priebus referred to Mitt Romney’s comments as "racist." He said it "hurts us." Business Insider regrets the error.
BOSTON — In condemning Rep. Steve King’s incendiary comments on immigration, RNC chairman Reince Priebus swept in his party’s presidential nominee, saying that talk of "self-deportation" was "horrific."
Mitt Romney repeatedly used the term during the Republican primary campaign to talk about how his immigration enforcement policies would lead to unauthorized immigrants leaving the U.S. of their own accord, rather than needing to be deported.
"Using the word ’self-deportation' — it’s a horrific comment to make," Priebus said, in a forceful rebuke. "I don’t think it has anything to do with our party. When a candidate makes those comments, obviously, it hurts us. [More]
The only improvement here is that he hasn’t personally called Mitt Romney racist. If he had, it might make Romney (literally) cry, but why should the rest of us care?
And what’s wrong with self-deportation? Are no illegals allowed to go home? That’s what “self-deportation” is: going home.
If Reince Priebus has ever been to Canada, Mexico, Italy, Germany, or Japan, and is now back in the United States, he has self-deported from Canada, Mexico, Italy, Germany, or Japan, which is good, because all those countries have strict immigration laws, and don’t want Americans living there without paperwork.
In the meantime, the fact that some reporter heard “racist” when he should have heard “hurts us” [Listen to the confused audio] has overshadowed the actual statement the RNC put out.
This is a statement that will satisfy nobody, not the Treason Lobby (never satisfied), not the donors (there stuff about employers having to participate in a verification program) and certainly not immigration patriots who would be glad to see not only self-deportation, but regular, old-fashioned, throw-them-out-of-the-country deportation.
