Senate primary (republican) in Texas gets nasty over immigration

[pampango]

Senate primary in Texas intensifies on immigration issue

With Tuesday’s GOP primary fast approaching, Ted Cruz pushed back against a radio ad released on Thursday by Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst that portrayed Cruz as a supporter of amnesty for illegal immigrants.

Cruz, a tea party favorite, denied that he had backed amnesty when he served on two Latino leadership groups that were open to immigration reform. In turn, he said Dewhurst, who presides over the Texas Senate, had failed to pass tough state legislation that would deter illegal immigration.

Rice University political science professor Mark Jones said the ad was designed to appeal to the basest elements of the Republican Party and remind them that Cruz is Latino. “Were he not Hispanic, this ad would make no sense,” said Jones, who added that he believed the Dewhurst campaign crossed an ethical line.

The crux of the Dewhurst ad is that Cruz served on the boards of two Latino leadership groups that, according to the campaign, support amnesty even though Cruz has adamantly opposed amnesty in his public statements. ... The Hispanic Alliance supports comprehensive immigration reform, including enhanced border security and a guest worker program, he said. While amnesty has become a dirty word, Monty said, the group does advocate for a humane way to deal with the millions of undocumented immigrants who are already here.

http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/CAMPAIGN-TEXAS_8101104/CAMPAIGN-TEXAS_8101104/

"Amnesty"-lover is a tag republicans work hard to stick to each other during primary battles. Dewhurst is appealing to the "basest elements of the republican party". The irony is that would be the teabaggers who apparently support the other guy, Cruz. Sounds nasty but what would you expect from a republican primary in Texas?