What You Won't Hear Tonight

Finally, we’ve reached the last in a grueling (mostly for the viewer) series of presidential “debate’s.”

And in this last opportunity for side-by-side stump speeches, moderated by Bob Schieffer, you will not hear, much to the dismay of some McCain supporters, any personal attacks against Senator Obama. This, not because he wants to take the high road, but because poll numbers have shown that potential voters like him less when he takes the low road.

And you will not hear a single word about immigration. In fact, over the last two presidential and one vice presidential debate, we have not heard anything about immigration, as if this entire tangled up, difficult, contentious subject does not exist.

Yes, we’ve had a lot of other things on our plate, mostly that giant sucking sound you hear coming from lower Manhattan, but immigration is a subject that is also important to our economy and, some say, vital to our national security. Some want to build a giant wall to keep everybody out; some want to give everyone who is currently here amnesty. And some, like me, believe that immigration – done legally – is the fabric of our national character. All of us, at one time, have been immigrants. If not us, then our ancestors. So why not let people in who will apply for citizenship, pay their fair share in taxes, and learn our national language? This will only strengthen us as a nation.

And if you have a few minutes, you may want to take the time to learn where Barack Obama and John McCain stand on this issue. Then you can decide for yourselves. It may not be the most important issue of this campaign, but it is part of the fabric that makes up both of these candidates’ individual characters.