We often hear from right-wingers about how irresponsible it is to link anyone, or group, to an act of terrorism before all the facts are known. Conservatives have been taking to the airwaves for the past day or so decrying attempts to link right-wingers to the attacks in Boston. Then comes Laura Ingraham.
Today, on her not so popular radio show, Laura Ingraham suggested that the Boston terror attacks could have been perpetrated by someone here illegally. After trying to goad a congressman into turning the incident into a political attack, Laura made the following statement: “It is interesting that at this moment, we are considering legalizing or giving regularized status to millions of people,” she said. “Pretty much none of them have gone through any rigorous background checks.” These people are of course illegal immigrants who cross the border in some cases from Mexico, or perhaps overstay their work visa. These are the same people Ingraham has been demonizing on her radio show for years. For example, Ingraham has used isolated incidents like the Newark 2005 massacre, or the killing of border patrol agents to cast aspersions on those here illegally. She has also continually made the argument that illegal immigrants have been a drain on our society- by overcrowding our school system, or by getting in-state tuition.
We shouldn’t be surprised by the racism of Laura Ingraham. We should however note that illegal immigrants are not committing acts of terrorism. On the other hand, certain aspects of this case are consistent with previous acts of right-wing terror, but to Laura Ingraham, there is no such thing as terrorism committed by the true white Americans she has praised in her previous books.