The Specter—Kennedy—McCain immigration reform imposter hearings continued this morning in Miami, F-L-A.

General Peter Pace, a Marine and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff began his testimony by sharing the story of his own immigrant background. As I have mentioned before, people seem compelled to do this before saying anything—good or bad—about immigration.

(Apparently it acts as a shield against the "you're a racist and/or xenophobe" rebuttal accusation.)

During his remarks, the General spoke of his Italian immigrant parents who worked hard and raised four very successful, very productive children.

He was pointing out the specific opportunities afforded to him and his siblings—he and his brother are both Naval Academy graduates—when he suddenly broke down in tears. A stunned audience of roughly 200 people watched as one of the most powerful military men in the world displayed a vulnerability normally associated with...well, not Marines.

Gen. Pace Offers Teary Immigration Testimony by Glenn Frankel and Daniela Deane Washington Post 7/10/06

Now the cynic in me was inclined to chalk the whole thing up as the latest maudlin (albeit brilliant) White House scheme designed to ensnare the "that's so sweet, I'm voting for him/that" portion of the electorate. You know who I'm talking about...those liberal women who voted for Bill Clinton because they thought he was handsome.

Uh-huh, handsome.

Then again, this same group would probably gasp in surprise to hear we are at war with Iraq becuase they never catch the evening news—the schedule unfortunately conflicts with Thirty Something and Melrose Place reruns.

But then again...

General Pace is a freakin' Marine!! And a good one...

The fact of the matter is, I think his emotional outburst was absolutely genuine and his personal experience with our immigration system is fantastic and awe-inspiring.

It is also anachronistic and wholly unlike the immigration nightmare we face today!

Oh yeah, those early 20th century immigrant families are just like the ones we see today...well, except for the part about the new ones being criminals with an extraordinary sense of entitlement but other than that, we're talking identical.

Come on General Pace, you did not become this great success simply because your parents emigrated to America...now the fact they did it legally which is to say the hard way might've had something to do with it.

Think about it...