Melding a new immigration narrative? President George W.Bush and the immigration debate

The rhetoric of immigration in the United States is grounded in a cultural dialectic featuring themes of inclusion and exclusion. Throughout American history, one of these themes has usually been ascendant, while the other has been in decline. In this article, the authors analyze how President George W. Bush attempted to construct and manage the immigration issue as he pushed for comprehensive reform. They argue President Bush attempted to accommodate both sides of the immigration debate by using themes of inclusion and exclusion at the same time. Although Bush failed in his attempts to pass immigration reform, his conflicted rhetoric may actually carry with it the key to understanding how future presidents will construct and manage this issue in the near future