AS A true credit to the YouTube generation, the video of Bill O'Reilly's recent temper tantrum has spread about the internet. Add in Geraldo Rivera screaming right back, and you get one of the most popular videos of the week. The fight, while entertaining, was an immature and pointless argument that occured after O'Reilly decided to take a situation that happened to involve an illegal immigrant and turned it into a weapon of the conservative extreme.
The fight was about a tragic story from Virginia Beach. Two weeks ago, an allegedly drunk driver killed two high school girls. The driver, Alfredo Ramos, had been convicted of driving under the influence once before, but was never sentenced to jail, according to an article by WVEC-TV, the Virginia Beach ABC affiliate. This story could clearly elicit arguments about insufficient DUI punishments, an argument that follows many of the nearly 17,000 deaths each year resulting from drunk driving. The story may be sad, and it may be unjust, but a drunk driving story -- even one with a repeat offender -- would not (and does not) make national headlines. And it certainly would not be spoken about on national political shows.
In this case, however, O'Reilly -- well known for his extreme opinions -- decided to exploit the situation, shamelessly projecting his political agenda on a drunk-driving-related tragedy.
Ramos, the man charged with two counts of manslaughter in this Virginia Beach case, is also an illegal immigrant. O'Reilly used this to twist the story into a debate on illegal immigration, instead of the actual issue: drunk driving. O'Reilly blamed any and every person involved with the legal system, including the local government, previous convicting judge and the mayor of Virginia Beach for endangering citizens and not immediately deporting Ramos when he broke a law. O'Reilly called Virginia Beach a "sanctuary city" for not immediately deporting any and all illegal immigrants.
Yet Virginia Beach policy, which O'Reilly unfoundedly blames for the death of the two girls, is in complete accordance with the Virginia state code. The local police are not to question a person about citizenship or immigration status except in extreme situations, like the person is arrested for a felony orsuspected of terrorist activity, according to the Virginia Beach Chief of Police, Jake Jacocks, in his official statement responding to the O'Reilly-induced controversy.
O'Reilly believes that because Ramos had been previously arrested, but not deported, illegal immigrant policies in Virginia Beach are what caused the deaths.Alfredo Ramos had indeed been convicted previously of one DUI, a misdemeanor. He was not punished for the crime, but that had nothing to do with his being an illegal immigrant. The judge and police officers probably did not know that he was here illegally; they were not even allowed to question him on the matter. The problem was that the legal system allowed no punishment for that first DUI, and he was not taken off the street like any drunken driver should be.
The screaming match between O'Reilly and Rivera that ensued may have amused some, but it was not an effective means of expressing ideas. It turned into a back-and-forth tantrum, with the main points being "This is completely about illegal immigration!" from O'Reilly and "This is an issue of drunk driving!" from Geraldo, with little reasoning behind them. Whether one is right or wrong, that is no way to debate, and the resulting argument was a waste of time.
The issue of illegal immigration is important. But manipulating this story and using it to justify O'Reilly's own extremist political ideology about illegal immigration is a ridiculous tactic.
Thousands of United States citizens drive under the influence every year, and there is no suggestion that if they had been thrown out of the country beforehand, lives would have been saved. The discussion revolves around preventing drunk driving or giving harsher punishments for first-time and repeat offenders. It is irrelevant where a person came from, or why he or she happened to be on the road that night. The problem is that there are still drunk drivers on the road, and they are not getting sufficiently punished for and deterred from endangering innocent lives.
Ashlee Wilkins' column usually appears Fridays in The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at awilkins@cavalierdaily.com.
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