San Diego ( CNN ) On the threshold of the 2016 election , the GOP is in a terrible fix over immigration . They 've done such an effective job of alienating Hispanics over the years with their overall approach to immigration . Fences need to be mended . At least that 's the views of Republicans who understand changing demographics and realize the folly of antagonizing a population that produces more than 2 million potential voters every four years and maintains a sizable presence in three battleground states : Nevada , Florida and Colorado . And yet , in politics , the first rule is that elected officials should always remember to take care of their base -- elements of which , for the GOP , frown on attempts by Republican politicians to engage in `` Hispandering '' by reaching out to Hispanic voters and softening their tone on immigration . It 's mostly about jealously and resentment over seeing elected officials who used to woo them going off to woo somewhere else . Nonetheless , going forward , Republicans are n't sure what to do , and this indecision stems from three things . First , it is an article of faith among Republicans -- particularly those in the House of Representatives -- that the voters who turned out in November and put the GOP back in control of both houses of Congress want them to derail what the right-wing inaccurately describes as Obama 's `` executive amnesty . '' That 's what House Republicans attempted to do recently when they used amendments to a spending bill for the Department of Homeland Security to cut off funding for the administration 's plan to shield millions of illegal immigrants from deportation . The tactic divides Republicans and sets up a confrontation with GOP Senate colleagues , who are expected to scuttle the measure . It 's also a largely symbolic effort that will , in the end , not amount to much besides giving House Republicans something to point to down the road , when they go home to their districts . They 're probably counting on the fact that , while some of their constituents will be angry that Obama 's executive action survived , others will give conservative lawmakers an `` A '' for effort . Second , the Republican establishment and other moderates -- both in Washington and at the state level -- are determined to win back Hispanic support and not further antagonize or alienate those voters , unless the GOP wants to turn up DOA in the next several presidential elections . Republicans do n't have to turn themselves inside out , but they need to deal with immigration with more honesty , nuance and common sense . They should stop attacking immigrants because they 're frustrated by the government 's response to illegal immigration . And they should pick on people their own size by going after employers . Finally , they need to adopt a zero tolerance policy the next time a Republican official says something racist or nativist . Too many Republicans are cowards when it comes to acknowledging the role that ethnicity plays in the current anxiety that many Americans feel about managing immigration and securing the borders . And third , according to polls , nearly 90 % of Hispanic voters support Obama 's executive action and about 80 % of Hispanic voters say the GOP should not interfere with it , which sets up the possibility that Hispanics will punish Republicans if they continue to try to dismantle the policy . This does n't mean that all or even most Hispanics want open borders . It 's hard to make that argument given that , at the moment , most Border Patrol agents are Hispanic . But what I hear from Hispanics is that while they 're fed up with how both parties play politics with the immigration issue , they 're really furious at Republicans for that party 's efforts to demagogue this issue in order to scare up votes from white people . Hispanics say they want employers punished and not just the immigrants who ca n't defend themselves . And they tell me despite Republicans denying that race and ethnicity are factors in the debate , they do n't believe for one minute that Americans would be this shook up if the majority of illegal immigrants were coming from Canada , Sweden or Great Britain instead of Mexico , El Salvador and Guatemala . So how do Republicans placate those right-wing elements of their base and undo Obama 's executive action on immigration without further enraging Hispanics ? It wo n't be easy . Payback can be brutal . And while some political parties never learn , Hispanics never forget . Republicans could stubbornly decide that they do n't need Hispanic support in 2016 and beyond , and so they do n't have to worry about alienating them . Or they could roll the dice and count on the assumption that -- despite what the polls say -- not all Hispanics support Obama 's executive action because they oppose illegal immigration as much as other Americans . For now , Republicans seem to be going down a third road and simply ignoring the practical impact that their attempted rollback of Obama 's executive action would have on the millions of illegal immigrants who -- if the GOP were successful -- would suddenly be , once again , eligible for deportation . Republicans do n't want those people to be the focus of this discussion , and they 'd prefer the attention to be on the validity of executive action itself . That is where they 're shifting the conversation . That 's a weak attempt to dodge the issue . Hispanics are closer to this issue than other Americans because more of them have first-hand contact with illegal immigrants . They know this debate is n't some abstract discussion of competing priorities . They know it 's about people and detached politicians deciding who stays and who goes . That sounds like a fun game . Well , next year , Hispanics will get to play . They 'll help decide which elected officials stay in office and which ones go home for good .
On the threshold of the 2016 election , the GOP is in a terrible fix over immigration . The party has been unable to come up with any kind of comprehensive plan that can pass Congress and get through President Obama's veto pen.