A few weeks ago, when Lou Dobbs abruptly quit CNN, the nightly platform for his anti-immigrant views, Latino civic groups were ecstatic. They declared their “Drop Dobbs” campaign a success. The last of the original CNN anchormen left the network with a reported $8 million payout. 

Immediately Dobbs began to make the rounds of other programs, including Today and The Daily Show (where Jon Stewart hired a mariachi band to serenade him).  

Then on Nov. 20 Dobbs did a live interview on Telemundo's Al Rojo Vivo.  Host María Celeste introduced Dobbs, and my jaw dropped when he apologized for not being able to speak with her in Spanish.  This from a man who has supported English-only laws and regularly lambasted those who dared to speak Spanish in his United States! 

I laughed when Celeste mentioned Dobbs' low standing among Latinos.  Dobbs said that he doubted this, and Celeste shot back, “Trust me, in the Hispanic world, you are viewed by many (pause) as a No. 1 enemy.” 

Celeste questioned Dobbs about the falsehoods he presented on his program, such as his claim that illegal immigrants were responsible for an outbreak of leprosy.

Dobbs blamed his correspondent for that gross misstatement of fact.

And for his claim that illegal immigrants make up one-third of the federal prison population. Dobbs said he made “a rounding error.”

He further denied saying that Arizona's Sheriff Joe Arpaio was “a model for the whole country”. He did, in fact, say this. 

Twice Dobbs mentioned that he supported a plan for the legalization of undocumented workers in the United States — the very “shamnesty” (his term) he has denounced for years!   

Speaking about the country's estimated 12 million undocumented workers, Dobbs said, "We need the ability to legalize illegal immigrants under certain conditions."

These statements were astonishing.  No public figure has been more rabidly anti-amnesty than Dobbs, and opposition to illegal immigration is his signature issue.    

At the end of the interview, Celeste asked Dobbs if he had anything he wanted to say to the Hispanic community.   

In response, Dobbs said, “Whatever you have thought of me in the past, I can tell you right now that I am one of your greatest friends and I mean for us to work together.” 

So, after years of vilifying immigrants, sabotaging efforts at comprehensive reform, and deriding Latino advocacy groups, Dobbs is our new amigo?  What could account for such an incredible flip-flop?  The answer, of course, is politics.   

Dobbs is considering running for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Democrat Robert Menéndez in New Jersey, Menéndez is the Senate's only Hispanic member.  There has also been speculation that Dobbs has an eye on an independent bid for president in 2012.    

Dobb's about-face on amnesty is sensible considering that New Jersey has the ninth-largest Latino population in the country.  According to the Pew Center, there are 1.4 million Hispanics in the Garden State.   

Menéndez does not seem worried.  His spokesman told The Wall Street Journal that the Senator's “focus is on jobs, not Dobbs.”  

Dobbs' reversal on legalization for undocumented workers suggests a startling lack of integrity.  It is a blatant attempt to appeal to Latinos, now that he might need our support.  His new position will surely flummox his conservative fans.   

It makes me wonder if Dobbs ever really believed his own anti-immigrant rhetoric, or whether it was simply a means to tap into populist xenophobia.  Either way, it all strikes me as deeply cynical. My hope is that Dobbs stays off TV and off the ballot.

Raúl Reyes is a lawyer in New York. He can be reached at RaulAReyes.com   ©2009