Marco Rubio Outlines Elements of His New Immigration Plan

New York Times ^ | 01/18/2013 | Julia Preston

[SeekAndFind]

Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, a Republican who is on a talking tour to publicize his proposals for an immigration overhaul, said on Thursday that tighter enforcement at the borders and in workplaces would be central to his plan, which would also offer legal status to millions of illegal immigrants.

In a meeting in New York with reporters and editors of The New York Times, Mr. Rubio said that any broad immigration legislation should create a nationwide exit system to check foreigners out of the country, to confirm that they left before their visas expired. He noted that at least 40 percent of an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the country came on legal visas but then overstayed.

Mr. Rubio said he would also insist on a nationwide program for employers to verify the legal authorization of new workers, although he did not specify whether he would favor an expansion of an existing federal electronic worker verification program or seek to create a new one.

Mr. Rubio, 41, the conservative son of blue-collar Cuban exiles who won his Senate seat in 2010 with support from the Tea Party, has been shaking up the Republican Party’s immigration politics with his proposals to offer legal status and eventually American citizenship to immigrants here illegally. Since the November elections, many Republican leaders have said the party should find an alternative to the policy of “self-deportation” for illegal immigrants, which turned many Latino voters away from the party’s presidential candidate, Mitt Romney.

On Monday, Mr. Romney’s running mate, Representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, shifted to Mr. Rubio’s approach, endorsing the senator’s principles and saying the two would work together on immigration legislation. On Wednesday, Bill O’Reilly, the conservative media personality, added his endorsement, telling Mr. Rubio he liked his program.

[al_c]

Mr. Rubio said that any broad immigration legislation should create a nationwide exit system to check foreigners out of the country, to confirm that they left before their visas expired. He noted that at least 40 percent of an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the country came on legal visas but then overstayed.

First time I've heard a politician mention this aspect of the problem. This needs to be fixed asap.

[Logical me]

Watch an interview with Rubio and his plan is excellent. This is the first comprehensive plan on the table and is the best answer to the problem.

The crazy idea to round all the illegals up and send them back is the most childish immature bunch of silliness I ever heard so spare some of us with this crap.

[VRW Conspirator]

...immigration legislation should create a nationwide exit system to check foreigners out of the country...

This should be the 1st step before anything else happens.

[TheLawyerFormerlyKnownAsAl]

Ryan can push this tripe at CPAC. Stick a fork in him, he’s done.

[VRW Conspirator]

The crazy idea to round all the illegals up and send them back

Would not have to if the governments would stop handing out goodies and perks as well as fine employers who hire them.

[CowboyJay]

"He noted that at least 40 percent of an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the country came on legal visas but then overstayed."

Sounds like a good enough reason to seriously curtail legal visas. That program needs to be rolled back to a level that can be adequately administered. But that's not what he's proposing.

"His plan would give a temporary “nonimmigrant visa” to illegal immigrants, which would allow them to remain and work in the United States. They would have to wait a “significant but reasonable” period of time before they could apply to become legal permanent residents, going to the back of the line in the existing system. Once they became residents, they could go on like other legal immigrants to naturalize as citizens."

Can someone please tell me how his plan differs significantly from McCain/Kennedy?

[kabar]

The crazy idea to round all the illegals up and send them back is the most childish immature bunch of silliness I ever heard so spare some of us with this crap.

The proponents of amnesty are wont to create the false choice between a blanket amnesty and mass deportation of 12 to 20 million illegal aliens. In reality, we have other choices and alternatives that don’t reward people who have broken our laws with the right to stay and work here and an eventual path to citizenship. The 12 to 20 million illegal aliens did not enter this country overnight and they will not leave overnight. Attrition through enforcement works. We have empirical data from Georgia, Oklahoma, and Arizona proving that it does.

Any legislation that legalizes the status of those who broke our laws by entering our country illegally and allows them to stay is amnesty. We must not only prevent the Democrats and some moderate Republicans from hijacking the meaning of the word amnesty, but the public must be made aware about the true impact of an amnesty.

The Heritage Foundation concluded that the cost of amnesty alone would be $2.6 trillion for just the entitlement program costs. And the number of additional LEGAL immigrants who would join those who were the recipients of amnesty through chain migration, i.e., family reunification, would approach 70 million over a 20-year period, assuming there are only 12 million illegal aliens. We cannot assimilate such numbers. An amnesty would destroy the United States of America with the stroke of a pen.

When you reward something, you get more of it. We had an amnesty in 1986. The USG estimated that one million would apply, but the true number turned out to be 2.7 milion. It was supposed to be a one-time anmensty never to happen again. 26 years later people like Rubio are calling for another one only this time we have 12 to 20 million illegal aliens. In 1986 once plans were announced to have an amnesty, illegals flooded into the country to take advantage of it. The 1986 Simpson-Mazolli amnesty included the requirement that you had to be here for five years, not committed more than three misdeameanors, pay a fine, learn English, etc. Doing the same thing again and expecting different results is the definition of insanity.

And we are just creating more Dem voters.

What is the advantage to legalizing illegal aliens to this country and to the Reps?

[kabar]

Can someone please tell me how his plan differs significantly from McCain/Kennedy?

It is the same repackaged crap. And it contains much of the same stuff as Hagel-Martinez that passed the Rep-controlled Senate in 2006.

[kabar]

First time I've heard a politician mention this aspect of the problem. This needs to be fixed asap.

We have had the US-VISIT program since 1996. It was never fully implemented. Bush 43 was worse on immigration enforcement than Clinton.

[TomGuy]

As Biden said about gun laws — there are too many to enforce, the same can be said about immigration laws.

Rubio is just updating the same stuff McCain and Co have been spouting for years.

New? Not really.

And as with previous laws, what makes the ‘new’ ones any more enforceable? If the previous laws WERE enforced, we wouldn't have the current problem.

[Vigilanteman]

Somebody tell me what the hell is the advantage in being a citizen anymore.

Illegals get all of the goodies (except voting, but they do that in large numbers anyway) and none of the responsibilities. No wonder they are such reliably Democrat voters.

My son-in-law, meanwhile, is still a Japanese national who married my daughter in 2007 and applied for U.S. Citizenship. After considerable application process and expense, they finally granted him a residency green card in 2010 but no citizenship yet. Could it be because he fits the profile of a reliable GOP voter?

[sickoflibs]

RE :”His plan would give a temporary “nonimmigrant visa” to illegal immigrants, which would allow them to remain and work in the United States. They would have to wait a “significant but reasonable” period of time before they could apply to become legal permanent residents, going to the back of the line in the existing system. Once they became residents, they could go on like other legal immigrants to naturalize as citizens.
“There are millions of people who have applied to enter this country legally,” Mr. Rubio said. “Our message to them cannot be: you should have come illegally because it’s faster and cheaper.”

The citizenship part is a disaster, create more lib/Dem voters?

[Liz]

Rubio added——”illegals came here to get the American Dream-—just as long as they don’t have to pay for it.”

[sickoflibs]

RE :”Rubio added——”illegals came here to get the American Dream-—just as long as they don’t have to pay for it.”

Not at that article link.

[CowboyJay]

"And we are just creating more Dem voters."

I don't know how supposedly reasoned people can overlook the inevitable consequence of amnesty for 20 million people who would vote democrat by a 2-to-1 margin. I think some are hoping it would help shore-up SS, but I've read reputable studies that concluded amnesty would be a net drain on SS funding.

I agree with you. Cut off the jobs, food stamps, and welfare checks, and they will leave on their own.

[3Fingas]

Amnesty will happen. Enforcement and border protection never will all because establishment Dems want new voters and Repubs want cheap labor.

I am in favor of legal immigration and would welcome those who do it properly. I have no patience for law-breakers who make the millions of past immigrants who have done it properly feel stupid for following the rules.

Those in this and previous administrations who don’t enforce existing laws have no right asking for new laws.
Selective enforcement of the law leads to corruption and loss of confidence in all authority and eventually a breakdown of civilization.

These politicians are doing irreparable damage to our republic just to gain some short term advantages.

[Moonman62]

If we can’t rely on the government to enforce the law now, we can’t rely on them to enforce a new set of more complicated rules later.

[Moonman62]

This is the first comprehensive plan on the table and is the best answer to the problem.

The word "comprehensive" is a big red flag. Your use of derogatory language doesn't help your cause either.

[Moonman62]

I don't know how supposedly reasoned people can overlook the inevitable consequence of amnesty for 20 million people who would vote democrat by a 2-to-1 margin. I think some are hoping it would help shore-up SS, but I've read reputable studies that concluded amnesty would be a net drain on SS funding.

I think the GOP likes to perpetually come in second in a two party race and let the Democrats implement the Big Government they really want.