Talking about the clout, and assets ( i.e Money) that they bring to the economy and speaking of them in a blurred fashion ( not addressing their illegality )is all short sided thinking.
Their influences on culture and especially politics and entitlements will grow exponentially, eventually driving this nation farther to the left.
I have no problem with legal immigrants, in fact we need them to grow. That said we need them at a controlled rate one which allows us to do things such as background checks. One that allows the immigrant to realise how special this experiment is and to be absorbed into our culture not us into theirs. It's in fact unjust to allow them to explode upon the scene and in doing so destroy, the very dream they seek by their shear numbers and lack of assimilation.
This year the libs are siding with illegals. In 2000 they made Linda Chavez resign her selection of Sec. of Labor because she had an illegal living or working with her (can't remember all the details).