Posted on 08/11/2011 6:42:41 AM PDT by hocndoc
I was the first in my family to graduate from college, much less to go to Medical school. I believe I was blessed by attending Texas elementary and high school, Tyler junior college, UT at Tyler, and then Med school and residency in San Antonio, Texas. I'm grateful, knowing that a “non-traditional student” (an older woman with a family) couldn't have done that in any place but the USA and Texas. No one took my place or squeezed my kids out of a good education, even though we live in a small city where more than 50% of the surnames are of Spanish origin and we know that we have kids of illegal aliens in our schools.
Our law in Texas, (unofficially called The Texas DREAM Act after the failed Federal Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors), allows a young adult — who was brought here as a minor through no fault of his own – to be counted as a resident only for calculating tuition rates in our State-supported colleges. The Federal residency or citizenship requirements do not change for someone going to college under this provision. Young people who finish at least 3 years of high school, get their diploma from a Texas high school, have lived in Texas the 12 months before applying, and who get admitted to a Texas college, pay in-state tuition. In contrast to what we often hear, the law doesn’t discriminate against legal aliens from other states: rather than 3 years of residency, they only have to live in Texas for one year to establish residency and it doesn’t matter where they went to high school.
In order to continue to qualify for in-State tuition rates, he must pass his classes, take a full or near-full load and promise to formally apply for legal residency status as soon as Federal law allows.
The “Texas DREAM Act” is the law in our state and was passed with veto-proof numbers by the Texas Legislature over 10 years ago, in 2001. HB 1403 passed in the Senate with 29 “yeas,”no "Nays." It received 130 votes in favor in the House. The text of the Bill is, here. The Texas Legislature has never repealed the DREAM Act, although it was revised and made stricter in 2005 with SB 1528. That Bill also appeared veto-proof, with 31 votes in the Senate, and a non-recorded vote in the House. This year, the sole attempt by Senator Birdwell to increase tuition for undocumented students failed to make it out of the 82nd Legislature’s Senate, even when he tried to tie an amendment onto the larger Education Bill.
On most immigration subjects, I’m probably to the right of many people. I would insist that adults who cross the border illegally must go back to their country of origin before beginning any path to citizenship or residency. They should start the process on the other side of the border -- *especially* if they have an anchor baby as proof that they have already broken our laws. No ifs, ands, or buts about it.
In fact, I'm all for identifying adults who came here illegally, breaking our laws and for deporting the whole family until they can get in line and come here legally. Otherwise, we are encouraging people to break the law over and over. They go “underground” and are vulnerable. As a consequence, young people often graduate from our high schools truly “undocumented” in either country.
However, Federal law interferes with any attempt by the State to stop the problem where it begins. The Feds won't deport people. They won't allow us to identify those illegal adults with kids in our schools and deport them. Federal Courts have ruled that we must bend over backwards to prevent any appearance of scrutiny that might "chill" the educational prospects of any child, from preschool to high school graduation. In spite of all these limits on what the States can do, there’s no Federal attempt at a legal provision for identifying their country of origin.
So, until we can get the federal law changed to better control and deport known adult illegal aliens, do we Texans encourage their identification as (grateful) United States Americans and Texans or do we make them men and women without a country?
That's funny. Did you think you got appointed to posting permission police?
Technically, they’re not here criminally - they were brought here as minors.
_________________________________________
Think of it like this
Dad has a Meth lab in the basement...
Junior was just 6 when Dad started the lab
Junior is now 18 and takes over th lab making Meth himself
The police turn up at the door
Mom says “Oh but Junior was only 6 when my husband started making Meth...
The police say “Oh well thats different. It wasnt his fault. In that case Jubior can keep on making Meth, and BTW heres a free college education”
Yeah its kinda like that...
I disagree with your premise that nationalized citizens will vote Democrat. The abortion and marriage planks in the Dems’ platform is offensive to the family- and church-oriented immigrants.
However, on amnesty, here’s what Governor Perry said last year:
http://oneoldvet.com/?p=23146
1. You’ve just made it more attractive to be here illegally.
NO, it doesn’t. These kids have already been here all their lives since before Perry even became governor. Governor Perry has put more law enforcement on our border to stop illegal immigration than the damned feds we PAY to protect it.
2. You’ve just made it more easier to be here illegally.
NO, you haven’t. Governor Perry is doing his bewt to STOP illegal immigration by putting more law enforcement on our border than the feds we pay to protect it. Not only that he pushed the Sanctuary Cities bill that the RINOs in the House shot down in flames.
3. The same people you have just made it easier/attractive to be here illegally are being subsidized by my tax dollars
NO, he hasn’t. In case you didn’t notice they have to PAY TUITION to have access to our college and university system. AND in case you didn’t know it, the college and university system takes very little of your tax dollars. Most of their funding comes from private endowments and tuition.
4. That subsidization is one big reason we are in the financial straigths that we are in.
There is no subsidization, period. That’s a lie.
5. Those same illegals commit a plurality of the crimes (FBI statistics) in the US for a population that is probably 15% of the general population.
The children that have been in this state all lives that are going to college here? What FBI statistics do you have that say that? NONE!
6. Those same illegals refuse to assimilate.
Those children have been assimilated all their lives. They have no other country, nor have ever had one!
What we see here is proof that many Perry supporters, like you, actually support his liberal policies.
Rather than defend his actions by stating they were a mistake or some such, you reveal yourselves to be in full support of his liberal positions.
It explains a lot and allows us conservatives to safely ignore your opinions on any subject.
I don’t know that he’s predisposed to amnesty. Nothing about this issue says that to me.
If there’s not a clear answer, meaning that it hasn’t been clarified in the courts, then I’d argue that means you go by the letter of the law, which to my mind is pretty clear. Seems to me Perry and his legislature are trying to do an end run around federal law. I have HAD IT with pols treating the Constitution like toilet paper. And I don’t give a tinker’s dam which party they belong to.
I’m all for deporting the families or stopping them at the border. If the parents are illegal and the children were born here and are citizens, the law still requires the parents to start the process from the other side of the border. Kids belong with their parents until they are grown.
The practice is that if illegal aliens come forward for help, they are not arrested or deported. ICE has refused to follow through on deporting convicted criminals, and dump them here in Texas after bringing them here to their 11 Texas-based ICE detention centers.
The above is where we need to work on changing laws and court rulings. Cut the problem before it begins.
However, if the law will not send them home, if they graduate from our schools and live here 3 years, and get admitted to college, I support allowing them to pay for in-State tuition as long as they are in college.
The requirements for residency are much easier for US citizens, btw.
I’m all for deporting the families or stopping them at the border. Does Tennessee do this, or does its State Law enforcement turn a blind eye?
If the parents are illegal and the children were born here and are citizens, the law still requires the parents to start the process from the other side of the border. Kids belong with their parents until they are grown.
The practice is that if illegal aliens come forward for help, they are not arrested or deported. ICE has refused to follow through on deporting convicted criminals, and dump them here in Texas after bringing them here to their 11 Texas-based ICE detention centers.
Tennessee doesn’t have any of these detention facilities. Why not handle your own problems? http://www.ice.gov/detention-facilities/
The above is where we need to work on changing laws and court rulings. Cut the problem before it begins.
However, if the law will not send them home, if they graduate from our schools and live here 3 years, and get admitted to college, I support allowing them to pay for in-State tuition as long as they are in college.
The requirements for residency are much easier for US citizens, btw.
I’m not the idiot who is sending unsolicited pings to people about my opinion.
They all have countries and are citizens of their country of birth. In fact, Mexico allows dual citizenship and with its 60 consulates in the US, encourages them to vote in Mexican elections.
There you have it. Two amnesty supporters pushing Perry!
“Those children have been assimilated all their lives. They have no other country, nor have ever had one!”
Spoken like a true democrat!
Amnesty supporters for Perry!!
Personally I think your on the wrong forum.
I fully support providing in-state tuition and legal residency status to young immigrants who came here illegally but through no choice of their own... AFTER MEETING THE CONDITION that they accurately identify their parents and all other adult illegal aliens known to them, and that those criminal invaders are actually deported. In fact, I’d be willing to give free-ride college grants to those who provide information leading to the deportation of some minimum threshold number of illegals.
Of course, the same incentives would be extended to legal residents and citizens.
We are paying for both. State universities receive significant amounts of taxpayer funding. Yes, we should reverse Plyler vs Doe, which requires localities to admit K-12 students regardless of immigration status. If you read the decision, it is apparent that it was made on the basis that the costs were not significant. That has changed dramatically since them. Our schools are being overrun by illegals and the children of illegals, i.e., there are up to 400,000 anchor babies born each year to illegal alien parents. They automatically become US citizens entitled to Medicaid, food stamps, etc. just like anyone other citizen.
States ought not to be in the business of subsidizing illegal aliens. Every one dollar you make available to an illegal immigrant is one dollar you are not giving to one of your citizens. To grant illegal immigrants in-state tuition rates directly discriminates against non-resident U.S. citizens from surrounding states. That is a direct violation of the equal protection clause.
I don’t consider this Texas law to be “liberal.” It’s dealing with reality,one of the most basic of conservative values.
We continue to push the Feds to control the borders and deport criminals. Our State is fighting the dumping of convicted criminals in the State by ICE and of dropping cases in our cities.
http://blog.chron.com/txpotomac/2011/01/justice-delayed-how-immigration-and-drug-cases-have-created-a-judicial-emergency-in-texas/
I guess to some degree the Courts have responded in two cases that made it to their venue.
California: Students paying out-of-state tuition attending California schools filed a lawsuit in the Yolo County State Superior Court (Martinez v. Regents, No. CV 05-2064), claiming that education officials violated the IIRIRA by offering in-state tuition to unauthorized immigrant students while continuing to charge U.S. citizens out-of-state tuition rates. The complaint was filed against the University of California, California State University, and state community college systems, who offered in-state tuition to unauthorized immigrant students following Assembly Bill 540, enacted in October 2001. On October 6, 2006, Judge Thomas E. Warriner upheld the schools' decision to grant eligibility to unauthorized immigrant students for in-state tuition. In September, 2008, a California appeals court reinstated the lawsuit and returned it for consideration in Yolo County Superior Court. In November, 2010, the California Supreme Court upheld the state’s method for providing in-state tuition to unauthorized immigrant students and ruled it did not conflict with federal law. An appeal was filed with the U.S. Supreme Court. On June 6, 2011, the Supreme Court declined to review the ruling.
Kansas: A claim was brought to the Kansas District Court by a Missouri resident denied in-state tuition while unauthorized immigrant students were granted in-state tuition benefits, arguing that this violated IIRIRA (Day v. Sibelius, No. 04-4085/Day v. Bond, No. 07-1193). The Kansas District Court dismissed the claim for lack of standing. The decision was upheld in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. On June 23, 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the federal review court’s ruling.
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