Better, and more cost effective strategy:
Build a wall, and then deport.
No matter what, the WALL MUST BE FIRST. CLOSE THE BORDER.
First a Wall, then the Employers and NO Amnesty
Sorry Chuck, I usually agree with you on things but not this time. First a wall, then deportation of illegals and jail for their employers.
I agree with Charles, fix the levees before you rebuild the town, both can't be done at the same time.
The obvious way to "normalize and legalize the situation of the 11 million illegals" is to send them back from whence they came.
This is the more realistic scenario. Illegal immigrants make up 3.7% of the population, the idea of forcibly deporting 1 out of every 25 inhabitants would require massive Gov't expenditures and intrusions into the economy and the business affairs. Hardly Conservative goals, I would think. It would also be a humanitarian disaster that could lead to international backlash, economically and politically.
Build a wall to prevent further illegal immigration, then have some form of probationary amnesty--ie, you WILL learn English and you WILL learn American patriotism, and you won't get to vote until you've mastered both skills. Take control of the Civics lessons and inculcate American/Capitalist values into the immigrants--Patriot's History of the U.S. the required text for the Naturalization class(es)--whether legal or soon-to-be legal. Raise the quota for legal immigrants from a quarter million to a full million (particularly so we can scoop up some Eastern European and Asian engineers, considering our country is going to have an engineer deficit once the Boomers start to retire). And of course, patrol the walls on BOTH borders (Kenneth Timmerman, in his book about myths in the War on Terror, argues persuasively that an Islamic Radical would be more likely to cross the Canadian border and not the Mexican border.)
We have to deal realistically with the problem, and not shoot for emotionally satisfying invectives against "Rinos" or Hispanics or ANSWER or anyone else. Deportation, imprisonement, these are not viable options, politically or fiscally. Then what? If you don't have a workable solution, you don't have a solution, and the unacceptable status quo remains. Build a wall, then teach the illegals to become Conservative Americans. Pull the rug out from under the Democrats, and have it both ways--win the security issue by securing the borders, win (or don't lose at least) Hispanics by offering the carrot and stick of amnesty if you're going to become a patriotic American and not just work here to send money back to Mexico. I'd rather have 11 million hard working English Speaking God-fearing Hispanic Americans over 11 million white Green Party trust fund WTO protesting Coldplay listening Howard Zinn quoting Bill Maher watching worthless folk poet "Americans". Maybe we need to deport some people in this country, but its the people in San Francisco and Portland who congenitally express disdain for living here, not those who want to live here and will appreciate living here.
How fortunate that there is no "good will" quark in my makeup. Send them home. No amnesty.
President Bush said the Minutemen are vigilantes.
This is a despicable lie.
President Bush said that they were only doing jobs American will not do.
This is a despicable lie.
President Bush said family values do not stop at the border.
This is somewhat true but to make it completely true we will have to open houses of ill repute outside of every town and city.
This will make their "family values" not stop at the border.
Why the Hell is it every time the subject of America's Sovereign Borders comes up, the Red Herring Brigade begins talking about Mexicans??
What parts of such simple and unambiguous phrases as Rule of Law, Sovereign Borders, criminal aliens, United States Constitution etceteras do these jokers have most difficulty with??
Make felonies of illegal border crossings and employing criminal aliens and, ON BOTH OUR NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN BORDERS, BUILD DOUBLE THIRTY FEET HIGH THIRTY FEET DEEP BARRIERS.
And bring back our Old Europe and Korea Border Guards and employ them on America's Borders for a change!
"Israel's border fence has been extraordinarily successful in keeping out potential infiltrators who are far more determined than mere immigrants. Nor have very many North Koreans crossed into South Korea in the past 50 years."
Troops and a fence now!
The fence is a great idea, but, a large number of the illegal aliens in the country got here not by crossing the border, by rather by overstaying their visas and then melting into the background. We need the manpower to be able to track down those people in the future -- as well as the fence on the border -- if our border security is going to be fixed.
Only then should a discussion be raised about the ones already here.
how about first a wall, then massive deportations...I am tired of these people claiming wanting a better life then the protests screaming this is Their Land???
They come here for a better life,,,YOURS. Question, do you want to give them your life?
The more pressure we keep on Mexico, immigration-wise, the more reformers inside of Mexico can be emboldened and empowered to scale back monopolists' abuses down there which keep our own country flooded with economic refugees. Here's an interesting new thread on new legal progress that finally emerged in Mexico I think as a result of immigration reform's failure:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1611677/posts
We can make a difference for our sake, and their's as well. Isn't it the neighborly thing to do?