"I'm very curious about your reaction to the article I linked in post #33. It left me with the impression that the documentation system wasn't working and couldn't work...which is why I proposed a language test."
Yes, the documentation system isnt working... It is a FARCE because we let fraudulent documents be 'enough' of a fig leaf for employer liability. The employers *know* they are hiring illegals but turn a blind eye to get the cheap labor to stay competitive. Meanwhile, the article you posted proved that indeed we are not enforcing the 1986 employer sanctions. In the article it states:
"Palacios said none of the three contractors questioned his immigration status beyond asking for identification papers. The Social Security and green cards he produced, however, were false. He said he bought them for $160 from a labor recruiter soon after he crossed into the United States. "
The reason the contractors didnt question his status is they need the fake IDs as their excuse to pretend they 'dont know' they are illegals. The article also mentioned the paltry number of deportations and paltry number of employer fines levied... this is not rocket science. If we stop enforcing a law against X, we start seeing X happen openly. We are simply not enforcing the employer sanctions that were in the 1986 immigration reform act.
The way to fix this is to have a documentation verification system that *checks* whether the ID is fake or not, and *require* employers to live up to using it and not hiring those not found valid. The system is a national database that employers can check against to make sure that people are re-using another identity, faking one, or otherwise abusing or mis-stating who they are. It's really not that complicated to make sure that fake Social security numbers, green cards, and identities are not floating around. There are other ideas, like Tancredo's idea to make Social Security ID's tamper-proof that would complement this.
In the above case, the guy with the $160 fake ID would be smoked out and the contractor has a choice: Fire the guy, or face getting fined.
The system exists, works, and could be made mandatory for employers:
http://www.fairus.org/ImmigrationIssueCenters/ImmigrationIssueCenters.cfm?ID=2314&c=13 Speaking for the record on November 19, 2003, Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), Chairman of the House Immigration and Claims Subcommittee, noted that, “A recent study found that 96 percent of participating employers believed the pilot to be an effective and reliable tool for employment verification, 94 percent believed it to be more reliable than the IRCA-required document check, and 83 percent believed that participating in the pilot reduced uncertainty regarding work authorization.” On the same date, Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX), the ranking member of that subcommittee, stated, “The Basic Pilot is an effective employee verification program that makes it easier and safer for employers to hire foreign workers, which makes it easier for lawful foreign workers to find employment.”
Final thought liberallarry: The real rub is this. The cheap labor employers like the current setup, even if it harms taxpayers, and working Americans. That is why a simple and obvious system that WORKS is being left ON THE SHELF while the illegal immigration flood continues. Tell your HowardDean liberal friends that they are making a mistake by staying in bed with the cheap labor lobby and pushing for amnesty!