[ravingnutter]

Let's try enforcing the old laws before we pass any new ones.

Good luck...local law enforcment, backed by the ACLU are not cooperating with the new regulations set down by Ashcroft. The ACLU even accused the U.S. of deliberately driving illegal border crossers into mortal harm's way by enforcing the border. Tancredo went as far as submitting a bill to cut off Federal funding to those local entities that do not cooperate, but the Dems are fighting it. One new bill that we should support is Rep. Dana Rohrabacher's (R-CA) H.R. 3722, which requires hospitals to report illegal immigrants that are treated in their facilities. However, the hospitals are complaining about that proposal as well. And of course, there are the socialists complaining about checkpoints set up inside the border of the U.S. within a 100 mile limit.

Let's try beefing up the Border Patrol.

Done...

Border Patrol has increased from a strength of 9,788 on September 11, 2001 to 10,835 on December 1, 2003. Between ports of entry on the northern border, the size of the Border Patrol has tripled to more than 1,000 agents. In addition, the Border Patrol is continuing installation of monitoring devices along the borders to detect illegal activity.

Source

Let's try pressuring the companies hiring these illegal aliens to hire legal Americans.

Operation Tarmac targeted airports that hire illegals. They have raided fruit and vegetable farms, meat packing plants, hotels, etc. Remember the Walmart raid?

Let's try denying taxpayer-supported social services to lawbreakers.

Illegal immigrants themselves are ineligible for welfare and can't get unemployment benefits or Social Security, but there is a loophole...they can get benefits for children they have in the U.S. We need to close that loophole by ending the "anchor baby" problem. Tancredo's proposal does that...we should support it by writing our Congresscritters.

Let's try deportations.

Not feasible, especially when local law enforcement won't cooperate. Some cities have even passed sanctuary laws.

Let's try enforcing criminal laws against illegal aliens just as we prosecute American citizens.

Let's encourage states and local governments to cooperate with immigration to uproot the illegals – especially those who continue to break the law. Let's even try putting the National Guard at our borders.

Again, local law enforcement agencies will not cooperate.

[azhenfud]

If Ashcroft had any testicular fortitude and could get Bush from obstructing justice, the sole responsibility of immigration code enforcement falls under his job description and should be upheld with no regard to objecting whiners. It's the law and until the law is changed, it should be enforced as is.

Even as depicable as Reno was, she had the stomach to put aside popular opinion and lawfully deport little Elian, who's incident costed taxpayers millions when a grand on a plane flight should have sufficed.