1) Bush's statement of January 7 started a gold rush north and that takes some doing since the train is already crowded.
2) California spends approximately 1/3 of it's annual budget, that's $33B with a B, addressing the needs of the consequences of illegal immigration.
3) The dot.com bust was a precipitant but the core problem was the escalating illegals immigration numbers. Even with a strong tech sector, within 15 years no amount of market strength will support the cost to educate this group who is expanding at almost twice the rate of the rest of the states population.
4) You bet the liberal Legislature had a role in this but they aren't creating the children who are swamping our schools (education is their greatest cost), they aren't raising the children in third world conditions, leading to elevated health care needs (their second greatest cost) nor are they looking the other way when strong parenting is needed to prevent the formation of gangs and the consequent crime that it creates (their third greatest cost).
No patriciaruth, here's the pecking order that created and sustains California's economic crisis.
1) A president (Bush) who is encouraging rather than combating illegal immigration.
2) A governor (Schwarzenegger) who is negotiating in apparent good faith with the illegal immigration lobby in California and is acting like a fedral official meeting and dealing directly with of the corrupt Mexican government.
3) Last but not least, Republican Party loyalists who are willing to erode US sovereignty for a chance at political victory for their party. Shame on them all.
Sorry again for not responding earlier. Too many Republican wildebeests and so few conservative lions.
Until then, the liberal domination of the media, and much of the judiciary out here, will insure the public is treated to demonizing demagoguery about Republicans who try to do anything meaningful about the problem.
Right now, our most viable options are surveilance of the borders under the guise of national security, and educating American born Latino children to become productive citizens by insisting on learning standards in schools and thus tend more to Republican voting, for economic and religious heritage reasons. We also hope we can get some of American history and ideals instilled in these children. This is our Pied Piper undercover operation--to steal these children and make Americans out of them.
You have blinders on if you don't understand that we lost the war of the reconquista in the 90's here in California. Our hope for the survival of the American dream is to absorb the kids to share our ideals, to love America....to embrace the Latinos into the Republican ranks and make them into Americans.
I don't care what color, race, religion America is in the future; I care that they will believe in God and believe in the American Way.
There is no doubt that illegal immigration has cost us and is costing us far more than we have received in return, but the problem is not solvable until the broadcast media changes its tune. As a hopeful note, the Sierra Club is becoming more and more split over the issue, as more and more of them realize that the costs are not just to the economy but also to the environment and endangered species habitats.