BUSH'S IMMIGRATION PET PHRASES

michellemalkin.com ^ | 12/20/2004 | Michelle Malkin

[nanak]

After the White House news conference this morning, Bill Kristol on Fox News praised President Bush's remarks about "immigration reform" as "eloquent." Beg to differ. The president's open-borders statements were empty, garish platitudes strung together sloppily like cheap Christmas lights:

Illegal aliens "do the job Americans won't do." President Bush used that dog-tired phrase about a half-dozen times during today's press conference as he defended his impending illegal alien amnesty plan. Mark Krikorian effectively puts this mindless rhetoric to rest here.

"Family values don't stop at the Rio Grande." Uh huh. Well, terrorists and gang members and drunken murderers and cop-killers don't stop there either. And based on past and recent experience, granting amnesty to 13 million law-breakers will only result in more illegal immigration, not less.

We need immigration reform that "recognizes reality." Rank-and-file immigration enforcement officials give a real reality check on the amnesty debacle here, here, and here.

As immigration enforcement veteran/former U.S. prosecutor Peter Nunez put it:

[W]e need to stop the talk of a coming amnesty, or of a guest worker program, both of which, by themselves, serve to encourage additional illegal immigration. What kind of message are we sending when we dangle that possibility before people desperate enough to put their lives at risk? Doesn’t this kind of talk also indicate that we really don’t care much about law breaking, that we don’t really care that much about the rule of law, that these immigration laws exist only as a token objection to the violation of our sovereignty? Now, that is eloquent.

[You Dirty Rats]

This is the problem. You don't see the crime associated with illegal immigration at least not on the magnititude that those of us living on the border do. You don't see the welfare fraud. You don't see illegals getting preferential treatment over Americans at colleges and universities.

Welfare fraud and preferential treatment at colleges and universities are by no means limited to immigrants, legal or otherwise. Those two problems should be solved in any case.

In addition, crime has also happened with legal immigration in our past, such as during the "Know-Nothing" era in the 1850's. For that matter, citizens have been known to commit crimes.

[Hank Rearden]

We need to hold an intervention with Bush on this issue...

And pork.

And adding Cabinet departments that do nothing but spend money.

And how to wield a veto pen.

And how the Big Stupid Government wasn't created to run every aspect of our lives.

And the list goes on, and on, and on, and . . . . .

[Nick Danger]

we can put you in charge of explaining to our children what happened to America.

That's easy. Our women got confused and decided they would rather be faux men than populate the Earth and preserve our cultural and genetic inheritance. They said that wasn't as important as being under-assistant West Coast promo person for Yoyodyne. And we men let them get away with that. 40 million dead babies later, we're short 40 million people. Imagine that.

[WilliamofCarmichael]

bayourod and others who feeeeeeel as he does rarely post anything substantive. How can you figure arrogance from their splutterings?

I may often fail but I do try to present an idea or two -- many times with references as back up.

[usadave]

Won't happen. There is simply no way to send 8 million people back to Mexico. It is logistically impossible.

Cut illegal aliens off from everything that they came here for (jobs, taxpayer funded freebies) and they'll begin to "deport" themselves.

[sinkspur]

Big of you, delusional, but big, to make that decision on my behalf and the other 280,000,000 who are not even aware that you exist!

Where's the will to send 8 million illegals back to Mexico?

This is not an issue that is on the radar of the American people. It was not an issue in 2000, it was not an issue in 2002, and it was not an issue in 2004.

Bush is proposing something to realistically deal with the issue of illegals. You have no leverage over him because the American people simply don't see the urgency.

In addition, many Americans instinctively know that they benefit from low-priced vegetables and cheap housing costs.

Illegals have been an issue on FR since I joined six years ago, but I don't see the urgency when I go outside and encounter other Texans. It's never brought up, it's never discussed; in fact, illegal immigration simply isn't in the minds of most people.

If it is, nobody seems to consider it a bad thing.

And that's in Texas.

I can't remember a single politician in this state who has made deporting illegals a centerpiece of his campaign. You'd think that in conservative Texas that could be done. But, nobody does it.

[todd1]

I never said anything about racism... I feel that if we can get everyone documented and then close the borders, many of our problems you just mentiond will be resolved.

[todd1]

I live in Houston Texas... I have also been to the border towns quite a bit. but you just reinforced my point. If they become documented then they will be paying for those services they suck dry.

[Poundstone]

Although I agree with much of what Michelle Malkin says, I think she's exposed on immigration issues. I defy her to state that she's never filed an immigration petition for her relatives in the Philippines.

[todd1]

Thank you my friend.

[untrained skeptic]

"I agree in principle and disagree in specifics. We need to be talking about a guest worker program. And one of its most important facets is that anyone who has violated our immigration laws is ineligible."

As someone else mentioned, the logistics of deporting 12+ million immigrants are staggering. The ones already here are more likely to speak English, and many are even already trained in the work for which we need workers.

Making them leave before applying does have the benefit of not encouraging illegal immigration and sits better with people who don't like forgiving the fact that these people clearly broke the law in coming here.

"Further features should be: employers pay a $1000 per month fee to the government to hire the guest worker."

Under Bush's plan the immigrant does need to pay a fee to apply. The amount isn't specified, but I'm willing to bet it will be nowhere near $1000. The plan does not mention a fee for the employer. I wouldn't be surprised if there ended up being one, but $1000 seems a bit steep for many of the types of jobs these people are being hired for.

"Children born here are not granted citizenship."

I agree with this. However, It would require amending the constitution, and I think there is enough support for that. It is very difficult to amend the constitution, and I don't think there would be wide enough support to push this through all the steps.

"It is limited to 5 years."

Under Bush's plan the limit is 3 years with the ability to reapply. I'm not sure if the worker would be required to return to their home country before reapplying or not.

[stopem]

Heavens NO I am not suggesting we vote for dems or a
3rd party, whats to say we cant bluff a little? I wish the Swifties could save us from this one.
Its all very frustrating.

[Joe Hadenuf]

And we can put you in charge of explaining to our children what happened to America.

That's easy. Our women got confused and decided they would rather be faux men than populate the Earth and preserve our cultural and genetic inheritance.

Huh?

You don't get out much do you?

Our classrooms are jammed and overcrowded, our freeways and highways jammed, lines everywhere, make a phone call and your put on hold for 15 minutes, our jails are overcrowded, colleges are at capacity, landfills full, limited resources, pollution problems, social services choked off, limited hospital bed space, hospitals closing due to the poor that don't pay, most all the choice areas in this country are already built out, I could go on and on........

And you want millions upon millions more people?

Good Lord!

[rarenmrepublican]

"Illegals have been an issue on FR since I joined six years ago, but I don't see the urgency when I go outside and encounter other Texans. It's never brought up, it's never discussed; in fact, illegal immigration simply isn't in the minds of most people."

Do you live in the Panhandle? Because down here in El Paso it is a huge issue. College students can't get summer jobs because of the thousands of citizens of Juarez that will work for practically nothing. Pregnant mothers are constantly crossing the bridge of the America's so their babies can be U.S. citizens and the school's are forced to educate Mexican children that cross the border every day to take advantage of our education system.

[untrained skeptic]

"They'll go through background checks and have to be matched with a job or they will be deported.

ROTFLOL!!!

Thanks..great laugh. Always enjoy a humorous post."

Yea, I'm sure that background checks on immigrants will be far from perfect.

There is also a serious problem with us releasing criminal immigrants while they are awaiting trial which needs to end.

At least once we get people in the system we will have records of them and have a better potential of being able to deal with them.

[Fatalis]

More pet phrases of President Bush:

"I'm against amnesty"
"isn't an automatic path citizenship"
"against rewarding those who've broken our laws"

[usadave]

If everyone becomes documented then the workers will pay taxes, we will know who is in our country, and employers will be able to hire cheap labor without fear of prosecution.

We already have laws against employers hiring illegal aliens but that hasn't stopped employers from doing so. As things are right now, employers have absolutely no fear of prosecution by hiring illegal aliens.

[untrained skeptic]

"Do you think the chinese out to be able to sell pirated DVDs of music, movies in the US? I'm sure they'd be cheaper."

No. However I'm not sure how that's related to the legal importation of legal goods. What's you're point?

[Fatalis]

It's babies or immigrants, folks. Take your pick.

We need immigrants, but we don't need illegal aliens.

[Travis McGee]

RINOOBL-in-Chief Bump.