Posted on 01/27/2005 7:15:50 PM PST by neverdem
WASHINGTON, Jan. 26 - The battle within the Republican Party over immigration policy was joined Wednesday as President Bush vigorously promoted his proposal for a guest worker program and conservatives in Congress introduced an alternative proposal to tighten immigration restrictions.
At a news conference, President Bush said again that he considered his guest worker proposal "a priority" even though Senate Republicans left it off their list of top goals. "A program that enables people to come into our country in a legal way to work for a period of time, for jobs that Americans won't do, will help make it easier for us to secure our borders," Mr. Bush said, adding: "I know there is a compassionate, humane way to deal with this issue. I want to remind people that family values do not end at the Rio Grande border."
Party conservatives, however, have strenuously opposed a guest worker plan since Mr. Bush introduced the idea in 2001, even staging a losing revolt over its inclusion in the party platform at the 2004 Republican convention. Many conservatives call the president's ideas "amnesty" - a term Mr. Bush disputes - because his plan includes ways for currently illegal immigrants to obtain temporary worker permits.
On Wednesday afternoon, Representative F. James Sensenbrenner Jr., the Wisconsin Republican who is chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, again introduced a measure to block illegal immigrants from obtaining driver's licenses.
At a news conference, he said the committee would not consider other immigration proposals, implicitly including the president's, until his own measure passed. A similar measure was removed from a bill to enact the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission last year. Senator Jon Kyl, Republican of Arizona, is expected to introduce a driver's license restriction this year.
Mr. Sensenbrenner said his bill was primarily directed at border security, distinguishing it from other changes in immigration policy. "Immigrants are not terrorists, except a few of them," he said. "The legislation that was introduced today is designed to get the bad apples out of the barrel before the barrel was spoiled."
He said a group of House Republicans had written a letter to Mr. Bush urging him to provide full financing for provisions in last year's antiterrorism bill doubling the number of border patrol agents and tripling the number of beds for detaining illegal immigrants over the next five years. The Department of Homeland Security said recently that it was planning a smaller increase in financing, drawing the ire of advocates of tighter immigration laws.
Asked about the president's proposal, Mr. Sensenbrenner said his committee was "going to be plenty busy with other priorities, a lot of which are the priorities of the White House."
In an interview, Representative Chris Cannon, a Utah Republican who supports the president's plan, said a guest worker program would not amount to an amnesty because it would include a monetary penalty for currently illegal immigrants. "The people who want to kick them all out are not reasonable people," he said.
But Representative Tom Tancredo, Republican of Colorado and chairman of the Congressional immigration caucus, vowed to defeat any program that in his view would reward lawbreakers, even questioning the president's motives. "Could it be just the corporate interests, the money interests that rely so heavily on cheap labor?" he asked
But even if you accept his data, he hasn't accounted for the productive value of immigrant labor. The companies they work for pay taxes and generate income beyond their own.
If illegal immigrants really had a negative impact on taxes and economy of a city why don't you see any mayors trying to get rid of them.
Anyone who thinks that productive employees are a burden on the community doesn't understand economics.
"A Day Without a Mexican."
If by "Mexican" the film's producers meant anyone who owed their residency in California to illegal immigration the following things would happen:
1) A 33% reduction in public school attendance. A savings to the taxpayers of almost $30B in annual costs.
2) A 25% reduction in the prison population saving taxpayers additional billions.
3) A 30% reduction in the emergency room and clinic populations. Ditto billions more.
4) An 85% reduction in juvenile gang activity resulting in billions in savings for local tax payers and thousands of citizens who were not injured or harmed.
5) A 30% reduction in public welfare costs included programs for the indigent aged.
6) A 15% to 25% increase in Republican party representation in the state Legislature because of the dramatic redistricting that would occur.
Six changes that represent the tip of the iceberg. Wouldn't it be grand. Poof, gone.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1163317/posts?page=13#13
Laborers aren't terrorists. Terrorists aren't being let in.
And I'd prefer to die rich, however I respect your right to die in poverty.
How old are you?
What is it? Do you give a lot of money to this site? Why in hell would they put up with you?
You can prove that?
California would be broke and destitute without it's Hispanic population.
"illegal immigrants"
That's ILLEGAL ALIENS!!!! GET IT RIGHT!!!
Where have you been? Try lurking a few weeks before breaking into threads you know nothing about with foolish comments.
rott...stand your ground. Some day these party punch drinkers will open their eyes.
There's a significant percentage of native-born Americans who don't fit those criteria as well, aside from the part of wanting to become a citizen, because they got that right through birth.
I'm not saying that this changes the immigration issue, but if immigrants who, according to your estimation don't display the right attitude and motivation, who don't follow the law or set good examples for their children, and who don't look to America as a handout should be kicked out, then why shouldn't the native born Americans who possess the same characteristics be kicked out as well?
Many Americans don't even appreciate their citizenship, and are not even proud to live in this nation. They attain their citizenship through no hard work, simply by some sort of accident at birth that landed them here rather than in Mexico or Palestine or India or Wherever.
I'm not saying that we should treat this nation like some sort of Ivy League university, but there are plenty of people on the "Waiting List" and lots of people with "seats" who simply aren't pulling their weight.
http://www.carryingcapacity.org/checkup_datasheet.html
California would be heaven (again) without its illegal alien population.
In short: Bravo Sierra Mr. Bush [to quote the author]
, adding: "I know there is a compassionate, humane way to deal with this issue. I want to remind people that family values do not end at the Rio Grande border."
No but something called SOVEREIGNTY does begin and end there. Perhaps Mr. Bush forgot about that. Oh that's right, I forgot he is a globalist...
I have as much right on this thread as you do!
My comments are not half as assinine as yours are.
Feel free to post links to the proof that any of these studies have been refuted.
7. Among the largest federal costs from illegal immigration are Medicaid ($2.5 billion); treatment for the uninsured ($2.2 billion); food assistance programs such as food stamps, WIC, and free school lunches ($1.9 billion); the federal prison and court systems ($1.6 billion); and federal aid to schools ($1.4 billion). - Camarota, Steven A. The High Cost of Cheap Labor: Illegal Immigration and the Federal Budget, Center For Immigration Studies, August 2004
"What's more important than a healthy economy?"
If the economy is so friggin' good then it should be able to pay American Citizens a livable wage. People like you just want cheap labor. Viva LaRazorwire at the border!!!
Interesting notion
Don't you know, bayoufruad does not have to prove anything; he is the all knowing immigration expert on Free Republic.
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