Posted on 12/02/2005 5:35:34 AM PST by Reaganwuzthebest
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said Thursday that a temporary worker program for migrants who want jobs in the United States and stronger sanctions against employers who knowingly hire undocumented workers are critical to improved border security.
Chertoff said the government has "no other choice" but to develop a legal channel that will match willing migrants with U.S. employers in order to relieve the strain on the Border Patrol and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement bureau. House Republicans in particular are bitterly divided on whether border security reforms should include a temporary worker program.
"If we don't have a temporary worker program, I think it's going to be extraordinarily difficult to ask our Border Patrol agents and our ICE agents to stem the tide that is driven by a huge economic engine of employers looking for people who can work [in jobs that] won't be done by Americans," Chertoff told reporters during a briefing on the administration's Border Security Initiative.
About 80 House lawmakers -- most of them Republicans -- wrote President Bush a letter in October saying they will be opposed to a temporary worker program until current border laws are enforced.
Another side of border security, which has attracted less attention in recent weeks, entails punishing employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.
"The employers are driving the demand," Chertoff said. "Employers, by giving jobs to illegal migrants, are causing illegal migrants to come and stay."
Chertoff said the government has an obligation to give employers "a convenient, efficient and secure way to validate and verify that they have migrants who are temporary workers." On the flip side, he added, employers who knowingly hire undocumented workers should be penalized.
The Homeland Security Department plans to announce new regulations aimed at helping employers verify the workers' identities, Chertoff said. Currently, companies can use the Basic Pilot Employment Verification Program. But the program is voluntary and has been criticized for its reliance on old and inaccurate databases.
Chertoff said DHS needs to examine whether employers should be required to do background checks on workers.
"We're looking at the whole system," he said, "and I can predict in the next weeks you're going to see a number of regulatory and policy changes that will be designed to do two things: make it easier for employers to verify employment but also say that if you don't verify employment, there's going to be tougher punishment and quicker punishment."
Critics argue, however, that ICE is understaffed and lacks the resources for effective worksite enforcement. The department primarily has been focused on enforcement operations at critical infrastructure sites, military bases and airports, they say.
"I think there's a lot of lip service in this town about solving this problem," said T.J. Bonner, president of the National Border Patrol Council. "I see no willingness on the part of this administration to be serious about this. They're talking as though the guest worker program will solve all the problems. If that were the case, no one would be crossing the border right now because everyone who wanted a job would already be in the country."
Another possible measure might involve requiring migrants to return to their home countries in order to collect benefits from their employment in the United States, Chertoff added, without elaborating.
But he said DHS does not support building a physical wall along the border. Such an effort would be "phenomenally expensive, wouldn't be particularly effective" and would still need to be backed up with technology and agents, he said.
"You could say in some ways we're going to have a virtual fence, because we're going to use a mix of technology and Border Patrol and infrastructure to create what is in effect a barrier to entry," Chertoff said. "But it's going to be a smart fence, not a stupid fence."
Do you you know what the word "chert"/"chort" ("czart" in Polish) means? The devil :(
That's creepy.
You've got that right.
Chertoff said Thursday that a temporary worker program for migrants who want jobs in the United States and stronger sanctions against employers who knowingly hire undocumented workers are critical to improved border security.
Surely he isn't talking about wanting MORE "workers" than are already here?
Chertoff said the government has "no other choice" but to develop a legal channel that will match willing migrants with U.S. employers in order to relieve the strain on the Border.
I guess he IS talking about bringing in more cheap/slave labor workers.
Does he expect us to believe that every single illegal alien in this country is gainfully employed to the extent that we now need MORE of them?
Put somebody on that border who is willing to shoot anything/anybody crossing illegally.
Chertoff to George " I don't think they bought it".
Chertoff is only doing and saying what he's told, in English we should define it as "sellout".
"Bush Administration Embraces Legalization, Film at 11:00".
How's that for irony.
Up is down, and down is up.
If they enact this so-called guest worker program, the flood will be a tidal wave. Hey, if they can get across the border, the people can get guest worker status. Hard to say if Chertoff really beleives the BS he's spouting, or if he's only being an obedient lackey, but the BS still stinks.
In either case, this is being driven by President Bush, and is one of the biggest mistakes he's made.
SECURE THE BORDER FIRST. Then, we'll talk about the rest of it. Without a secure border, they're whistling in the wind.
There's something more insidious about this than "cheap labor", because "big companies" are not the primary employers of illegals.
It's the landscapers, the butchers, the contractors, and small/medium businesses that are hiring illegals. They don't really have a lobby in DC, and they aren't supported by the unions.
If I drive down to Culmore Shopping Center in Falls Church Virginia today, there won't be any "big business" supporting those 50 to 125 guys milling in the 7-11 parking lot.
Similarly, there are lots of medium/small businesses hiring legal immigrants who are nonetheless "unskilled" by American standards and don't speak English, but they at least get minimum wage.
So where is the pressure for illegals? It's not "big business", it's obviously not the unions, so.... only PC politicians???
"Knowingly" isn't going to work. What we need is "strict liability," meaning that if a person hires an illegal alien, then that person is liable in both a criminal and civil enforcement proceeding, regardless of actual knowledge. While that may seem unfair, strict liability has long been the standard for statutory rape, service of alcohol to underaged drinkers, and many environmnetal laws.
"You could say in some ways we're going to have a virtual fence, because we're going to use a mix of technology and Border Patrol and infrastructure to create what is in effect a barrier to entry," Chertoff said. "But it's going to be a smart fence, not a stupid fence."
In other words, "why waste $10 billion building an Israeli type wall across our entire southern border when we can achieve half the results for ten times the price by building a 'virtual fence'."
My peons are so stupid, they'll believe anything!" 
He's too smart to not understand the problem (remember, it was Chertoff alone who unveiled The Lippo Group ten years ago).
So he's being an obediant lackey. Period.
There was a post on FR a day or two ago stating that GWB intended to start an enforcement program first (PR value) as the new lead-in to the guest worker/amnesty program.
That's precisely what we're seeing right now.
Artificial wage suppression lowers pay scales at all levels. And that's good for big business.
"If we don't have a temporary worker program, I think it's going to be extraordinarily difficult to ask our Border Patrol agents and our ICE agents to stem the tide that is driven by a huge economic engine of employers looking for people who can work [in jobs that] won't be done by Americans," Chertoff told reporters during a briefing on the administration's Border Security Initiative.OMG, the ignorance of this man is just unbelievable.
Way, way before we begin to even think about a "guest worker" program, we need a strong, effective, and enforced program that imposes severe financial penalties and jail time for employers who hire Criminal Aliens. (Personally, IMHO, this one step will end about 90% of the invasion.) And we don't need any fancy new programs. Just tighten up and enforce the laws already on the books.
AFTER that program is tested, in place and shown to be working, we can start discussing a "guest worker" program.
And any effective guest worker program has to answer this question: After the "guest worker's" time expires, what iron-clad guarantee do we have that he will go home? What will prevent him from just disappearing into American society?
And one more thing. IMHO, this "jobs Americans won't do" is a bunch of BS. 15 years ago, before the Criminal Alien Invasion turned from a trickle into a flood, there were plenty of Americans to do these jobs. And there still are. But from a paperwork and accountability standpoint, it's much cheaper for the employer to hire a Criminal Alien than an American.
This "jobs Americans won't do" is code for, "jobs that only the Criminal Aliens will do 'cause the employers pay them way below scale and in cash." And the employers can get away with this since federal and state withholdings are not applied to the under the table cash payments to Criminal Aliens.
If there is a "guest worker" program, the (now legal?) Criminal Aliens will need to have a SSN so that federal, state and local taxes and FICA, etc. can be withheld from their paychecks. Which means the employers won't be able to pay them under the table. Which in turn means the employers won't be able to get away with below scale wages. So, from a pay standpoint, the Criminal Aliens will turn into Americans. And then where oh where will we find people to do the jobs that, "Americans won't do?"
Thread's over. Sterco wins.
We're seeing an enforcement program? Or merely talk of an enforcement program?
Technically, we've had an enforcement program all along. It's called the law. The administration has refused to enforce the law, instead offering lame excuses for non-enforcement. But now they're going to propose some enforcement "program"? I don't buy it (though I am paying for it, I'm sure.)
SECURE THE BORDERS
Whoever you get next will still be working for the same master.
Jorge is the problem.
"Also known as Orwellian."
...and language not generally used by conservatives. ......at least not way back when conservatives were conservative.
This makes the Orwell analogy nearly complete. We have our own little Republican Animal Farm going here.
(I know I'm mixing my Orwell novels.....)
Skelator (Chertoff) has never seen a fence.
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