Posted on 05/02/2006 5:58:15 PM PDT by Aussie Dasher
House Republicans called on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to prosecute businesses shut down yesterday by their illegal alien employees who took the day off to participate in protests of immigration legislation.
"Too often, we presume that fault lies with the illegal migrant worker, but we need to recognize that the employer broke the law by hiring the illegal alien," wrote Republican Reps. Jack Kingston of Georgia and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee. "We believe the federal government has an obligation to enforce the nation's immigration laws and must actively investigate any and all instances where it is apparent industries have knowingly and willingly hired those who entered this country illegally."
In a letter to ICE Assistant Secretary Julie Myers, Mr. Kingston and Mrs. Blackburn noted "the multiple reports in the news media today regarding companies which have been forced to halt operations because large numbers of their employees appear to be in the United States illegally and are participating in the protest rallies."
"ICE has an obligation to use this public information to enforce immigration laws," they wrote. "We respectfully request that you look into this matter and report back to us on your findings."
Rep. Tom Tancredo, Colorado Republican, meanwhile, observed that the "Day Without Immigrants" would have been a "boon" for taxpayers if they could have taken the day off from paying all the costs associated with the illegal alien community.
"The activist protesters are trying to confuse the American public by lumping legal immigrants with illegal aliens," Mr. Tancredo said. "A day without legal immigrants would be a day without almost all Americans. A day without illegal aliens, on the other hand, would be a boon to the American taxpayer."
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
It's a start.
They should just deport anyone wearing a Che T-shirt
THis is one of 2 priorities Republicans NEED to focus on - THIS and THE BORDER FENCING are the 2 areas if they get tough on will really help overcome the frustration and anger conservatives have felt over this issue.
DUH
Start collecting the taxes they owe, and things will change.
At the same time, give work visas for those we want/need to work.
ICE should have been at the demonstrations grabbing criminals. Then this morning they should have been at every business that closed yesterday checking their employees.
Stating the obvious but I guess it needs to be said.
Enforcing existing laws would take care of the bulk of the problem. Shutting Congress down would take care of the rest.
It's a good start, if Mom & Dad don't have a job, they'll go back to Mexico and take anchor baby with them.
I wonder if there could be a law that would allow citizens who are harmed by illegals (car accidents, murder, etc.) to sue the employer of the illegal, similar to the liability a bar owner has regarding patrons. If the employer had this potential negative consequence he or she might at least be careful about the backgrounds of hirees.
Oh boy. This is going to get good. Let's hope the Republicans don't wimp out this time.
IT'S ABOUT TIME!
At the same time, give work visas for those we want/need to work.
Ya keep the one's we want get rid of the undesireables.. Maybe the jews and polocks next.
This is what will solve the problem. Whole industries use illegals now. This is just simple economics, when one employer taps into the illegal cheap labor pool, others must do the same just to compete. If the Government would just enforce the existing laws, employers would not have been forced into this. Law enforcement keeps the playing field fair for the honest employer.
But .. while the employer has to submit a document (an I-9) showing the documentation submitted by the employee. However, there is no way - I know of - for the employer to find out if the SS number is a phoney. I had employees hand me a driver's license which I knew was phoney - because most states now have holograms on their licenses which show up when you copy them. But, because they also had a SS card picture bank card, I was forced to hire them.
I recently quit my last job because I knew he was hiring illegals.
Will the big time employers like Tyson, Perdue and Cargill be effected by these laws?
Exactly. Cracking down on the employers will make a significant dent in the problem. It's the best first step.
wrong. i am flummoxed by this thralldom to a "guest worker program" by bush and some on this site.
UCLA recently did a study on the relationship between farm wages and the price of produce (the proverbial $5 a head of lettuce, and all that). per the study, farm wages account for 15% of the price at the market. in other words, of your $1.00 head of lettuce or pound basket of strawberries, farm wages are about 15 cents.
okay, everyone, let's put on our thinking caps ... what happens then if you double wages to $20 an hour, or treble them to $30, or, or, well, why not? times four to $40 an hour?
answer: head of lettuce costs a buck and a quarter. (yawn.) and, and ... all of a sudden we got a million or two american citizens in california off the welfare roles and making 80k a year, instead of a bunch of illegals living off the taxpayers. why is that such a bad idea?
and ... the $5 a head lettuce canard? the study concluded that farm wages would have to rise to $300 or $500 an hour (can't remember, but it was hundreds) for that to happen, and for that kinda dough, not only would i be the first in line to pick strawberries, but i would wager that a lot of people reading this thread would be right behind me in line.
and who would dispute that all of the farm positions would be filled by competent, capable, grateful americans ecstatic to have such a job at levels considerably less than $300 an hour. $100? $50? get it?
i'm in favor of a wall. enforcement. deportation. employers in jail. meaningful stuff.
but the answer in a way is simpler: we all pay thirty or forty cents more for a head of lettuce (big deal) and the problem goes away. moreover, potential prosperity for millions of unskilled and young americans.
and this is the crux of the problem with the whole guest worker nonsense which works as follows: place an ad: strawberry pickers for $4 an hour. no takers. (gee, whiz.) okay. then the farmer gets to bring in as much third-world trash as he wishes with the blessings of the federal government. huh?!?
well, how 'bout this instead: place another ad: $20 an hour for strawberry pickers? or $30? or whatever market forces require?
importing third-world slave labor, legally or otherwise, to undermine the basic economic law of supply and demand is not the answer. it's the problem.
why not an ad, instead of strawberry picker for four bucks an hour, oh, say, school teacher for four bucks an hour? or store manager for four bucks an hour? or engineer or doctor or nurse or tire guy for four bucks? (you know, the jobs americans won't do.)
"oh, i advertised but couldn't fill the positions. so now i get to import guatemalens."
all of them.
the answer is not to import cheap labor. the answer is to raise the pay of americans to the level that is necessary to attract and keep qualified people. simple. everyone (except george bush and the senate) knows this. (actually, they do, too. but they lie.) even harry reid. my five year old daughter knows this. it is an economic law, immutable as gravity.
and finally, what is this smug, superior attitude of everyone that strawberry pickers deserve to be abused with low wages, disrespect, etc.? what is inferior about a job (the jobs) that place food on our tables? that feed our nation as well as others?
just 'cause it doesn't take a degree from berkeley? (which i had thought we had all agreed was not necessarily a good thing?!?)
why not reward the people who actually do something good for each of us every day (putting strawberries on our tables) instead of the swine brainwashing our children to believe crap (professors at berkeley). who says a teacher should make more? (cushy indoor job. don't have to get your hands dirty. work half the year. etc. face it: if we weren't f*****g with the laws of economics, strawberry pickers WOULD be paid more than teachers.)
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