Immigration Tops Texas Lawmakers' Agendas

(CBS 11 News) AUSTIN -- Texas lawmakers are ready to pounce on the illegal immigrant issue when they start their next session in January.

With the Democrats in charge in Washington, conservatives in Texas plan to put their imprint on a variety of issues ranging from abortion to school vouchers.

Their biggest push by far, however, will be passage of a host of bills dealing with illegal immigrants, including one that just might challenge the 14th Amendment, which defines citizenship and requires states to provide civil rights to anyone born on U.S. soil.

In Austin, Republicans began are heading to the state Capitol with stacks of bills aimed at cutting off benefits to illegal aliens, taxing their remittances south of the border, and requiring proof of citizenship at the voting booth. The harshest bill would deny welfare and other benefits even to the U.S.-born children of illegal aliens — rights supposedly given them under the 14th Amendment.

Latino groups, who were only recently being wooed by Republican candidates, were left aghast at the onslaught, calling it "a hate campaign" against immigrants and "anti-human being".

John Colyandro, director of the Texas Conservative Coalition, expects a broad array of legislation targeting benefits to illegals, as well as voter verification of citizenship, employer sanctions for hiring illegal aliens, and additional funding for border security. He says the two extremes of the current immigration debate — deporting all illegals or granting amnesty to all — are "unworkable and frankly intolerable."

Under the bill proposed by Republican state Rep. Leo Berman, of Tyler, children born in Texas to illegal aliens would be denied state unemployment or public assistance benefits like food stamps as well as professional licenses.

Berman argues that in Texas alone there are an estimated two million illegal aliens whose U.S.-born children get these benefits, which go largely un-reimbursed by the federal government.

Critics argue that the proposed measures are rooted in racism and fear and that those in the United States illegally contribute more to the economy than they take. They say Texas should take a less draconian approach to fighting illegal immigration.

"It is unChristian, it is unAmerican and any religious order would be against legislation that is so hateful," said state Rep. Norma Chávez, D-El Paso, a member of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus.

In 2006, more than 550 immigration-related bills were proposed in legislatures nationwide, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Thirty-three states adopted nearly 80 bills, covering topics ranging from employment to public benefits and access to driver's licenses. Several states adopted measures to increase penalties for human smuggling and trafficking.

House Bill 28 would bar the babies of illegal immigrants from receiving state benefits such as food stamps, health care or public housing.

House Bill 29 would impose an 8-percent fee on money transfers between Texas and Mexico, Central and South America.

House Bill 104 and House Bill 141 would take away the right for illegal immigrant students to pay in-state tuition at public universities.

Republican suicide???

Continued mass immigration is Republican suicide. Its helped turn California blue. It is helping the Democrats turn other traditionally Republican Sun Belt states purple. It has made uphill battles in New York and Illinois even steeper. And it will eventually turn the GOP's rock solid Texas into a battleground state.

Trying to do something about it now, before its too late is the only sensible thing to do. Yes, the professional ethnic grievance groups will call it a 'hate campaign' and other such nonsense, and such demagoguery probably will cost the GOP many Hispanic votes. But guess what? Its a matter of degree. Most Hispanics in Texas (as in all other states not called Florida) already favor the Democrats, despite years of pandering and lax (worse than Clinton) enforcement of immigration laws from the Bush machine.

Republicans dominate Texas for one reason and one reason alone; they consistently win over 70% of the white vote. That they have done a little better with Hispanic in Texas versus California is nice, but not decisive in the realignment to the GOP. The problem for the GOP is that they have allowed pro-Democrat mass immigration for three decades and counting now. Whites maintain majority status in the Texas electorate, but they lost majority status in the overall population a few years ago. As the electorate demographics catch up with those of the overall population, it is pretty much inevitable that the state will become less red and more competitive. The one thing that can keep it competitive and prevent a Calif-style collapse is if the GOP maintains its lock on white Texans (something it can't do with the more liberal white population of California), as its pretty much futile to hope to even break even with latinos.

So really, the choices are as follows; (1) Do something to restrict the pro-Democrat influx of immigrants now, or (2) embrace unending mass immigration and try to out-pander the Democrats.

The first option will almost certainly increase the margin by which the Republicans lose the Hispanic vote, but it may result in gains from other voters, and it may save the long-term prospects for the party. There is no upside to the second option. If it works, then what kind of Republican party would it portend? How many other issues will the party have moved left on to prove how much they love diversity? Would the de facto surrender on racial preferences be made official? This would all likely prove to be moot anyway, as it would almost certainly fail in the first place. Why would immigrants settle for Democrats-lite when they can have the real thing?

The likely result of continuing large-scale immigration is a slow disintegration of the GOP. California, NY, and Illinois will slip even futher away. Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, and Colorado will go from purple to blue. Florida will become harder to win. Texas will hang in the balance. Virginia will be lost, and other Southern states will become less red as the as the growing latino communities align with the overwhelmingly pro-Dem black communities.

And all along, we'll have Fred Barnes and Michael Barone types telling us that it was Republicans being mean and nativist and xenophobic and anti-whatever that made it so, instead of the actual mass immigration of people who were always going to favor the party of big govt and ethnic pandering (i.e. the Democrats), regardless of how nice Republicans were and how much they tried to echo the Democrats.

Good video link. The gumball demonstration is particularly effective. The antidote to third world poverty and overpopulation is capitalist. Best example with which I am familiar is Japan. Before World War II, it was considered overpopulated to the point that military expansion was necessary. On many levels, the Japanese were far more productive than the people which they displaced. Guam and Saipan, for example, were major exporters of rice during the war as the Japanese occpation was more industrious than the native population.

But the price of that war nearly destroyed the Japanese and eventually would have if they'd won the war. The reason was not because the Japanese weren't hard-working, industrious, family-centered people. They were and they still are. The reason is because the system was authoritian, racist and could not co-exist peacefully with their neighbors.

Losing the war forced the Japanese to adopt a capitalist and democratic system. Initially imposed by MacArthur and the American occupation army, their industrious and merchantalist ways under Imperial Japan became focused on making friends among their former enemies through peaceful trade and growing technology to the point that Japan became a major vehicle to enrich any part of Asia who would adopt even part of their model.

Japan is today the world's second largest economy and a positive influence for world peace and economic growth. Their growing population has slowed so much that even Japan, once considered the epitome of anti-immigrant xenophobia, has become welcoming and selctive of the most desireable immigrants.

This transformation did not take place because the United States accepted massive numbers of Japanese immigrants (though some of my best friends fall in that category), it took place because the United States provided a model for the Japanese to transform their own society from the rubble of World War II to the world's number two economy today.

Mexico is not poor because it is overpopulated-- it's population density is roughly the same as the state of South Carolina. Mexico is poor because its system is corrupt and designed to keep people poor.

Argentina, at the start of the 20th century, was one of the 10 richest countries in the world. Like Mexico, socialism and corruption impoverished the nation. Most of the county is productive lush grassland. It's population density is only 37 per square mile--less than the state of Colorado. And while not quite as corrupt as Mexico nor quite as impoverished, people are seeking to leave for the same reasons.

Moral-- changing the systems in these countries will do a lot more to help them than accepting massive immigration to help them escape the corrupt, socialist hell-holes they have become.

14th Amendment

U.S. Constitution - Amendment 14

Amendment 14 - Citizenship Rights

1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

I'm not for illegal's, but this passage gives their anchor babies the right of US citizenship, and the ability to file for welfare to support said anchor baby.

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