Capitulation, from A------ to Z (Mark Steyn)

Chicago Sun Times ^ | May 20, 2007 | Mark Steyn

[Zakeet]

Are you a fine upstanding member of the Undocumented-American community? That's to say, are you (if you'll forgive the expression) an illegal immigrant?

Great news! Being illegal is now perfectly legal! Just for being one of the circa 12 million people who shouldn't be here, you can now be here indefinitely! If you were living and working in America illegally before Jan. 1, 2007, you're now entitled to one of the new Z-1 "probationary" visas. And your parents and spouses are entitled to one of the new Z-2 visas, and your children to the new Z-3 visas.

Don't worry: It's not an "amnesty." Every politician in America is opposed to amnesty -- if not the concept, then at least the word.

[Snip]

As for the notion that dumping a population the size of four mid-size European Union nations into the lap of America's arthritic "legal immigration" (please, no tittering; apparently, there is still such a thing) bureaucracy will lead to tougher enforcement and rigorous scrutiny and lots of other butch-sounding stuff, well, if that were the case, there wouldn't be a problem in the first place. You can declare that "illegal" now mean "legal" very easily; to mandate that "incompetent" now means "competent" is a tougher proposition.

But, as John McCain declared, "This is what the legislative process is all about" -- and in the sense that it's a sloppily drafted bottomless pit of unintended consequences on a potentially cosmic scale whose sweeping "reforms" will inevitably require even more sweeping reforms of the reforms in a year or two's time, he's quite right. Also, as Senator McCain says, "This is what bipartisanship is all about."

[irv]

The political class' urge to capitulate on the integrity of the national border sends as important a message to the world about American will as their urge to capitulate on Iraq.

Steyn is basically always right. America's will is judged worldwide, unfortunately, by the actions of the self-serving cowards we elect.

Except McCain's not a coward, is he? He's just determined to do as much harm as he can. And he has friends all over Washington who are eager to help.

sigh.

[attiladhun2]

The unassimilated young latinos in our country are increasingly joining gangs that threaten our cities.These will be the shock troops of an increasingly Marxist Democrat Part. Gangbangers and Union thugs will provide the muscle to muzzle all opposition, seize assets to be redistributed to the "oppressed", and to act as the guards in the "re-education" camps our compassionate leftist friends will surely set-up when they have finally "triumphed" over us "bigoted" reactionaries.

[Kozak]

Look, the bastards have won. We are going to get an amnesty whether we want one or not; the forces pushing for it from behind the scenes are too strong. Our only option now is to think in terms of damage control.

OH. So I guess I should limit myself to Spanish lessons and start advertising for a good lawn boy?

[attiladhun2]

A numero uno reason why the old immigration differs radically from the new are hundreds of local, state, and Federal entitlement (i.e., wealth-transfer) programs that cost the taxpayers about $18k per immigrant. Pro-immigration proponents like to tell us how immigrants “pay their own way.” Nothing could be further from the truth. Unless the immigrant is highly skilled and able to command a good salary, he is more than likely to need $1,000s of government subsidies in order to support himself and his family. These people pay only an avg. of about $2k a year in taxes. That hardly offsets the thousands it costs for his children to attend government schools, the thousands more he will receive in low-income credits on his tax return, and the thousands more it will cost the taxpayers in added crime prevention, health care, detention, increased insurance costs, etc, etc, etc. The labor of illegal immigrants is highly subsidized by the taxpayers and uneconomical. It would actually be cheaper in the long run to pay American citizens a decent wage and hire them rather than the disease-ridden, uneducated, and poverty-stricken masses of the 3d World. That is fact. Anything else said about this issue is nothing but the smoke and mirrors the uniformed, politicians and pro-immigration groups like to trot out.

[firewalk]

Thanks for posting this

[Cacique]

CALL! CALL! CALL! CALL! AND KEEP CALLING TILL THE LINES FRY!

WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! TILL YOU RUN OUT OF INK IN YOUR PEN!

Bombard the Democrats as well, especially the ones that ran on an anti immigration plank and the ones in marginal districts who could be vulnerable. keep pounding on them.

STOP AMNESTY NOW!! WE CAN DO IT!!

The best way to stop Shamnesty

[attiladhun2]

I would rather listen to what Lou Dobbs had to say about the matter. Although discouraged, he said he is not about to give up his country to the internationalists who want to cobble together some kind of incomptent N. American “union.” That is my sentiment, as well. If we have to resist our own government to prevent the wholesale looting of our land by neo-Visigoths and the traitors who represent them, then I say let it begin!

[aculeus]

Thanks.

[norton]

"First, it's not an immigration bill. It is a sanctioning of those who have broken the law, skipped the line that every legal immigrant must take, because of personal greed. It rewards those who cut the line, broke the law, because it's deemed too difficult to actually enforce the law to begin with."

WELL SAID!

[norton]

"This is just cynicism. “ so there is absolutely no reason to think that any future law would be any more effective in keeping the illegals from working than the current law has been.” If you believe that workplace enforcement is impossible, even when significantly strengthened, then what do you propose?"

Well, yes it did seem cynical, but that seems to be a reasonable response to what has gone before.
The poster did not say enforcement was impossible - only that it has not been practiced in the past and there is no current reason to believe things will improve in future.

Since most here realize that there are adequate laws on the books today (including funding for twice the fence this bill offers):
A more appropriate question ('what do you propose?') would be 'what can we do to see that existing immigration laws ARE taken seriously by our own government?'.

Since most here would have to agree that the sainted RR wasn't perfect in all things:
A second question might be 'what can be done to stop another amnesty screw up by another Republican president only 20 years after the last one?'

And, of course, the fatal third question is 'how do we do that without handing 2008 over to the other face of Bill?'

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Bipartisan = an even bigger Royal Screwing than usual.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Isn’t there a provision that punishes employers who hire illegals?

What makes you think that these provisions will be enforced any more than the old ones?

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Actually, more Asians vote Democrat than Republican.

[Eagle74]

WHEN THE GOING GETS TOUGH, THE TOUGH ORGANIZE RECALL ELECTIONS.

[ding_dong_daddy_from_dumas]

>>The political class’ urge to capitulate on the integrity of the national border sends as important a message to the world about American will as their urge to capitulate on Iraq.<<

That may sound like hyperbole, but think about how many Americans are killed in Iraq vs. how many are killed by illegals.

[ClaireSolt]

I have used the current system that requires employers to check id and then file photocopies. The internet verification will alert the feds to where the illegals are and cross reference against other data bases. The current system has fostered fraud and identity theft. Although I have seen today that the pilot verification system may not be good enough, I do support these enhancements to enforcment. I think Newt wants Visa to handle the verificatiopn. If people cannot work legally, many will leave.

When you have something that is not working I think you figure out if you fix it or throw it out. As I am not intrested in waring a burqua, I do not favor surrender to al Queda or the invaders.

[CyberAnt]

And .. the GOP senator he sniped at with foul language was right on the mark. McCain is only doing this because he has the support of the left .. and he thinks it will win him the WH. He couldn’t be more mistaken.

[metesky]

bttt

[Paul Ross]

[Build the Fence] Expensive. Congress won't authorize it.

Congress aldready did, with the passage of the 2006 Border Enforcement bill, and funded it too.

The People won't pay for it.

Let's put that to a vote. The price tag is projected to actually only be $2 billion. Pretty measely amount when the damages that are being heaped upon the U.S. with each passing year of a million new illegals...

Will never happen. Legislators will never bite the corporate and union hands that feed them.

Now there you have a point. What we need to do is actually cashier the politicians who are so inclined, and get fire-breathing hard-core single-issue folks who don't DARE do anything less than their torpedo-run on this issue. The raw electoral power of the majority of the country has to be marshalled to directly clash, confront, and beat to a pulp the raw political-influence power of the Big Money on this issue. And not just this issue. The destruction of the U.S. industry by abetting it being siphoned off to China has the same political characteristics...and many of the same political characters too...

[Anchor Baby fix] Would require a constitutional amendment — a dicey proposition at best.

This is a logical and sensible concern...but the issue has become so inflamed...it may actually be viable. In the interim, we can have the whole thing play out with Federal laws changes that would then get struck down by ACLU-directed verdicts. Simple things like sending the parent back, and keeping the kid and putting it up for adoption...that would get the La Raza crowd's knickers in a twist...

Our only option now is to think in terms of damage control.

I am not willing to concede defeat to the betrayers just yet. Let's go to the mat on this...it's the only way. And it wouldn't hurt to threaten a massive "political scorched earth" policy...where every single politician who is backing this has the words "Impeachmet" loudly and often ringing in their ears and overflowing in their mailboxes....and an opponent...inside their own party...who decries their treason.

None of them can conceive that the voters could get their act together well enough to make this strategy viable. I think they are wrong.

[LibertyJihad]

Oh my! You have quite the totalitarian bent don’t you? Your solutions for illegal conduct of individuals is to burden others (employers and law-abiding citizens) by imposing new regulations on them (id cards and employee background checks). Why shouldn’t schools and hospitals be allowed to deny service to non-citizens?

I know, it seems so hard. But, had we pursued the right course in 1986, rather than the easy course you propose,the problem could have been solved today. You simply want a law - any law - rather than the right solution. A solution that respects the freedom and rights of law-abiding citizens while removing the court imposed restrictions (free hospital care and education) that lead to much of our problem.