Posted on 09/25/2007 3:38:37 PM PDT by yorkie
Republican presidential candidate Rep. Tom Tancredo, of Colorado, said President Bush's failure to enforce existing immigration laws is "despicable" and leading to a domestic crisis.
If elected, Tancredo, 61, said he'd ask Congress to require the withdrawal of Social Security taxes from all employee wages to make it easier for the federal government to track and deport illegal aliens.
"If we don't like our immigration laws, if we think they are wrong, repeal them. If we don't think they are wrong, enforce them," Tancredo said during an interview with The Telegraph editorial board at Nashua High School South.
"Don't keep ignoring our laws, which this president has been doing, which is despicable," Tancredo said.
To Tancredo, Bush's failure to crack down more on employers who employ undocumented workers and to maintain border security amounts to a high crime.
"If he could be impeached for dereliction of duty, a bill could be brought. Unfortunately, that is not grounds," Tancredo said.
"He has avoided dealing with this issue to a point where we are at a crisis, I believe, and it is just unconscionable."
A six-term congressman, Tancredo said illegal immigration has become the centerpiece of his campaign, due to the role it's played in rising health-care costs, availability of jobs and crime.
"It is the most serious domestic policy we face, it has enormous ramifications for America, legal or illegal immigration, period, because of the lack of assimilation that has occurred," Tancredo said.
Employers need to increase the wages of the low-skill jobs instead of hiring illegal immigrants, Tancredo said. He insisted the private economy cost for such a move would be lower than the costs of educating and caring for those who are here illegally.
Tancredo said an illegal alien serving in the military should be placed on a path to citizenship, but all other undocumented citizens must return to their former home.
"I have compassion for people who have done it the right way," Tancredo said.
This is an excerpt. Sorry - clicked the box too late
Tancredo`s good at reading the riot act on immigration.
Go Tom go!
“If he could be impeached for dereliction of duty, a bill could be brought. Unfortunately, that is not grounds,” Tancredo said.”
I regret that too.
I love Tancredo, but, judging by polls, he has no chance. He wouldn’t make it through the primaries (I heard we may not be even having primaries, is it true?)
“Tancredo said an illegal alien serving in the military should be placed on a path to citizenship”
What does this mean?
How do illegal aliens end up in our military?
ping
They lie about their status and use fake documents. (Maybe Tancredo was talking about the legal resident aliens who are in the military.)
Military Eyeing 'Unknowns'
By Valerie Alvord
Denver Post
February 24, 2004
The Post doesn't archive their online articles, but I found some excerpts from Alvord's story in a March 1, 2004 article titled A Stunning Disclosure on Illegals in the Military:
"[T]he citizenship of 16,031 members of the Army, Air Force, Navy and Marines is listed as 'unknown.' That's about one in 100 active-duty military members who might be U.S. citizens, legal immigrants - or just about anybody else."
"U.S. military officials say they are shoring up defenses against illegal immigrants and others who may misrepresent themselves and join the armed services."
"The Army has the highest number of unknowns - 9,055. The Navy has 6,531, the Air Force 444, the Marines one. Overall, 1,366,032 U.S. citizens and 35,662 legal immigrants serve in the U.S. military."
"The case of an Army private from Mexico, who enlisted using a fake green card and then served in Iraq, suggests some of the unknowns could be illegal immigrants. The military has no set procedure for handling these cases. U.S. congressional leaders are looking into the matter ... Some experts see a security risk. Military officials say they've had few problems so far, but the 9/11 terrorist attacks raised concerns."
"Military officials check birth certificates, green cards or Social Security numbers to verify whether new recruits are legally in the country, said Navy Lt. Cmdr. Jane Campbell, a U.S. Defense Department spokeswoman ... 'We hope to enhance those in the future, and are looking to do that in coordination with other government agencies,' she said. 'We want to make the process better.' Among new military initiatives: Start checking Social Security numbers given by recruits - as diligent employers sometimes do."
"Data on citizenship in the military, provided by the Army, comes from September 2003. Military officials were unable to explain why the citizenship of so many is hazy. 'Of the number we have that are unknowns, I'm sure that some are citizens and some may not be citizens,' said Lt. Col. Stan Heath, spokesman for the U.S. Army Human Resources Command ... 'We just don't know' how many may be illegal, Heath said. 'We're trying to clean up the database to make sure we have a good accountability. We are working on it.' He downplayed security worries. 'I haven't heard of any incident where a soldier of unknown origin has done something to be concerned about.'"
"Illegal immigrants are common in the United States - the government estimates there are more than 8 million - and institutions struggle to adapt. U.S. law bars employers from knowingly hiring the undocumented ... Yet 'with regard to homeland security and terrorism, it's pretty obvious that this is a critical kind of position. You should want to know the status of who is serving in the military' [said immigration scholar Noah Pickus, director of the Institute for Emerging Issues at North Carolina State University]."
"U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials defer to the military in handling illegal immigrants. 'If a military branch decides not to prosecute an individual for fraudulent entry, then they are considered eligible' to become citizens, Homeland Security spokesman Chris Bentley said."
"By May, military officials should begin new checks on the immigration status of recruits, said Gaylan Johnson, spokesman for the U.S. Military Entrance Processing Command... In the future, recruiters will conduct 'prescreening.' Then other federal authorities will conduct background reviews including electronic cross-checking of names and Social Security numbers with the federal Social Security administration, Johnson said... A better system has been in the works 'for years,' he said. 'It got accelerated after 9/11.' "
Two peas in a pod.
Tancredo is a good man - although he has no chance of getting elected, he continues to hold the feet of the other candidates to the fire on the illegal invader issues.
His presence vexes Jorge and his sycophants, as well as the Congressional Rats whom Jorge’s policy on the border is benefitting.
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Having close family members in the military, I am concerned about the type of people admitted into the military - criminals and foreign nationals should be excluded.
I agree with “criminals and foreign nationals should be excluded” idea. However, it doesn’t run in that much conflict with Tancredo’s ideas. For example, an illegal from Mexico, who truly wants to become American, has learned English, absorbed American values and wants to join military, should be allowed to do so, and it would put him on path of citizenship. (yeah, such a saccharine version of an illegal, lol). But some Mahmoud can take a hike.
Visions linger of Latinos demonstrating with Mexican and other foreign flags in the earlier demonstrations - later toned down only because of the backlash - as they demanded special perks.
US citizenship should not be for sale or handed out as a bonus.
There are legal methods of getting in, as you know. We just don’t want border jumpers! :P
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