Posted on 06/26/2009 7:19:47 PM PDT by Kaslin
On the Lou Dobbs show last week, the Rev. Samuel Rodriguez of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Council and Bishop Harry Jackson Jr. of the High Impact Leadership Coalition were confronted with the policy choice of whether to give emergency treatment to a 3-year-old undocumented child.
Dobbs pushed a trade-off between "covering citizens and illegal immigrants." Rodriguez said that illegal immigrants should be covered; Jackson said they should not be treated the same as citizens, but then suggested that in practice he wouldn't turn the child away.
I suspect most Americans agree with Jackson. But what about for legal immigrants? Republican Sens. Orrin Hatch of Utah and Mike Enzi of Wyoming have an answer: Restrict them.
Their proposal would require that immigrants not be eligible for any new government health benefits until after having been legally in the country for five years. This repeats a formula on almost all federal welfare benefits that Congress imposed in 1996. Pro-immigrant groups are pushing to effectively repeal that law by ending the time restriction in any new health care reform bill.
Underlying the debate is a popular perception that immigrants are bankrupting the nation's health systems and are a threat to any reform. Even the Hispanic Caucus in Congress is quietly tiptoeing around the issue, mostly saying nothing.
But the facts are that immigrants, including Latinos, put proportionately less strain on our health systems than do Americans who are native-born. Meanwhile, they contribute to the economy and — if polls and activists are to be believed — are willing to pay more in taxes for health care.
(Excerpt) Read more at ibdeditorials.com ...
If they are not citizens, such as illegal aliens ot terrorists at GITMO, they should not be afforded right granted by the Constitution.
The Constitution applies to citizens.
Would I be covered if I was in Mexico illegally?
It does indeed apply to citizens
I understand you wouldn’t even be allowed to buy a home, even if you were legal
The Constitution applies to citizens.
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Ah, very true — and that is why we will see the issue of AMNESTY hit the table soon. These poor illegals need to be citizens, so Obama can buy their VOTES!!! Otherwise, the Rats could care less about illegals in this country. After all, the taxpayer foots the bill, not Washington....
You are right. AMNESTY will raise its ugly head again ... soon.
More citizens = more tax dollars needed.
More entitlements, more freebies, more give-aways ... less responsibility for some.
Also means more voters to see the Dem way clearer therefore less chance of loosing elections, votes in legislatures/congress and more power for the Elitists in Washington DC.
No, no - once we fast track amnesty for these people they will be legal and the debate will be over. :)
Wait a minute. Not all non citizen are illegal immigrants. You have heard of legal immigrants, have you? there is a big difference. You can’t accuse every immigrant of being illegally here
What a stupid debate. Everyone in America should be paying their own health care costs, everyone.
Emergency care, real emergencies, should be provided to all,
regardless of ability to pay.
All other costs should be paid by the recipient.
All kinds of problems with this. He quotes a couple of “studies” and decides that immigrants are using fewer resources than the native born. How does that work? And he says there is a “...popular perception that immigrants are bankrupting the nation’s health system.” That “popular perception” is rooted in fact. Otherwise, how does he explain all the hospitals in California and other states that have been forced to close because non-paying non-citizens have overrun them and exhausted their resources? I find this very dishonest. And guess what. This guy was not born in our country, he is one of the immigrants that is not consuming any of our health care resources, I guess. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and is on the board of La Raza’s Tomas Rivera Policy Institute. I would have expected more from IBD than this pack of misleading propaganda and spin. Whose country is it anymore?
I said non-citizens are illegal immigrants. I stand by that. It is a flat statement and stands alone. ‘non-citizens are illegal immigrants’.
Legal immigrants are registered and going through the citizenship process they have rights as they have signed documents to place themselves under the rules of this country.
See the difference is in the word illegal vs legal. You chose to ignore the word illegal and see only immigrant.
I did not mis-state anything. I didn’t understate anything. And I did not accuse all immigrants of being non-citizens. Only illegal ones, ones who broke the law to get to the US.
Please read fully and if you don’t understand what I say ask me to clarify the statement. or ask your question directly. Don’t accuse me of anything when you are not in possision of the facts or misreading my statements.
But, but...where does the Constitution say ANYONE is entitled to health care? Where does the Constitution allow the federal government to take over this segment of our lives and economy? Is there an amendment I missed?
But, but, but ... it doesn’t say anyone is entitled to healthcare. It is not a right of anyone in the US. No one, period!
The Constitution doesn’t allow it other than for the general welfare. However, I don’t believe that statement can be stretched that far.
Healthcare is not a right. I’ll repeat it for you ... healthcare is not a right.
I never said it was, nor did I ever imply it was a right. You misread my words. If you want them clarified please tell me what you don’t understand in the sentence(s) I wrote.
Isn’t it amazing how the constitutionality of it all is never questioned?
Imagine if cap and trade AND healthcare nationalization that includes illegals both become law. Would there be any crumbs left for this nation to go on?
La Raza is calling the shots.....a caller to the Mark Levin Show attended an event on health care sponsored by La Raza in DC......a staffer for Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) stated that there is a supersecret provision in the health care legislation now under consideration.
That provision will make illegal aliens eligible for all new government medical benefits. At the meeting, one of the participants proclaimed that "Latin children need health care more than Caucasian children."
They all want the provision to be kept top secret because they know that widespread knowledge of illegal alien benefits cashing in ....again.....will fire up opposition to defeat the bill.
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