Posted on 03/24/2002 6:22:33 AM PST by RFP
The immigration reform bill under consideration by the House Judiciary Committee may include a proposal to require people entering the United States on temporaty visas to post a bond to guarantee that they leave when their visas expire. George Fishman, chief counsel of the House-Immigration Subcommittee, recently attended the largest bail agent conference in the United States to discuss the possibility of a "Visa Bond." Supporters of the proposal say it is a simple way to enhance national security through the visa process. The bond would work just like bail bonds posted in criminal cases. A foreign student or other temporary visa holder would pay a percentage of the bond up front and the bail agent would guarantee the remainder. The bail agent would then be financially responsible for ensuring that the visa holder complies with the conditions of his visa. If the visitor is a student, the bail agent would verify that the student is registered and attending classes. If the visa holder fails to meet the conditions of the visa, the bail agent will turn him over to the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) for deportation. "There are two benefits of a visa bond," said Steven Camarota of the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS). "First, a bond provides a monetary incentive for the visitor to leave when his visa has expired, and second, a visa bond privatizes the entry-exit process." Presently, there is no system to monitor when or whether temporary visa holders leave the country when their visas expire. "Enforcing an entry-exit system is key, because terrorists have gained entrance to the United States with student visas and we know that tens of thousands of people overstay their visa each year," said Camarota. "We can't do things the way we have done in the past. Wheter or not it made sense in the past, it does not make sense to issue temporary visas without an entry-exit system now." Camarota says that foreign students should have no problem paying the bond. "Universities have been claiming for years that foreign students are essential because they pay their own way," he said. "If these rich, elite kids can afford to pay full tuition and expenses to come to American universities, than they can afford to pay a bond."
Miss Calderwood, a senior at Brigham Young University, is an intern with the National Journalism Center.
"...Bad Boys, Bad Boys. Whatcha gonna do when they come for you? Bad Boys, Bad Boys, ... "
The box, in this case, lives in the State Department. The diplomats will nip this one in the bud lest someone get offended.
"There are two benefits of a visa bond," said Steven Camarota of the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS). "First, a bond provides a monetary incentive for the visitor to leave when his visa has expired, and second, a visa bond privatizes the entry-exit process."
Outstanding!
This would be a small but necessary step in winning not only the War on Terror, but also the War on Illegal Immigration.
An illegal have trouble getting by in the US? Why, no. All sorts oof state and local agencies don't want to hurt his feelings and will give great medical attention, especially in the maternity ward, give him reduced tuition at public colleges, allow him to get back on the streets with no license or mandatory insurance and so on. And, if proof of elegibility is required, those documents are available at very reasonable cost at a location near you. No? Today is Sunday. Try a local flea market in an area with a large Mexican population. It should be safe especially if there are lots of kids about. Shop for whatever, but watch for a booth with IDs for sale. You'll find it. Some signs will even be in English. If you need another SSA card, you probably can pick up a good looking version.
Fee for visas, my butt. Why will that do to solve the much greater problem.
I think this is an outstanding idea--providing the bail bond and the perecentage paid by the visa holder is high enough to represent a substantial monetary loss. 10% of $2,000 wouldn't mean squat.
--Boris
I can't argue much, but Fee for Visa is at least a start... a small measure of control over who comes into our country, and whether they should stay.
It also raises funds that could help offset the cost of enforcing our borders.
I don't mean to be negative but....
This will never work if the government gets involved. Name me one government program that works.
Besides, this administration would probably end up giving the people the money for the bond, and then they would skip and we would end up eating the loss.
I rate this a 2 1/2.
It might have some effect on those visitors that are basically honest, but do terrorists really care that they forfeit their visa bonds, if they crash a plane into a skyscraper?
What power should what kinds of law enforcement have to ask for documents in order to identify illegal aliens? No system is perfect, but passports at the border work pretty well. A few come in on illegal documents, but not many. But we obviously have the power to ask for documents at the border. Generally we can't inside the US.
And, of course, actual citizens don't usually have documents attesting to that fact. So, any ideas??
Yeah, I like the 'Ladies Night' pricing idea. I'd put up the bond for that Australian ski jumper.
Bonding is probably a good idea, at least it is a start. But think of all the loopholes the Democrats will attach. First it will be waived for political asylum(no problem there), then for those with AIDS, then for the 'socially persecuted'(those in transition between he/she/it), etc...
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