Posted on 11/19/2004 8:57:23 AM PST by Independentamerican
Last week, President George W. Bush finally signaled his intention to push for the immigration reform plan he unveiled nearly one year ago. That’s good news for a proposal that offers a creative solution to a long-standing problem. The plan, designed to grant temporary legal status to millions of undocumented aliens working in the United States, met a chilly reception when it was announced in January. Bush did little to promote it during the presidential election.
( SNIP )
The measure is certain to face intense opposition. Republican members of Congress have argued Bush’s temporary worker program rewards — and therefore encourages — illegal immigration. Members of both parties see immigration as a security threat in the post-Sept. 11, 2001, world. Some unions believe immigrants will undercut U.S. workers.
-SNIP-
Concern that immigrant workers compete with U.S. workers for scarce jobs is equally mistaken. Most immigrant laborers fill positions that U.S. workers pass over — retail and service-sector jobs that pay low wages and require little skill.
-SNIP-
The Bush proposal takes a more enlightened approach. It sees immigration as a net gain for the economy and ties temporary legal status to gainful employment. It wisely stops short of amnesty by requiring immigrant workers to eventually return home
(Excerpt) Read more at mndaily.com ...
Apologies - I misunderstood your intentions with the post. Yes, it's sad that so many state governments have forgotten that they actually do have rights, sovereignty, and power. It'd be great if some states would start standing up to the Federal government once in a while.
It's just laughable that the most technically advanced country in the world would want millions upon millions of 3rd world peasants to undermine our strengths in innovation, not to mention our culture. It's all based on short-term greed.
Hey I was being VERY sarcastic about the no real terror threat !
If this isn't the reason it sure looks like it.
Too much money in drugs & illegal workers, for anyone *in power* to really take an interest in stopping either.
If you don't support Tancredo, you make it more likely that you are going to end up with the bad deal. You want more to act like him in Congress? Support him.
Cheers
There, now it is fixed.
Border control would be a lot easier if Mexico would enforce the border from its side, but it doesn't.
Mexico is never going to be truly cooperative, but I think there's a better chance of at least minimal cooperation if the income keeps flowing. In addition, it is not in our best interests to have a truly impoverished country right next door to us.
As for the PRI, the PAN has been little better; in fact, Fox has been much more aggressively obnoxious than even many former PRI presidents.
Read his book......in 1999 he *says*, he believes the most humane way to deal with illegals is to "stop them at the borders".
(somewhere I even have this page number written down)
"No one expects immigration reform to sail through Congress."
That strategy worked well for the Clinton administration, when they bought off North Korea, to prevent them from developing Nukes.
A pacifist is one who feeds his children to the alligator, hoping that the alligator will eat him last. (approximate quote of Churchill)
And yet we have a "Catch and release" policy. Why is that?
No, they aren't. There is a voluntary program in place by which they can check employees, and it should be made mandatory.
Requiring that particular check may disuade some employeers, and if it's cost effective sounds like a good idea. However, it's not going to work with the companies that are already knowingly hiring these people.
Sure it will, because when they check, they and the authorities will all know that there is an illegal alien in their employ, and the atuhorities will know that the employer knows it. Convictions would be a slam dunk in that case, unlike now, where employers have plausibile deniability.
Do you really think these people are going to travel back to their own country and wait in line? You think somewhere between 8 to 12 million people are going to give up their sources of income and travel back to Mexico where they don't have any means of supporting themselves, and wait for permission to reenter the US? Do you think that they're going to risk the chance that they won't be allowed to reenter, and then have to risk the dangerous route or illegally reentering the US again?
Some will leave, and some won't. More will leave under the Tancredo plan than under the Bush plan, which rewards lawbreaking.
We don't have ther resources to round up and deport 8 to 12 million people.
Our court system can't process the inevatable appeals.
We don't have any place to hold the people while processing their deportation.
There's also the fact that if you tried rounding up that many people and forcibly removing them from the country, you'd have open revolt in some communities.
Things would get very, very ugly. People would die. Riots would destroy millions if not billions in property.
No damned kidding. That's why they need to be provided with incentives to self-deport, and negative consequences if they don't.
These people came here because there's nothing for them in Mexico. Many risked their lives in comming here. They are desperate, and telling them to trust that they can come back if they go back to Mexico where they have no job and no place to live isn't going to be comforting to them.
Their comfort is their problem. It's always inconvenient for tresspassers and squatters to have to clear out. So what?
It seems like the majority of people want this now, but as soon as people see what it really involves the backlash against the government would be amazing.
There's a lot of politicians talking tough, but very few are going to support an effective effort to remove the illegal aliens currently in the US. That means they'll talk, but nothing will happen, and the problem will get worse.
So, what possible objection do you have to implementing a program to encourage self-deportation?
Just what do you think is going to be right next door, when mexico finishes exporting the rest of her poor north ???
I see mostly rich drug lords, corrupt rich officials, & more wealthy, that will do/smuggle *anything* if the price is right.
As for the PRI, the PAN has been little better
Check the latest mexico elections the PRI is set to be back in the president's office come 2006.
To beat a dead horse, I don't think a Guest Worker Plan is needed and most Americans agree and feel the same way. If capitulating to the notion that our compromised politicians are going to pass a Guest Worker program come hell or high water, as they (again) flip off the American People, is your position...fine. Yes, Tancredo’s plan is the least lethal of the Guest Worker Plans out there. But mark my words, it will never be successful.
BTW, I like Tom but think he is wrong on this.
LOL, if it does get through Congress it will fail as a program and cause more problems then it intended to solve.
Everyone who hasn't already -- go to NumbersUSA and send a stack of faxes to your senators and congressmen. Get on the mailing list so you are kept informed. Right now they are desperate to get people calling to stop the proposed Guest Worker Visa bills coming to a lame duck vote.
Except, the program won't work and will not help the ecomomy.
Mexico is a corrupt Socialist country and has an unending supply of the poor. We don't want it to turn into a seething incubator for "revolution."
Right now you have virtual nonenforcement of our immigrtion laws, while foreigners who'd like to work here while obeying our laws are penalized. You already have a scenario that's unsuccessful. You already have a lethal status quo.
Your best option is to support the one guy who's got any credibility on illegal aliens, but you lack the nads to do it. No wonder so many politicians want to sell out on illegal aliens.
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