Bush Reforms Immigration

Minnisota Daily ^ | 11/19/04

[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

[Thrusher]

I wouldn't be so opposed to this if I thought that the mass illegal immigration was going to be stopped, or at least seriously curtailed. With no real efforts at border security, much less shutting the border down like it should be, this is only going to increase the waves of illegals sweeping into our country.

Borders. Language. Culture.

[Ben Ficklin]

You bet, leave it like it is.

[reelfoot]

Not just No. HELL, NO!

[JesusIsLord]

Deport all Muslims!

[TheCrusader]

"Sure, these temporary soldiers won't mind being "drafted" indefinately ..."

The concept that we need to patrol our entire southern border to stop these illegals from entering and raping our land is erroneous. All we need to do is protect the Arizona border, where most of them are coming through. If this forces most of them to cross at other states then it becomes all the easier to capture them and send them back.

Other measures we could take would be to create 'incentives' for American citizens to turn these invaders into the authorities, such as monetary rewards or whatever. It's got to stop, one way or the other.

[NJ_gent]

"Most immigrant laborers fill positions that U.S. workers pass over — retail and service-sector jobs that pay low wages and require little skill."

Alternate statement:

Most immigrant laborers fill positions in the retail and service sectors which require little skill. This allows employers to pay exceedingly low wages for these jobs - wages lower than what an American worker can afford to take - because illegal immigrants will live in conditions far below the American standard of living. If it were not for the illegal immigrants willing to take these jobs at extremely low pay, American companies would be forced to offer reasonable wages for these positions; wages that American workers could afford to take. This would decrease unemployment in the work force, maintain the standard of living for Americans, and allow our capitalist economy to function as it should: without a poison pill.

These people broke the law. They're here illegally. If you want more people here, change the immigration laws to allow more to come into the country legally. All illegal immigrants - every last one - must be jailed and/or deported, and prevented from re-entering the country illegally. Our borders must be secured or we will not survive the WoT.

[Bikers4Bush]

The only reason the jobs are low paying is because there's a large number of illegals willing to do them. In other words an artificial and undesirable increase in available labor. Remove the illegals and the wages will go up.

Round them up and kick them out.

[lobo59]

This is totally wrong and stupid. We already have as many illegals working in this country as we have unemployed citizens. Illegals aliens send billions of dollars out of our country that should circulate in our economy to create more jobs and a healthy financial future for our citizens. The huge pool of easily exploited workers drives wages and benefits down and erodes the strength of our nation. Also they intend to allow illegals to collect social security and further weaken a system whish is being destroyed by congress stealing the trust fund dollars and spending them on things like foriegn aid.
Being here illegally is law breaking. Since when does breaking laws merit a reward? How many murders would a serial killer have to commit in order to be rewarded and made a hero rather than sent to jail? Whith this ignorant mentality it looks like there is a great future in a carreer of bank robbery.
It seems that the main requirement to be sent the congress or become president is to be totally stoned or stupid.

[frgoff]

And, precisely, what makes you think we'll enforce a temporary permit more than no permit? Will the INS deport illegal aliens who don't get a work permit?

I don't see this making a bit of difference unless enforcement is taken seriously, and then you're right back where we are now, with cries of racism being leveled at every attempt to boot some alien who doesn't have their work permit.

[NJ_gent]

"How about postind national guard troops along the border to stem the flow of illegals into this country."

Since the Federal government doesn't see fit to solve this problem of national security, perhaps the state governments of the states along the borders can use National Guard troops to secure the borders themselves. The only question is, how will they pay for such an enormous task?

[RockinRight]

Remove the illegals and the wages will go up.

And with them, prices.

[bahblahbah]

Does anyone know what the members of the house of representatives are proposing instead of this worker program?

Also, is there any way to start up a petition to have the American people vote on whether we should wall up the border?

I wouldn't mind the worker program and it could actually help us but its worthless if the border isn't secured and illegals and companies who do business with illegals aren't punished.

[EagleMamaMT]

Read later.

[Blogger]

I agree. It's an unfortunate fact of life that illegals are here and here to stay. The trick is, how to best utilize their force to help our nation without encouraging illegality. All the naysayers and complainers haven't really come up with workable plans for that. For me, I would like to see tight borders with the temporary worker permits. And, STRICT enforcement of the law.

Round up illegals currently in the US and give them 30 days to apply for this workers permit. Anyone found without the permit is deported after the 30 days is up. Anyone wishing to enter the country illegally from that point is shipped to an American controlled point OUTSIDE OF THE US to serve a mandatory jail sentence and then not permitted back in the country after that.

Also, one must enter the country from their country of origin unless a viable exemption can be argued (such as defection from a persecutory country). If we catch an Arab coming over the Mexican border, it is a mandatory heavy jail sentence followed by permanent deportation.,

[TheCrusader]

"That is an incredibly expensive proposition that forces us to surrender one of the key tenets of the American way of life...

I beg to differ with you here. The 'traditional' way of life for America was to have our immigrants process into our country legally, so we could know who they were and decide if we wanted them to live here. But that was back when politicians had some backbone and real common sense.

As for you comment about our country not having the military on its own soil I just don't understand how you can say that. Our entire country was militarized during the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, and I'll remind you that our nation has been attacked and we are at war with people who are trying to infiltrate and destroy us. I too voted for President Bush and wanted him to be our President, but when they screw up this big why make silly excuses for them just because we voted for them? It's our job as American citizens to hold our politicians' feet to the fire on sound policiy and make them do what's best for America as a whole.

[NJ_gent]

"The Mexican ILLEGAL immigrants have become an official organ in our monetary system."

They most certainly have become an organ - a cancerous one that's slowly killing this country's identity, sovereignty, and its economy. There are better ways of controlling inflation that don't require the sacrifice of our sovereignty and our border security. If we don't secure our borders, we will not survive the WoT.

[Bikers4Bush]

Not so at all. Supply and demand create an equilibrium. We don't currently have that.

Just because wages go up doesn't mean that prices will. The two do not always go hand in hand. Prices for a lot of things haven't dropped or even remained the same due to the influx of illegals doing those jobs so there's no reason to think that the market won't adjust itself the same way when they are gone.

[RS]

"All we need to do is protect the Arizona border, where most of them are coming through."

Most of them are coming through the Arizona border NOW because of the crackdown on the San Diego border and the tough desert in Imperial County.

Lock down Arizona and they will simply move to the next easier area -

[NJ_gent]

"Is there any way we can petition for a wall to be built? Are there national referendums? I'd gladly pay for a damn wall. I want the Mexicans who actually have skills businesses want and those that are willing to assimilate into our culture. I don't want the drugy and dumb Mexicans. You can't choose if you have no control."

I'm absolutely with you. I'm so fed up with this pathetic excuse for border security that we have and the pandering to criminals who've violated our national sovereignty that I'm ready right now for an Israeli-style wall from the Gulf to the Pacific. Let's start looking into getting a real petition (not some silly online one) going. There must be a way to force this issue.