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.

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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.

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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.

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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

[GarySpFc]

Security concerns make less sense with the Department of Homeland Security in place. And, to put it mildly, immigrant laborers are an unlikely source of terrorism.

Yes, but they are a major concern for law breaking. Over 30% of our current prison population are illegal immigrants.

[JustAnAmerican]

"And with them, prices."

Just another typical money before country reply.

[Independentamerican]

Remove the illegals and the wages will go up.

"And with them, prices."

When you put it that way that is troubling. If illegals stopped entering this country illegally and business owners were not able to afford to pay American workers increased wages what would happen to the economy ? I wonder what percentage of US businesses have illegal aliens as the majority of their workforce ? What a mess !

[NJ_gent]

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

Then it can be done until such time as a militia can be raised to secure the border. They're in the Guard to protect our country from threats. Having a wide-open perimeter in the middle of a war is about as big a threat as you can have.

[RS]

"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. "

Part of the problem is that Americans expect to buy a home, two cars and send their kids to college on the wages they would get for working at 7-11.
Low skill, low paying jobs are simply not a good career choice.

[Potomac]

I believe, you are wrong. Illegal workers doesn't pay taxes. Usually they get money under the table. Illegals can't get SS number, so they can't pay taxes. their goal is to get so much as is possible and send it to home without share for Uncle Sam

[KC_for_Freedom]

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.

There is talk that eventually an compromise will be worked out that will in fact close the border in exchange for some worker program. (With worker fingerprinting I hope.) This may be the best we can hope for, as the workers do boost the social security base, which assists in the extension of that program.

Closing the border is essential for terror security, and identification of all our illegals will allow them to be kept away from the voting booth. But I agree it is a sad commentary on how far from our borders, language, and culture we have come. BTW I am Paul Revere Society too.

[NJ_gent]

"All we need to do is protect the Arizona border"

We need to protect the entire border. Illegals are but one concern. I want to see a solution that actually has a chance at stopping/catching some idiot terrorist sneaking across the border with a nuclear device in hand.

"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."

I have a better idea: fines equal to the yearly gross of any company caught knowingly hiring/using illegals, per illegal. It'll only take one large company going under to make all the rest clean house. I think you'd see at least 90% of jobs that once went to illegals suddenly becoming unavailable to them.

[Tucson]

This is a canard. Illegal immigrants, whether working at minimumu wage or accepting something less to avoid being reported, displace workers at the lowest level of the employment rung. This is either the poorest or the young. This has been a long standing excuse by the unfettered immigration/no borders lobby. If you consider who constitutes the lowest rung, entry level demographic, this concept is fundamentally racist.

[NJ_gent]

"Part of the problem is that Americans expect to buy a home, two cars and send their kids to college on the wages they would get for working at 7-11. Low skill, low paying jobs are simply not a good career choice."

Young adults who have only themselves to support would do fine with these jobs for a while. High school and college students do just fine in these low-skill jobs. Americans who've been out of work for months or years will often take any job they can find just to get by in the mean time. I had an uncle in IT who lost his 6-figure job when the bubble burst, and who was working at Walmart and another job just to get by after running out of savings while looking for work. He just recently landed a pretty big job and is getting back on his feet. He'd have been on welfare if the low-skill jobs weren't available to help him get by.

[RS]

"Illegal immigrants, whether working at minimumu wage or accepting something less to avoid being reported, displace workers at the lowest level of the employment rung."

Just wondering, why wouldn't legal workers take these jobs ?

[NJ_gent]

"And with them, prices."

A re-adjustment of pricing for certain products whose price is artificially high or low is healthy for any economy. When market forces are poisoned by an outside influence (such as government regulation or ultra-cheap labor), they will inevitably either shrug off the outside influence or crash and burn.

[RockinRight]

My point was that the economic benefit would negate itself.

[redtetrahedron]

Shouldn't be a problem to pay for the wall, now that Congress has raised the debt ceiling by $800bn...I say go for it!

[NJ_gent]

"If illegals stopped entering this country illegally and business owners were not able to afford to pay American workers increased wages what would happen to the economy ?"

A system-wide re-adjustment back to the reality of what our economy really is. If we were to start pumping billions in tax dollars into propping up a dead industry, that industry will continue to live only so long as it is artificially supported. Our economy requires equilibrium. Failing that, we will inevitably run into major problems. Had we solved this problem a long time ago, the market re-adjustment would have been smaller. Now, it'll be larger, and it'll take a lot of businesses down with it. Oh well. Those companies who've depended on the illegal hiring of illegal immigrants understood the risk when they began doing that. Be angry at those companies for giving in to an artificial outside influence - not at those who wish to bring the market back to reality. That's like getting angry that the tech bubble burst in 2000. Don't get mad at the people who stopped investing - get mad at the idiot companies who blew millions on pinball machines while never creating a single product.

Don't put your wallet before your country. Any market re-adjustment is painful, but it reaches equilibrium in the end, so long as outside influences are marginalized.

[Independentamerican]

"I believe, you are wrong. Illegal workers doesn't pay taxes. Usually they get money under the table. Illegals can't get SS number, so they can't pay taxes. their goal is to get so much as is possible and send it to home without share for Uncle Sam"

I understood that they do not pay taxes currently. But with an aging populace I can see why the government would want temp visas for illegals so they can now try and benefit by taxing thier income. At least I hope that is their intention.

[NJ_gent]

"Just wondering, why wouldn't legal workers take these jobs ?"

Because employers can land some illegals to do the job for an under-the-table pittance. Americans won't pile 20 people into a one-bedroom apartment and work for a dollar-an-hour. For illegals, it's often still better than what they're used to.

[NJ_gent]

"Shouldn't be a problem to pay for the wall, now that Congress has raised the debt ceiling by $800bn...I say go for it!"

A bill that spends an incredible amount of money? This Congress and this President should be drooling already...

[politicalwit]

Any politician suggesting amnesty of any type should be subjected to a recall or impeachment...George Included!!!

[WRhine]

There is talk that eventually an compromise will be worked out that will in fact close the border in exchange for some worker program. (With worker fingerprinting I hope.) This may be the best we can hope for, as the workers do boost the social security base, which assists in the extension of that program.

Translation of Gov Speak: "Give us our Guest Worker Program and we promise to start upholding the law and constitutional duties to defend the nation from invasion." "If you don't give us our Guest Worker Program the above is null and void and the status quo will remain operative."

If the federal government does not have the integrity to uphold the law and protect our borders, they certainly won't do it after they get what they want. Any compromise offered to sell this monstrosity is merely convenient political cover for the politicians...just like the 1986 amnesty fiasco.

I predict that if Congress capitulates to the administration on the Guest Worker Program with the promise, going forward, to protect our borders and enforce our immigration laws that it will, quickly after passage, default on all promises and the Guest Worker Program will be debased by fraud and corruption. Nothing is so permanent as a guest worker program.