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.

-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

[Independentamerican]

Hey more imigrants working legally in this country means more tax dollars I guess. Still think it is just wrong.

[treffner]

what is bush thinking?

[wdkeller]

You're damn right it's wrong.

[RockinRight]

I dunno. However, the good news is that it doesn't look like it'll make it through the House.

[traviskicks]

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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True Statement. I agree with the President. This needs to be done and will be a boom for the economy without loosing American jobs.

[jperspective]

How about postind national guard troops along the border to stem the flow of illegals into this country. We should also empower the INS to deport illegals when they catch them.

[soccer_linux_mozilla]

What is Rove thinking?

????????????????????????????

[TheCrusader]

"The plan, designed to grant temporary legal status to millions of undocumented aliens.."

Yeah, 'temporary' legal status..., right.

[FreePaul]

Most immigrant laborers fill positions that U.S. workers pass over...

Yes. Much better to have those U.S. "workers" drawing welfare than working at jobs that require work.

[Scythian]

He basically do nothing to protect our borders, it's easy to fight a war overseas but it's another thing entirely to actually protect the borders. That is a battle no one dare face, that is, until it's too late.

[Dalite]

These measures to ultimately grant amnesty are unavoidable.

The Mexican immigrants have become an official organ in our monetary system. They are being welcomed as "mules" to export inflation, just as the drug trade uses "mules" to transport drugs or money.

For every Mexican receiving a paycheck, at least $.49 is spent in the US; to get a money order to send as much back home as possible to finance another illegals trip to the promised land.

No more money than is absolutely necessary is spent withing the US. This is a crucial link in the current erosion of the US Monetary System to conceal runaway inflation from the American public.

This did not start on Bush's watch, nor will it end on his watch. It has become as crucial to keeping our money system going as breathing is to human life.

Illegal immigrants are just as crucial as the trade deficit in the process of managing the US's #1 export; inflation.

[Walkin Man]

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.

Thats a crock. Unless anyone thinks construction jobs are also "jobs no American wants"!

Gee maybe the under-the-table, less than minimum wage and zero health benefits has something to do with Americans not wanting these jobs, ya think???

[bahblahbah]

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.

[Reagan Man]

Without certain actions, the President's guest worker proposal, AKA."amnesty program", is an effort in futility.

Three things need to happen that will help to solve America's illegal immigration problem. First, the feds have to make an honest effort at sealing the borders shut, once and for all. Second. There must be full enforcement of existing laws that punish employers for hiring illegals. And finally, the feds must end any and all government welfare funding to illegals.

Above all, NO policy agenda to control and reduce illegal immigration into the US will ever work, unless the borders are slammed shut first.

[RS]

"How about postind national guard troops along the border ..."

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

[stuartcr]

Aren't these same jobs the ones that we are seeing as increasing? How does that help the economy if the new jobs are going to immigrants?

[StJacques]

I'm not comfortable with a lot of the implications of this program but we have essentially come to one of two options, unless we plan to just ignore illegal immigration, which could be devastating. Option one is that we can completely militarize the border with Mexico. That is an incredibly expensive proposition that forces us to surrender one of the key tenets of the American way of life in which our military traditionally does not play a police role on American soil. Option two is to try to change the culture of immigration, which the President's plan addresses. The major downside of the proposal is that we all understand that many workers securing these permits will not return, but we will at least have a legal record of them and it might not be quite so easy for them to "stay underground" as it is for completely undocumented workers. And there will be some progress in that Mexican workers who begin contemplating moving to the U.S. may be able to forestall that decision by getting back on their feet with temporary work in the U.S., making it easier for them to remain in Mexico.

By no means is the President's plan perfect. But faced with the difficult alternatives as we now are it appears to me that it is the best we can do.

[TheCrusader]

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

This is total B.S. There are a great many college kids out there looking for employment who can't find work close enough to their colleges. There are also families looking for second jobs for help with mortagages and bills, and there's plenty of LEGAL aliens emigrating from poor countries who would fill these jobs. This utter nonsense about there not being enough American citizens to fill all the jobs out there is just plain ridiculous, as is the claim that Americans would not fill the jobs that would be left vacant by ILLEGALS if they were deported.

[taxed2death]

I don't know what neck of the woods you live in....but here in my state illegals are taking ALL the "entry level" jobs in housing, construction, heating HVAC, Plumbing, Autobody repair, etc.

What this does in effect is to screw all the (American) tech school grads out of jobs. These grads, many who have trained for 4 years in their chosen trades, are left to scramble for cheesy check-out clerk jobs in Walmart and Stop-N Shop.

Once again, King Jorge is just screwing more Americans.

[jeremiah]

The reason the retail and service sector jobs pay so little, is their are people willing to work for these low wages. There are plenty of people that need to work, like high school students, and those on welfare etc.

If GW wants to have a guest worker program, FIRST stop the influx of the illegals, or the guest workers will have to compete with those willing to undercut their wages. We would have a vicious cycle, with an insoluble problem. Those immigrants here legally will have last pick, followed by guest workers, and of course the new illegals with the advantage of needing less money to live, because of the social net they would enjoy.