Posted on 04/06/2006 8:33:43 AM PDT by STARWISE
WASHINGTON - In a last stab at compromise, Senate Republicans and Democrats reported progress Thursday toward agreement on legislation opening the way to legal status and eventual citizenship for many of the 11 million immigrants now in the U.S. illegally.
"There's been tremendous progress overnight," said Sen. Harry Reid (news, bio, voting record) of Nevada, the Democratic leader, while Majority Leader Bill Frist also expressed optimism that a long-sought compromise might be at hand.
There was no immediate reaction from President Bush, who has made immigration legislation a key priority.
The developments occurred after Frist unveiled a new bill late Wednesday night on the subject as the Senate headed into a test vote on the most sweeping immigration bill in two decades.
In general, the legislation would provide for enhanced border security, regulate the flow of future immigrants into the United States and settle the legal fate of the estimated 11 million men, women and children already in the country.
It was the fate of the illegal immigrant population that proved hardest to legislate, and it has left the Senate on the verge of gridlock for days.
(snip)
Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., as well as other key senators met before the vote to review terms of a proposed compromise.
In general, it would require illegal immigrants who have been in the United States between two years and five years to return to their home country briefly, then re-enter as temporary workers. They could then begin a process of seeking citizenship.
Illegal immigrants here longer than five years would not be required to return home; those in the country less than two years would be required to leave without assurances of returning, and take their place in line with others seeking entry papers.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
I'm not "backpedaling" - I've pinged the person who cited that stat.
I apologize - it was F.J. Mitchell who was mistaken about the 1986 amnesty being only "thousands" - I hope you will understand as I am kinda multi-tasking today ; )
Anna_Z became a citizen in 2005. She had a a bit of a wait but not 28 years. Perhaps because she can speak English and actually has an education and skills.
Perhaps if you maintained a steady course, a rudder, even a consistent philosophy or theme - even when others disagreed, you would not have so much trouble having to back pedal or play parsing games.
BTW, it was a belated ping. You missed GarySpFc the first time you mentioned his name - violating the "rule of posting etiquette" that you mistakenly accused me of breaking.
See http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1610298/posts?page=1952#1952
Marine Inspector thinks you are lying about "Adult brothers and sisters of citizens will take up to 28 years."
One ping only, Vasily.
Good for you.
What are you talking about?
It seems as though you want an expedited citizenship process for Mexicans who think that they have some right to just come into this country without going through the proper channels. Why?
Your post #1963 (unless that was an imposter now, Susie has be second-guessing everything now) stated: "Anna_Z became a citizen in 2005. She had a a (sic) bit of a wait but not 28 years." I said: "Good for you" because someone else says it's taking 28 years. As for your second question, I said I have no problem with ALL illegal aliens (Mexican or not) to get into the back of the line and go through all the proper channels.
And those in this country illegally for no matter how long should not get citizenship any faster than anyone else. And if they want to be citizenships, make them learn English. And they shouldn't get any benefits, regardless of how many kids they have had since they have been here. It's not my job to pay for their choices.
My apologies, I looked up the latest State Departments Visa Bulletin and the Pilipino adult brothers and sisters of US Citizens do take 23 years to immigrate.
The US has never made chain migration easy, and it never will.
The average wait is less then 10 years.
The 23 year wait only effects a few hundred Philippines.
The US has never made chain migration easy, and it never will.
The average wait is less then 10 years.
Eight Steps To Destroy America
1-30-5
We all know Dick Lamm as the former Governor of Colorado. In that context, his thoughts are particularly poignant.
Last week there was an immigration-overpopulation conference in Washington, DC, filled to capacity by many of American's finest minds and leaders. A brilliant college professor named Victor Hansen Davis talked about his latest book, Mexifornia, explaining how immigration - both legal and illegal - was destroying the entire state of California. He said it would march across the country until it destroyed all vestiges of The American Dream.
Moments later, former Colorado Governor Richard D. Lamm stood up and gave a stunning speech on how to destroy America. The audience sat spellbound as he described eight methods for the destruction of the United States. He said, "If you believe that America is too smug, too self-satisfied, too rich, then let's destroy America. It is not that hard to do. No nation in history has survived the ravages of time.
Arnold Toynbee observed that all great civilizations rise and fall and that 'An autopsy of history would show that all great nations commit suicide.'"
"Here is how they do it," Lamm said: (First) ;"Turn America into a bilingual or multi-lingual and bi-cultural country. History shows that no nation can survive the tension, conflict, and antagonism of two or more competing languages and cultures. It is a blessing for an individual to be bilingual; however, it is a curse for a society to be bilingual.
"The historical scholar Seymour Lipset put it this way: 'The histories of bilingual and bi-cultural societies that do not assimilate are histories of turmoil, tension, and tragedy.' Canada, Belgium, Malaysia, Lebanon all face crises of national existence in which minorities press for autonomy, if not independence. Pakistan and Cyprus have divided. Nigeria suppressed an ethnic rebellion. France faces difficulties with Basques, Bretons, and Corsicans."
Lamm went on: (Second:) "Invent 'multi-culturalism' and encourage immigrants to maintain their culture. I would make it an article of belief that all cultures are equal. That there are no cultural differences. I would make it an article of faith that the Black and Hispanic dropout rates are due to prejudice and discrimination by the majority. Every other explanation is out of bounds.
"We could make the United States an 'Hispanic Quebec' without much effort. (Third:) The key is to celebrate diversity rather than unity. As Benjamin Schwarz said in the Atlantic Monthly recently: 'The apparent success of our own multi-ethnic and multi-cultural experiment might have been achieved not by tolerance but by hegemony.
Without the dominance that once dictated ethnocentrically and what it meant to be an American, we are left with only tolerance and pluralism to hold us together.'" Lamm said, "I would encourage all immigrants to keep their own language and culture. I would replace the melting pot metaphor with the salad bowl metaphor. It is important to ensure that we have various cultural sub-groups living in America reinforcing their differences rather than as Americans, emphasizing their similarities."
"Fourth, I would make our fastest growing demographic group the least educated. I would add a second underclass, unassimilated, undereducated, and antagonistic to our population. I would have this second underclass have a 50% dropout rate from high school."
"My fifth point for destroying America would be to get big foundations and business to give these efforts lots of money. I would invest in ethnic identity, and I would establish the cult of 'Victimology.'
I would get all minorities to think their lack of success was the fault of the majority. I would start a grievance industry blaming all minority failure on the majority population."
"My sixth plan for America's downfall would include dual citizenship and promote divided loyalties. I would celebrate diversity over unity. I would stress differences rather than similarities. Diverse people worldwide are mostly engaged in hating each other - that is, when they are not killing each other."
"A diverse, peaceful, or stable society is against most historical precedent. People undervalue the unity it takes to keep a nation together. Look at the ancient Greeks. The Greeks believed that they belonged to the same race; they possessed a common language and literature; and they worshipped the same gods. All Greece took part in the Olympic games. A common enemy Persia threatened their liberty. Yet all these bonds were not strong enough to overcome two factors: local patriotism and
geographical conditions that nurtured political divisions. Greece fell. "E. Pluribus Unum" -- From many, one. In that historical reality, if we put the emphasis on the 'pluribus' instead of the 'unum,' we can balkanize America as surely as Kosovo."
"Next to last, (Seventh:) I would place all subjects off limits ~ make it taboo to talk about anything against the cult of 'diversity.' I would find a word similar to 'heretic' in the 16th century - that stopped discussion and paralyzed thinking. Words like 'racist' or 'xenophobe' halt discussion and debate."
"Having made America a bilingual/bicultural country, having established multi-culturism, having the large foundations fund the doctrine of 'Victimology,' (Eighth:) I would next make it impossible to enforce our immigration laws. I would develop a mantra: That because immigration has been good for America , it must always be good. I would make every individual immigrant sympatric and ignore the cumulative impact of millions of them."
In the last minute of his speech, Governor Lamm wiped his brow. Profound silence followed. Finally he said, "Lastly, I would censor Victor Hanson Davis's book Mexifornia. His book is dangerous. It exposes the plan to destroy America. If you feel America deserves to be destroyed, don't read that book."
There was no applause. A chilling fear quietly rose like an ominous cloud above every attendee at the conference. Every American in that room knew that everything Lamm enumerated was proceeding methodically, quietly, darkly, yet pervasively across the United States today. Every discussion is being suppressed. Over 100 languages are ripping the foundation of our educational system and national cohesiveness. Barbaric cultures that practice female genital mutilation are growing
as we celebrate 'diversity.' American jobs are vanishing into the Third World as corporations create a Third World in America - take note of California and other states - to date, ten million illegal aliens and growing fast. It is reminiscent of George Orwell's book "1984." In that story, three slogans are engraved in the Ministry of Truth building: "War is peace," "Freedom is slavery," and "Ignorance is strength."
Governor Lamm, walked back to his seat. It dawned on everyone at the conference that our nation and the future of this great democracy is deeply in trouble and worsening fast. If we don't get this immigration monster stopped within three years, it will rage like a California wildfire and destroy everything in its path, especially The American Dream.
"... if we put the emphasis on the 'pluribus' instead of the 'unum,' we can balkanize America as surely as Kosovo."
...If we don't get this immigration monster stopped within three years, it will rage like a California wildfire and destroy everything in its path, especially The American Dream.
Because you're paying attention?
Don't wait till November. The most important election is the Republican Primary - whenever that is held in your state. Republicans voting for amnesty and ignoring border seurity must be defeated in the primary, and replaced by actual conservatives for the November elections.
bttt
"Since illegals are from many different nations, they would be difficult to identify wouldn't they? Some think you could walk into a community today and locate a thousand of them. That's absurd. You know it and I know it."
My self 'Self-deportion' plan.
I believe that if we had a program that harshly hits the employers who hire illegals we could accomplish the self removal in 50 months without too much ruckus. Pass a Bill that required the employers, one state at a time, to verify the SSI numbers of their employees. We must verify that these employees are paying taxes. Any problem and the employee has 30 days to bring in alternate proof that they were not attempting fraud.
Start in the Northeast. state#1 Maine, state#2 New Hampshire, state#3 Vermont and state#4 Mass., should be the first four states in the numerical order. Then state#5 RI., state#6 NY., state#7 CT., and state#8 NJ., in the numerical order.
Do you understand what I am proposing and what the effect would be? The illegal employees would rapidly see what is coming. Knowing that they couldn't produce verifiable tax identification they would start selling their belongings and shipping the items that they wished to retain back to their home countries.
The illegals from South America and Mexico would start moving West as their jobs disappeared on their own. As new jobs became impossible to attain they would see that Canada, Russia, Mexico or wherever their foreign homeland is should become their destination for employment.
Employers who couldn't find American workers could appeal to the proper Agency for a 24 month Guest Worker permit for specific named employees. This identification would be given to the employee at our border entry station as they apply for an Entry Card and permit this employee to work for just the one employer. Perhaps require the employer to send in verification that the employee is still needed and that he is will be working on site.
Once we have this system in place, then we could have the local police and ICE agents collect the rest of the illegals and deport them city by city across the United States. As each state comes up for it's 'clean up' I would favor a $10,000 fine for hiring a person in that state who isn't a US citizen or someone who doesn't have a Guest Worker identification card. That state should expel all students who aren't citizens, here on student visas or the children of authorized workers also.
We cannot afford to pay the costs of these people if they are not going to learn to speak English and assimilate into our communities. Their costs are much higher than their contributions.
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