Posted on 06/16/2007 11:17:18 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands ..."
As noted in this space last week, the U.S. has a huge problem – in fact, 12 to 14 million problems, collectively forming one of the biggest and most complex problems this country has ever faced. It's constantly in the news, Congress and the president are wrangling and disputing over what should be done, sizeable and sometimes disorderly demonstrations have occurred nationwide, and now our legislators are trying to revive a comatose bill that was crafted in such a way that it was met with widespread public suspicion and a lot of outright alarm.
Sen. Ted Kennedy, in an impassioned, almost Howard Dean-like display before Congress last week, cried, "These people have risked their lives to come here!" – strongly implying that this entitled them to being accepted as legitimate citizens. Immediately, the thought occurred to me: "Bank robbers risk their lives to rob banks; does this mean they should be allowed to take what they came for?"
Sadly, many people risk lives and resources on unattainable goals, or in ways that can't allow them to accomplish those goals. I know this whole immigration issue is knotty and emotional, and a Solomon-like solution is needed to resolve it. I'm not Solomon, but I think I see a logical path to happiness for our country and for the illegal aliens themselves.
TURN THE ALIENS INTO CITIZENS.
What is a citizen?
A citizen of the United States of America pledges allegiance to our flag and all it represents, to the republic and its laws. Not to some other country, its flag and its legal structure or lack of it.
A citizen is registered with the government, has personal ID, Social Security number, perhaps a driver's license … and pays taxes on income. He doesn't hide from his government; he openly cooperates with it and supports it. In fact, he becomes part of it.
A citizen obeys its laws and expects to be penalized if he doesn't.
I've personally talked with immigrants from many other countries, and heard countless others, who get very emotional recounting how they felt when they first pledged allegiance to our flag after they'd just become naturalized citizens. They'd come pursuing the dream of America – and yes, some had risked their very lives in the process – and their new citizenship meant everything to them. They not only were committed to obeying our laws, they had reverence for them! They understood that these laws and statutes formed the structure of the society they were becoming part of, and they cherished a government "of the people, by the people, and for the people."
Millions of these new citizens came from comparatively poor circumstances, but they worked hard, learned our language, soaked up our history and became successful Americans, raising their kids to be the same. They're the very kind of people Lady Liberty opened her arms to, and still does.
Apparently, the 12 to 14 million undocumented immigrants, largely from Mexico, are pursuing some part of the same dream. And I propose that they have a similar chance to become American citizens – but that they must do it the same way all their predecessors did it. Legally.
And since they're already here, and in most cases, working and earning pay for their work – illegally – they should expect, like all other citizens, to be penalized for breaking the law. Even Paris Hilton has had to learn that lesson, and is currently paying the penalty for her lawbreaking.
A fundamental, unchangeable truth: Laws that are not enforced are meaningless, irrelevant. They might as well not exist. And soon, they won't.
The revered U.S. Supreme Court Justice Benjamin Cardozo, in the 1937 Palko vs. Connecticut decision, referenced "the fundamental scheme of ordered liberty." And since he distilled a multifaceted concept into that useful phrase, rational and objective legal minds have agreed that all our liberties depend on a consistent structure, a legal order, to endure.
So what to do? My suggestions:
Every last immigrant must register with the government and commit to a plan to become legal. If not, it's back to the country from which he came.
A temporary work visa must be obtained, with a definite time limit, and holders' whereabouts routinely monitored.
Taxes must be assessed on moneys received, in compliance with the established guidelines and deductions all other citizens follow. In most cases, taxes will be little, and with deductions almost nothing, just like other low income Americans.
Fines or penalties will be assessed, but as with low earning Americans and college students, these can be paid over time out of earnings, perhaps on a low percentage of income basis. But breaking the law must incur penalty!
The government will have to set up the processes by which the naturalization can be accomplished in two or three years maximum. The same requirements, including learning American history and the English language and all our basic laws, must be part of the process, as with all previous naturalized immigrants. Failure to comply will necessitate expulsion; U.S. citizenship cannot be taken, or earned, lightly anymore. But compliance will be rewarded.
Sorry, no benefits except emergency medical care will be afforded non-citizens, especially those here illegally. But the benefits will be available upon compliance and naturalization. Using the bank robber analogy, just breaking in and taking the desired benefits won't work … for anybody.
Automatic citizenship to children born here to illegal parents must end; some learned constitutional scholars have said that a constitutional amendment isn't necessary for this change – correctly worded federal statute may be sufficient. If Arnold Schwarzenegger can't run for president, like any other citizen, because he wasn't born here, why should children born here illegally have more rights than the governor of California? In a democracy worthy of the name, personal rights and obedience to law are inseparable.
Ergo … Employers who knowingly, or even negligently, hire and pay illegal aliens must be punished severely for breaking the laws and bringing much of this dilemma on our country to begin with. I propose they be assessed the total amounts they've paid, plus significant fines and other penalties. They then will be forced to pay decent wages low-income Americans may be attracted to. Failure to comply should send employers to prison, like other lawbreakers. If Bernie Ebbers and Ken Lay and other very wealthy and influential executives can be held accountable, every last employer should be too. Now, I know a plan like this will be complex and costly. But so is the IRS – and with all its inefficiency and bureaucracy, it has worked well enough to fund our huge government – even our pork-addicted Congress! And if you've ever failed to pay taxes when you should have, or even acted on an accountant's advice that was later disallowed by the IRS, you've learned that "you can run, but you can't hide." Surely, if we diligently apply the same intelligence and comprehensive commitment to immigration, we can solve these problems and welcome these new millions as law-abiding, productive, loyal citizens. That way, we can address the monumental taxpayer costs of accommodating them as illegals.
We must do these things. We can't keep allowing, even inviting, millions of people to pour over our borders and just start living the American dream in any fashion, without demanding the same responsibilities all our citizens must accept. The idea of "amnesty," of just shrugging off disobedience and disregard for our laws – in any form or by any name – cannot be offered.
Unless liberty is "ordered," it will inevitably cease to exist – for any of us.
In 1981, I almost mowed Pat boone down when he jogged through a green light.......glad I missed him : )
In general, Pat has written a good article. But we do not want citizens made from the unwilling and the bribed. As long as a person has gone through the legal process to earn a visa here, they should be able to remain as long as they abide by the rules of their guest privileges.
The limit should be determined in consideration of protecting other US Citizens security, rights and earned priveledges BEFORE the same rights and priveledges are gifted to UNLIMITED NUMBERS of CERTAIN aliens who have shown the character of willfully ignoring law and order for the purpose of personal profit.
For instance what is the justification of random predjudice allowing open illegal border infiltration to Mexican illegal aliens , BUT NOT TO illegal aliens from Yemen , or Afghanistan for example.
the whole thing is insanity, and I have been saying this since I was about 17 years old in about 1970 when I went to get my first job and first realized there was a huge illegal alien problem
If it's such a problem, Senor Bush only need ask his amigo Vicente Fox how he got rid of 12 to 14 million. He didn't have any problem doing it, why would Bush?
I saw Dick Morris predict W. will get some type of bill through the Senate. I also know that W. gets his way an awful lot of the time. I agree with Pat Boone but I would add completion of the fence and making aliens outside the country sign up for citizenship or visas in embassies outside the U.S. just so they won’t become illegal while their visas are getting processed.
I have a better idea, what we need is a fence and a sufficiency of boarder patrol agents at the boarder to stop people from sneaking in, and a mandatory employer fine of $100,000+ per illegal hired to be collected by the IRS, and distributed as follows. $50,000 to the Citizen who drops the dime on the employer and illegal alien, $25,000 to the State or Local law enforcement which captures and delivers the illegal alien to immigration for deportation and collects the evidence on the employer, and $25,000 to the immigration dept. for storage, processing, and transport of the deportees to the farthest point from the USA of their home country, anyone here illegally must be deported, they can appeal the deportation from outside the country. As for employers ability to figure out who is illegal, I say let them solve it, they will now have a serious economic incentive to do it right, ignorance of the Law is no excuse. I think private industry will step in with services that employers can use to identify illegals, credit bureaus, private investigating firms, etc… we need to take as much of the responsibility for policing the illegal immigrants out of the hands of government, as they are clearly incompetent at it.
This is bull - it’s Bush’s plan.
I don’t want millions of criminals in this country. Deport them all.
Phoenix is becoming a Mexican city, if it’s not already. These people with opinions need to leave their gated communities and paid security protection and take a tour the the real southwest.
I posted the editorial, I didn’t write it..LOL
I only agree with three of Pat’s points:
1. “”Bank robbers risk their lives to rob banks; does this mean they should be allowed to take what they came for?” ...” Sadly, many people risk lives and resources on unattainable goals, or in ways that [we] can’t allow them to accomplish those goals.”
2. “Automatic citizenship to children born here to illegal parents must end; some learned constitutional scholars have said that a constitutional amendment isn’t necessary for this change – correctly worded federal statute may be sufficient.”
3. “Employers who knowingly, or even negligently, hire and pay illegal aliens must be punished severely for breaking the laws and bringing much of this dilemma on our country to begin with. I propose they be assessed the total amounts they’ve paid, plus significant fines and other penalties. They then will be forced to pay decent wages low-income Americans may be attracted to. Failure to comply should send employers to prison, like other lawbreakers. If Bernie Ebbers and Ken Lay and other very wealthy and influential executives can be held accountable, every last employer should be too.”
Then why did you think my comments were directed at you?
Another good point he had was to withhold all benefits, except for those related to medical emergencies. That would certainly help.
I Like Ike.
Take the Pledge: "I pledge to never, ever vote for anyone, for any office, who votes in favor of the Mexican Invasion Surrender Bill."
The penalty for being politically tone-deaf is death of one's political career. Amnesty for illegal immigrants--which means any path to any sort of permanent legal residency of any kind (let alone citizenship,) regardless of cost--is worse than the "third rail of politics." It's the Guillotine.
Patty-boy is nuts. A "path to citizenship" is the ONE thing that should NEVER be part of the equation. A "path to legalization" I can live with, but anyone who came here in violation of our laws should NEVER be allowed citizenship unless they GO BACK HOME and enter the regular channels.
If this requires the establishment of a new class of permanant residency, then fine---but NOT citizenship. THAT is the requisite punishment for their illegal activity--"paying a fine" is just inadequate. The BEST these criminals should be able to hope for is that their children (if born here) will be citizens.
NO citizenship for illegal alliens.
NO anchor baby program.
NO government services.
NO free medical care.
Ship them home.
Build the fence.
Enforce the law.
If it is found that the illegal immigrant used false documents to get a job, he would be deported. If caught a second time he would be imprisoned.
An employer could register an illegal as a guest worker and put him on the record with a limited stay in the US.
This plan would police itself. The government used businesses to collect taxes, why not use them to control immigration?
America needs eliminate dual citizenship and, should the Grand Bargain make it out of the Senate, revise it in the House to require all aliens put “on the path to citizenship” sign an intent to renounce all other foreign allegiances.
I wonder if they have heard of Earned Income Credit. So they pay there taxes as a penalty and thanks to earned income credit they will get a refund bigger than what they paid in for all those low income people. That doesn’t sound like a very good penalty. Sounds like a sweet deal.
Deportation upon detection.
Mandatory.
To break the cycle of amnesty/more illegals - amnesty/more illegals - amnesty/more illegals - amnesty/more illegals - amnesty/more illegals - amnesty/more illegals - amnesty/more illegals - we have to do what any common sense law enforcement must do.
ENFORCE THE LAW.
That’s to Pat, not you.
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