The terrible events of September 11th brought the issue of immigration reform squarely into the public spotlight. Most of the terrorist hijackers involved in the attacks were in the country illegally, having gained entrance using student visas that had later expired. The INS now admits that potentially tens of millions of aliens in the country are unaccounted for, many having simply disappeared after passing through customs. This in turn leads to fears that numerous terrorist cells may be operating within the U.S. and plotting future acts of terror. No amount of military might used abroad does us much good if the American people are not safe in their own communities.
Immigration policy must now be considered a matter of national security. America has the same sovereign right to defend itself against enemies when the enemy attacks us from within. Common sense tells us that we currently should not be admitting aliens from nations that sponsor or harbor terrorists, or from nations with whom we are at war. There were many fine German-Americans in the U.S. during World War II, but we certainly did not allow open immigration from Germany until hostilities had ceased and loyalties could be determined. While we generally should welcome people from around the world whenever possible, we cannot allow potential enemies or terrorists to enter the country now under any circumstances. Legislation I introduced in the fall would restrict immigration, including the granting of heavily abused student visas, by individuals from nations listed as terrorist threats by the State department.
We also must do a better job keeping track of the noncitizens who already have been admitted to America. Individuals who remain in the country after their visas have expired must be treated as lawbreakers. Remember, only U.S. citizens have the constitutional right to be on American soil; non-citizens are in the country at the discretion of the State department. We should not tolerate lawless behavior or anti-American activities from guests in our country.
It is far better to focus our efforts on immigration reform and ridding our country of suspected terrorists than to restrict the constitutional liberties of our own citizens. The fight against terrorism should be fought largely at our borders. Once potential terrorists are in the country, the task of finding and arresting them becomes much harder, and the calls for intrusive government monitoring of all of us become louder. If we do not want to move in the direction of a police state at home, we must prevent terrorists from entering the country in the first place.
Finally, meaningful immigration reform can only take place when we end the welfare state. No one has a right to immigrate to America and receive benefits paid for by taxpayers. When we eliminate welfare incentives, we insure that only those who truly seek America’s freedoms and opportunities will want to come here.
Ron Paul
Every time I see you post one of your outrageous mis-statements I will post a retort from the Ron Paul library. Any discussion with you is pointless.
So keep yapping...it give me more space to refute your BS with actual policy statements like these Immigratiom
..and how exactly do we know he wrote this? As his campaign pointed out, he had a ghost writer for decades writing things in his name, in his newsletters, that he was oblivious to.
Bump for later, got a video re Paul and immigration that will add light to the subject.. good to actually see a man saying it in his own words..
..calls for a more generous immigration policy
Ron Paul votes YES (radio interview) oops.. you'll love this one
Illegals are more American than us
Illegal immigration isn't important
..and of course, instead of rhetoric, let's go back to votes:
I am sure his voting record is "taken out of context" or it is a "neocon conspiracy"....Read the facts.
Ron Paul’s Immigration Record
Source: http://www.federalobserver.com/archive.php?aid=11832
URL Source: http://NumberUSA
Published: Oct 29, 2007
Author: Excerpted from : http://www.federalobser
Paul’s Immigration Voting Record & Report Card on the NumbersUSA website:
(1) Paul consistently voted every year since 1999 against putting the military on the border:
2006: H. Amdt. 206 to H.R. 1815 2004: Goode Amendment to H.R. 4200 2003: Goode Amendment to H.R. 1588 2002: H. Amdt. 479 to H.R. 4546 2001: Traficant amendment to HR 2586 2000: Traficant amendment to H.R.4205 1999: Trafficant Amendment to H.R. 1401.
(2) Paul voted in 1997, 2001( H.R. 1885) and 2002 (H RES 365) to grant, extend or continue Section 245-i amnesties for illegal aliens.
(3) Paul voted NO on extending the voluntary Basic Pilot Workplace Verification Program (H.R. 2359),
(4) Paul voted NO on the border fence in 2005 (Hunter Amendment to HR 4437 - “Enforcement Only” Bill).
(5) Paul voted YES to increase H2-B (HR 763 in 2005) and H-1B visas (HR 3736 in 1998). In 1998, he voted to allow US firms to lay off Americans to replace them with foreigners.
TAKE NOTE:
(2) Paul voted in 1997, 2001( H.R. 1885) and 2002 (H RES 365) to grant, extend or continue Section 245-i amnesties for illegal aliens.
Everyone needs a reminder of some of Pauls BAD immigration votes.
Especially Item #2. This was an amnesty and allowed for chain migration, more visas, blah,blah, and one reason it has gotten as bad as it has. It was pushed by the White House.
H.R.3525 Title: To enhance the border security of the United States, and for other purposes. (introduced 12/19/2001) Related Bills: H.RES.365, H.R.1885, H.R.3205, S.CON.RES.106, S.1618, S.1749 Latest Major Action: Became Public Law No: 107-173 [GPO: Text, PDF] Note: On 3/12/2002, H.Res. 365 was agreed to by the House. H.Res. 365 incorporated the text of H.R. 3525, the Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act, in H.R. 1885, previously the Section 245(i) Extension Act dealing with certain immigration petition filing deadlines. Subsequent action on border security returned to H.R. 3525.
http://www.congress.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d107:HR03525:
The White House [snip]
H.R. 1885 - Section 245(i) Extension Act The Administration strongly supports House passage of H.R.1885 as expected to be considered on the House floor. H.R. 1885 would extend the window created under section 245(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act during which qualified immigrants may obtain legal residence in the United States without being forced to first leave the country and their families for as long as several years. This legislation reflects the Administration’s philosophy that government policies should recognize the importance of families and help to strengthen them.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/legislative/sap/107-2/HR1885-h.html
also:
Rep. Paul is a cosponsor of H.R. 793, the Save Our Small and Seasonal Business Act of 2005, to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to limit the timing of issuance of H-2B visas during a fiscal year. Specifically, H.R. 793 would split the H-2B visa cap so no more than 33,000 visas are made available for the first six months the fiscal year, and another 33,000 visas would be available in the second half of the year. However, H.R. 793 exempts from the annual cap aliens granted an H-2B visa within three years prior to approval of an H-2B petition, thus potentially TRIPLING the number of H-2B workers in the United States at any one time. Although timing the issuance of H-2B visas is a common-sense approach that would help prevent the situation that occurred in FY 2004 and FY 2005 when the 66,000 annual cap on H-2B (low-skill) nonimmigrant visas was hit within the first quarter of the year, H.R. 793 would ultimately harm American workers by creating exemptions which potentially could triple the number of H-2B workers in the U.S. at any given time. Nearly doubled H-1B foreign high-tech workers in 1998
and
Voted on House floor against Hunter amendment to increase security with border fence in 2005 Rep. Paul voted against the Hunter Amendment to H.R. 4437, the Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005. The Hunter Amendment would shore up security by building fences and other physical infrastructure to keep out illegal aliens. Specifically, it mandates the construction of specific security fencing, including lights and cameras, along the Southwest border for the purposes of gaining operational control of the border. As well, it includes a requirement for the Secretary of Homeland Security to conduct a study on the use of physical barriers along the Northern border. The Hunter Amendment passed by a vote of 260-159.
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Now tell me honestly, if you replaced Paul's name with any other R, and saw this record versus what he wrote, what would you say about him?