Immagration Plan Sucks

[Lancaster]

I normally agree with the actions of the Bush Administration, but I cannot understand the new Immigration Plan. How in the world can we expect to provide welfare and medical care for the over 16 million illegal immigrants in this country? They are also sending a message to criminals, "Commit a felony and be rewarded for it!" These people commited a crime, now they are being rewarded with citizenship. They also didn't have to pay taxes for all these years. If anyone else had done the same thing, they'd be in jail. We need to shift some focus off Iraq and on to our own borders. If common workers can sneak into our country, what's to stop terriorists from getting in? What does everyone else think of this?

[ughaibu]

They think this: http://hypography.com/forums/social-...mp-saints.html

[Zythryn]

I agree that we need to secure our borders, should have been the first thing we did after 9/11.

However, regarding illegal immigrants, we already DO provide medical care. And education and other costs.

Many also do already pay taxes, at least through their w-2s (minus the employers paying workers in cash).

These really are two seperate issues. Secure the borders first, then argue about what to do with people already here.

If you want to solve the illegal immigration issue, it can be done very easily. All Bush needs to do is to enforce the laws that punish employers for hiring illegals. Bush tends not to do anything that will inconvenience business however. With the exception of a raid done earlier this year, I see very little enforcement.

If employers are told that the laws will be enforced, and the enforcement makes it not worth the risk, employers will no longer look for illegals to hire.

You will still get the occasional illegal that slips through, however you won't have the huge issue you do now.

[pgrmdave]

They aren't malicious, they only are trying to make their lives better. I say that the best way to deal with immigration is to make it easier to come here legally.

[Racoon]

The fact that Mexico threatened to sue the U.S. if National Guards arrested Illegal Mexicans is laughable.
They do that with their illegals from C.America. they're a bunch of hypocrites, and afew other unmentionables

I agree that it's a problem. Will be a bigger problem.
Especially when you throw the word "terrorists" around, and unemployment, social services, Health care. blah blah blah.

Why should the US shoulder the burden for failed and corrupt Mexican policies and economy??
I say they aren't entitled to anything by entering illegally. Follow the damned law!
And yes, punish Companies for hiring Illegals. that will decrease their incentive for coming here.

And yes, Mexicans for the most part decent hard-working family oriented people, but many entering are completely criminal, disfunctional, and exploitive...
Lets look at the long term consequences.

In a perfect world maybe...

(ps. it would help to spell Immigration correctly for the thread title)

[Lancaster]

Sorry, I forgot to use the Google Toolbar's spellcheck feature on the thread title. How realistic is it to think that we can make a huge, well fortified, and armed wall spanning most of the border? This would solve some serious issues.

[HydrogenBond]

The immigration problem creates a unique paradox for the Bush admin. On the one hand they believe in natural security but also free enterprise. The lure that is bringing the immigrants in are the jobs created by business, since the immigrants provide a source of cheap labor from a low wage country. The cheap labor does well by their lower standards. With this cheap labor comes a financial burden on the average taxpayer in the guise of social services. The fair solution is to make all the businesses who benefit by the cheaper labor pay the social bill.

Figure it this way, if business had to provide social services for their cheap labor, the labor cost would go up. This means product prices would rise. But from the point of view of the average person, the lower social tax burden, would give them extra money to pay the difference. Business would be more efficient than govenment beaurocracy, giving the average person a better deal than is being proposed, i.e., cheap veggies, higher taxes. Business would make less profit. This would lower the demand for immigrant workers stemming the lure that is drawing them here.

[Lancaster]

Good point. But all those new workers are taking jobs away from legally citizens. I read an article where the owner of a lawn service company was going bankrupt because she paid her workers fair wages. She couldn't compete with the other business owners who were paying their illegal immigrant workers much lower than minimum wage. If you snuck into the country illegally, you can't complain that you're being paid low wages or you'll be deported. It creates another big issue on an issue already clogged with issues.

[Freddy]

Originally Posted by Zythryn

I agree that we need to secure our borders, should have been the first thing we did after 9/11.

However, regarding illegal immigrants, we already DO provide medical care. And education and other costs.

Many also do already pay taxes, at least through their w-2s (minus the employers paying workers in cash).

These really are two seperate issues. Secure the borders first, then argue about what to do with people already here.

If you want to solve the illegal immigration issue, it can be done very easily. All Bush needs to do is to enforce the laws that punish employers for hiring illegals. Bush tends not to do anything that will inconvenience business however. With the exception of a raid done earlier this year, I see very little enforcement.

If employers are told that the laws will be enforced, and the enforcement makes it not worth the risk, employers will no longer look for illegals to hire.

You will still get the occasional illegal that slips through, however you won't have the huge issue you do now.

Absolutely, when the government recently cracked down on an employer across the country, 53% of its workers were here illegally. They would not come here if there was not a job for them. There is a job for them because the federal minimun wage is at $5.15 per hour. As long as employers can pay illegals a non living wage there will be jobs for them.

Who is benefitting from illegal immigration? Employers, who pay them less and can sell goods and services for less. Americans, who purchase goods and services that cost less provided by illegal immigrants.

Who is hurt by Illegal immigration? American workers as wages are depressed throughout the economy by an over supply of illegal workers and lose jobs because of this. American taxpayers, who see their tax money pay for school children of illegal immigrants, medical costs, and taxes not being collected.

America needs to enforce its immigration laws. Over 2,100 illegals were arrested recently. Of them, 640 had been deported previously, 140 were child molestors, 367 were gang members. Many of these illegal immigrants were found working at defense contractors, airports, ports, and other sensitive areas.

[pgrmdave]

It seems to me that all of these problems would be solved by making them legal citizens and raising the minimum wage. And that's much simpler than a wall and less controversial.