The American Spectator

John| 4.9.09 @ 8:50AM

Backlash? What? That assumption smacks of the occupants of a phone booth convincing themselves that their incessant pounding on the glass will actually get noticed by the bustling city around them....

It might get some attention, but the cops aren't likely do more than tell the occupants to move along or risk arrest for being annoying.

The two factions of the Right (Libertarians and Restrictionists) had an opportunity to settle this for almost four years. Neither side felt particularly obliged to listen to the other so what came out of it was acrimony, a destroyed presidency, and a seriously weakened Conservative influence on the GOP.

It was pure poison, and the Dems just sat back and watched us burn ourselves up. They only intruded a few times to refan the flames when they threatened to die off.

So... Those of us on the Restrictionist side might as well get used to the idea of 12 million new Democrat voters... because they are coming.

We won the battle by stopping the bad bills, only to offer no viable good alternatives. The victory was Pyrrhic. The defeat that follows portends to be permanent.

r/John

Tim| 4.9.09 @ 9:26AM

The second shoe to drop will be when John McCain gets trotted out at the presser to announce his support for the presiden'ts iniative

"You love me, you really love me!"

Bob| 4.9.09 @ 9:29AM

Philip, Obama's behavior is extremely predictable. You are trying to analyze his behavior as if he were George Bush or Newt Gingrich. During the election, he set a strategy and stuck with it. Early on, when Hillary had gained some advantage, his cadre told him he should change directions. His response was that he believed his strategy was correct and was not going to be reactionary. In his battle with McCain, he also stuck to his strategy.

So the answer is simple -- he promised all of these things during the campaign, it is part of his strategy, and he is not going to change. If you've read his books, you'd realize it is really this simple. Some of the tactics may change, but the strategy won't.

This is both his strength and his weakness. Bush and Gingrich, on the other hand are not strategists, they responded to tactics. That's why it was not unexpected that Bush would become less of a conservative during his presidency. McCain was even more tactical in his responses. Romney was the strategist of the bunch.

So, instead of talking about tactics with Obama, you've got to change your perspective and think like a professor -- strategic. He's doing exactly what he said he'd do.

John | 4.9.09 @ 10:07AM

Of course the NYT story could be largely baloney at least in the medium term. I've no doubt this is on his agenda in the long term because he said it was during the election campaign but this is really one mid level official talking about talks about talks. I could be wrong because I also have to agree with Bob, this guy is an able strategist. This shows in his ability to play rope a dope although it has to be said he gets loads of cooperation. This issue has some dangers for the democrats, but it's fatal for Republicans both in the short term in that it splits the party's business and social wings and of course in the long term as it welds hispanics to the democratic party. It could also be a great Sun Tzu diversion to get the GOP all heated up about as he pushes on with the more immediate parts of his agenda on healthcare and global warming. The Republican party continually under-rates Obama so it will be interesting to see if this comes to something.

Aaron| 4.9.09 @ 10:50AM

Oh dear God, I'm agreeing with Bob!

I'll take door number 5. Don't think like a Conservative, think like a Liberal. He will do exactly what he said he is going to do. He gave us the syllabus, if we fail to prepare then its on us. I will caveat that with this; I have had many a professor that love a surprise. They aren't to good at surprises but they do relish trying to pull them off.

urbanleftbehind| 4.9.09 @ 10:58AM

Dont be so sure that the the Reagan Paradox doesnt become the Obama Paradox this time around.

Yes, realistically there could 12 million new Dems. But rather than condemn them all, find the high rollers and the relatively well behaved and shave some of those off of the plantation.

Point out that "its always a black guy that gets the cushy federal jobs".

Point out that all of the preoccupation with internecine drug cartel conflicts dragged Mexico through the mud, hurt the one legitimate money maker (tourism) immensely, all so that his Blood/Crip/Gangster Disciple/Vice Lord lobby could get the military to do a job they cant do themselves.

If there is a legitmate play here, I wouldnt be surprised if its a Savage-inspired Mexican oil for illegals trade. Then Israel can take out the Iranian nuclear facility without us crapping about $10/gallon oil.

mickey12| 4.9.09 @ 11:12AM

Be careful what you vote for...........you just might get it.......
This was announced during the election .. why is anyone surprised!!

Bob| 4.9.09 @ 11:45AM

Aaron, if there's anything I've learned over the years, it is that behavior is predictable if you actually do the homework. I probably have a harsher view of immigration than most of you -- I don't believe they should receive medical care if they can't pay and even if their children are born here, I don't think they should automatically become citizens.

Republicans must address these issues with realistic solutions. Saying "no", is not a successful option. Furthermore, being dumb and uneducated like the current Republican leaders is not a successful option. The problem with accomplished, educated people is that they rely on reason more than social conservatives desire.

James Driscoll| 4.9.09 @ 11:51AM

Conservatives need a game changer to win on immigration. They can hoist Obama on his petar, fight fire with fire, but are too unimaginative, too
wedded to the same old arguments. The hidden weakness of Obama immigration policies is discrimination. Strict enforcement of entry by sea or air and lax enforcement of entry by land gives Mexicans and Central Americans an easy illegal entry while subjecting Asians, Africans etc to rigorous and restrictive legal rules. Lax border enforcement creates defacto immigration discrimination which violates
Obama's professed liberal principles, not to mention the spirit of the Constitution and basic ethics. Conservative can win by demanding an end to defacto immigration discrimination, and that is probably the only way they can win.

JohnR| 4.9.09 @ 12:31PM

Yes, if Obama pushes on this he'll enrage the conservative base and probably lose quite a few of those swing voters that put him in office. But...he'll win all of the huge (and growing) hispanic vote, and just think what will happen to the balance of power with 20M naturalized hispanics added to the voter pool (not to mention obama's stated intention to make it easier for newly legalized immigrants to bring over family members). So we're not looking at 20M...more like 50-100M over the next 10 yrs. Think that will shift the balance of power to the Dems for generations to come?

Sgt. Joe Friday| 4.9.09 @ 12:47PM

This is a trial balloon, that's all.

Now, that being said (and a little OT), I think George W. Bush was the last white male president we're going to see. Both parties from here on out are going to fall all over themselves looking for brown/yellow/black candidates, or perhaps more specifically NAM (non-Asian minority) candidates to the point that even qualified, charismatic, and telegenic white men are going to be pushed aside, because they "represent the past" and people want to vote for candidates "who look like them."

I would even go so far as to say that one result of Obama's administration, beyond loose borders, gradual giving up of our sovereignty, and the sovietization of our economy is going to be the establishment of some sort of reverse Jim Crow laws. In other words, racial discrimination will once again be legal, so long as the individual on the receiving end is white, male, and English speaking.

Think this is too goofy to even contemplate? Be honest here - how many of you have sat back and let your imaginations wander, and then wonder if that's not where we're headed.

Mick| 4.9.09 @ 2:23PM

realistically there could 12 million new Dems. But rather than condemn them all, find the high rollers and the relatively well behaved and shave some of those off of the plantation.

What planet are you living on, people?

Hispanics/Mexicans have never given majority to any Republican candidate.
Even Jorge Boosh, who has never seen a Mexican ass he didn't want to kiss, was getting significantly less than 50% in Texas. In Texas where so many white Hispanics live from Spanish colonial times.

Government, as always, seriously underestimate number of illegals in the country (during last amnesty real number was 3 times of gov number).

Should amnesty come at least 20 million will come forward. Those will import another 40 million (real and fake wifes, real and fake children, real and fake parents, etc) in less than 5 years.
All poor, all dependent on welfare just as much as ghetto mamas. Why would they vote for half-assed Dems (republicans) instead of real Democrats?

Make no mistake, Amnesty will kill Republican party first, US will become a one part state, another 50 - 80 million of Mexicans, Chinese and others will come and Kiss Good-bye to this country.
If you like plutocracy like Mexico, you will love
Estados Unidos los Hispanos.

black saint | 4.9.09 @ 2:39PM

Ronald Reagan signed the 1986 Amnesty engineered by the liberal hero, the Socialist, Womanize, Drunk and Killer Ed Kennedy. Thereby, increasing the welfare and crime rate more than any single bill ever passed, (with the possible exception of probation on crime) while encouraged millions of uneducated peons & criminals to pour across our borders until now we have suffered the largest invasion in the history of the world, of any Nation, at any time, by any means!

The 20 to 40 millions of uneducated illegal aliens currently residing in this country is turning the USA into the largest Socialist Nation in the world. Each head of household with less than a high school education, Legal or Illegal is an net drain of 20k per year on the backs of American tax payers.

The cost for their Medical, Schooling and Welfare makes them the most expensive manual labor in the world. Now we have both parties pandering for the Latino vote and promising Amnesty which will compound the problems allowing them to access even more social benefits!

The businesses employing the Illegal Aliens are in effect enjoying nearly slave labor while pocketing the profits and driving down our standard of living while passing on the actual cost to American tax payers of not only his employees but all of their family members residing with them.

The globalist, multiculturalism, open border advocates, liberals & businesses profiting from and exploiting Illegal Aliens argue that they, the Illegal Aliens, pay tons of taxes, sure they all pay real estate taxes (in rent) and sales taxes (most states). Those working on the books approximately 35 % using stolen Social Security numbers or other fraudulent documents pay FICA and, perhaps, income taxes. But they're mostly ill-educated and low-skilled and pay very low taxes connected to their working. In fact, most claim the Earned Income Tax Credit, i.e. negative income tax! Of course, the remaining 65% of the Illegal Aliens working off the books typically work for cash and pay nothing except real estate taxes (in rent) and sales taxes (most states).

The Latinos that make up the largest group of the Illegal Aliens population has the largest school drop out rate of any ethnic group in the USA, second highest illegitimate birth rate, second highest crime rate, highest total birth rate and recent studies confirm they start dropping out of school, using drugs, having illegitimate kids, joining gangs at an earlier age then any ethnic group in the USA.
This behavior continues even after citizenship and down through each generation. This culture characteristic explains why Mexico and Latin American, while having more natural resources and moderate climate than most First World Nations are still mired in an Third World Cesspool of Crime, Corruption, Poverty and Misery!

Mexico's and Latin American's primary economic policy is to send their Uneducated peons and Criminals to the US for Tax payers to support and be the Victims as they rob, rape and slaughter Americans by the 10,s of thousands, Businesses to Exploit and profit from, and for Corrupt Politicians to Pander and Cuddle! While Mexico has one of the most punitive and strictly enforced immigration policies in the world!

Amnestying them & with chain immigration for their relatives and their relatives in an never ending chain will add 100,s of millions, a vast underclass of fast breeding, uneducated citizens that will make it impossible to continue the social network for American tax payers. When that occurs you will see riots, fires and pillage from coast to coast that will make the recent rioting in French by Muslim immigrants look like an cook out!

A recent study by the International Monetary fund confirms that remittance is not only is bad for the remittance country but for the country receiving the money. It allows the home country (normally third world nations) to keep from addressing the problems and improving their citizens standard of living and continue the same policies and keeping in power the corrupt government without facing an revolution and demands from citizens for improvements. So, our open borders and amnesty for the invading horde of illegal aliens is not only bad policy for this Nation but perpetrates the poverty and misery in the home countries.

We are now seeing that the Illegal Aliens can not only impact this Nation but the global economy as well. Many of the Sub-Prime loans & defaults were to Illegal Aliens that started the unraveling of the Global Economy! Just like our Declining standard of living, Bankrupt Hospitals, Failing Schools, Welfare costs, Identity fraud, Welfare fraud, Voter fraud, Gangs, Crime, Crowded prisons, Destroyed communities, Exploding population, Congested roads, Pollution, Insurance costs, Balance of payments, (Imported oil etc. to support the illegal alien population) Trashed Constitution and the Rule of Law, they have now spread their negative impact & misery across the Globe.

It looks like with American heading into a very bad recession or more likely an depression, The 100,s of billions the Illegal Aliens are costing American tax payers for free medical, schooling, welfare etc. needs to be spend on American citizens, not invading criminals from third world counties, plus the 40 to 50 billions remittance by Illegal aliens needs to stay in the country to simulate this economy and force Mexico & Latin American to address their problems!

Last but not least, all Nations immigration policies are by design & intent suppose to enhance the Nation and its Citizens that immigrated legally, obeyed the laws, paid the taxes, fought the wars and built the nation! Clearly for the reasons numerated above Amnesty for the invading horde of uneducated peons and criminals does not meet this criteria.

They certainly must not be used to further the political careers and lust for power of Corrupt/Pandering Politicians that refuse to abide by Article IV, Section IV of our Constitution against Invasion, Enforce our Immigration Laws, or Honor their Oath of Office!

Pammie| 4.9.09 @ 3:23PM

Get those illegals naturalized in time for the 2010 elections! Add ACORN to the mix and demos will win every close election.

Lefty| 4.10.09 @ 2:13AM

As a pro-immigration lefty, I rejoice in the ironic legacy of Ronald Reagan's 1986 amnesty law and what it set into motion: the inevitable extinction of the Republican Party.

I'm willing to acknowledge much of what immigration critics say: that it may bankrupt our welfare system, increase our crime rate, and turn large parts of the country into Spanish speaking barrios. But the most important fact is that 80 to 90% of new immigrant citizens vote Democratic. As Congressman Barney Frank of New York has pointed out, this political benefit of massive immigration outweight any of the costs.

Hopefully, Obama's forthcoming immigration reforms will give amnesty to all current immigrants, create a welcoming open door to tens of millions of additional immigrants, and give them all a fast-track to citizenship. By flooding the nation with new immigrant Democratic voters, this will put the Republican Party out of business. We will finally achieve what every liberal American longs for: permanent left-wing control of this country.

Once Republicans are out of the picture, Democratic presidents will have a free hand to move this country swiftly down the same path to social and economic justice now being taken so heroically by Hugo Chavez in Venezuela.

Truth| 4.10.09 @ 9:16AM

Undocumented immigrants paying more taxes than you think!!

Eight million Undocumented immigrants pay Social Security, Medicare and income taxes. Denying public services to people who pay their taxes is an affront to America’s bedrock belief in fairness. But many “pull-up-the-drawbridge” politicians want to do just that when it comes to Undocumented immigrants.

The fact that Undocumented immigrants pay taxes at all will come as news to many Americans. A stunning two thirds of Undocumented immigrants pay Medicare, Social Security and personal income taxes.

Yet, nativists like Congressman Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., have popularized the notion that illegal aliens are a colossal drain on the nation’s hospitals, schools and welfare programs — consuming services that they don’t pay for.

In reality, the 1996 welfare reform bill disqualified Undocumented immigrants from nearly all means tested government programs including food stamps, housing assistance, Medicaid and Medicare-funded hospitalization.

The only services that illegals can still get are emergency medical care and K-12 education. Nevertheless, Tancredo and his ilk pushed a bill through the House criminalizing all aid to illegal aliens — even private acts of charity by priests, nurses and social workers.

Potentially, any soup kitchen that offers so much as a free lunch to an illegal could face up to five years in prison and seizure of assets. The Senate bill that recently collapsed would have tempered these draconian measures against private aid.

But no one — Democrat or Republican — seems to oppose the idea of withholding public services. Earlier this year, Congress passed a law that requires everyone who gets Medicaid — the government-funded health care program for the poor — to offer proof of U.S. citizenship so we can avoid “theft of these benefits by illegal aliens,” as Rep. Charlie Norwood, R-Ga., puts it. But, immigrants aren’t flocking to the United States to mooch off the government.

According to a study by the Urban Institute, the 1996 welfare reform effort dramatically reduced the use of welfare by undocumented immigrant households, exactly as intended. And another vital thing happened in 1996: the Internal Revenue Service began issuing identification numbers to enable illegal immigrants who don’t have Social Security numbers to file taxes.

One might have imagined that those fearing deportation or confronting the prospect of paying for their safety net through their own meager wages would take a pass on the IRS’ scheme. Not so. Close to 8 million of the 12 million or so illegal aliens in the country today file personal income taxes using these numbers, contributing billions to federal coffers.

No doubt they hope that this will one day help them acquire legal status — a plaintive expression of their desire to play by the rules and come out of the shadows. What’s more, aliens who are not self-employed have Social Security and Medicare taxes automatically withheld from their paychecks.

Since undocumented workers have only fake numbers, they’ll never be able to collect the benefits these taxes are meant to pay for. Last year, the revenues from these fake numbers — that the Social Security administration stashes in the “earnings suspense file” — added up to 10 percent of the Social Security surplus.

The file is growing, on average, by more than $50 billion a year. Beyond federal taxes, all illegals automatically pay state sales taxes that contribute toward the upkeep of public facilities such as roads that they use, and property taxes through their rent that contribute toward the schooling of their children.

The non-partisan National Research Council found that when the taxes paid by the children of low-skilled immigrant families — most of whom are illegal — are factored in, they contribute on average $80,000 more to federal coffers than they consume. Yes, many illegal migrants impose a strain on border communities on whose doorstep they first arrive, broke and unemployed.

To solve this problem equitably, these communities ought to receive the surplus taxes that federal government collects from immigrants. But the real reason border communities are strained is the lack of a guest worker program.

Such a program would match willing workers with willing employers in advance so that they wouldn’t be stuck for long periods where they disembark while searching for jobs. The cost of undocumented aliens is an issue that immigrant bashers have created to whip up indignation against people they don’t want here in the first place.

With the Senate having just returned from yet another vacation and promising to revisit the stalled immigration bill, politicians ought to set the record straight: Illegals are not milking the government. If anything, it is the other way around.

The Undocumented Immigrants pay the exact same amount of taxes like you and me when they buy Things, rent a house, fill up gas, drink a beer or wine, buy appliances, play the states lottery and mega millions . Below are the links to just a few sites that will show you exactly how much tax you or the Undocumented Immigrant pays , so you see they are NOT FREELOADERS, THEY PAY TAXES AND TOLLS Exactly the same as you, Now if you take out 10% from your states /city Budget what will your city/state look like financially ?

Stop your folly thinking , you are wise USE YOUR WISDOM to see the reality. They pay more taxes than you think, Including FEDERAL INCOME TAX using a ITN Number that is given to them by the IRS, Social Security Taxes and State taxes that are withheld form their paychecks automatically.

GAS Taxes paid by you & the Undocumented are the same. Go to and check out your states tax; http://www.gaspricewatch.com/usgastaxes.asp

Cigarette Taxes paid by you & the Undocumented are the same, check this out in : http://www.taxadmin.org/fta/rate/cigarett.html

Food Taxes, paid by You & the Undocumented are the same in each state check your state : http://www.taxadmin.org/fta/rate/sales.html

Clothing Sales Taxes, are the same paid by you & the Undocumented Immigrant; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sales_taxes_in_the_United_States

City Taxes, are the same paid by you or the Undocumented, since he pays rent and the LANDLORD pays the city : http://www.town-usa.com/statetax/statetaxlist.html

Beer Taxes, are the same paid by you or the Undocumented: http://www.taxadmin.org/fta/rate/beer.html

TAX DATA : http://www.taxfoundation.org/taxdata/show/245.html

Truth| 4.10.09 @ 9:19AM

Ignorance is Bliss: Those who have NO CLUE or QUALIFICATIONS about Immigration are those who show their IGNORANCE :)

There is NO such word as "ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT " in Blacks Law Dictionary , or in Merriam Websters Dictionary.

In the 20-plus years I have spent studying, lecturing and litigating immigration issues, two things have always amazed me. The first is the amount and intensity of hate spewed against undocumented workers. The second is the amount of misinformation that is published about them.

On this second point, the quote from Mark Twain is illustrative. "A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." I suppose this may be true in part because misinformation, like a lie, requires no accuracy, validation or research; all of which are time-consuming practices.

The recent letters alleging that all undocumented workers are "criminals," and specifically Veronica Suarez, whose plight was written about in the Tracy Press recently, is a criminal are factually incorrect.

According to the facts (as stated in Sharon Franceschi’s Sept. 7 commentary) Saurez entered the U.S. on a valid visa, overstayed her visa when it expired, resulting in her unlawful immigration status. None of these acts, as stated by Franceschi, constitute a crime under federal or state law. Overstaying a valid visa under the Immigration and Naturalization Act is a civil violation of the law, not a criminal violation. Being in the U.S. in under undocumented status is not a criminal violation, but a civil violation of the INA.

The facts, as stated by Franceschi, do not indicate that Suarez has committed any crime. To call her a criminal is erroneous at best, and libelous at worst.

Furthermore, it is an Americanism that a person is innocent until proven guilty. So until Suarez (or any other undocumented person) is charged and found guilty of a crime, it would be inappropriate to call them "criminals."

It is important to note that there is a very large difference between civil and criminal violations of law. The distinction is so important that the law makes the erroneous allegation that one has committed a crime of slander or libel, (which means liability is automatic even without proof of damages). One who violates the civil law is no more a criminal than someone who has breached a contract or accidentally damaged another’s property.

It is true that entering the United States without inspection is a misdemeanor under the INA. The misdemeanor is completed once an individual’s entry is complete. Suarez, according to Franceschi, did not enter without inspection; she entered with a valid visa. According to U.S. Immigration and Citizenship Services statistics, about 40 percent of undocumented persons enter legally and overstay their visas (which, as stated above, is not a crime). Consequently, at least 40 percent of the undocumented population has committed no crime in regards to their immigration status.

Therefore, one cannot assume that a person has committed a crime simply because they are undocumented.

Franceschi is also in error in her allegation that getting married and having children while being undocumented in the U.S. is a violation of the law. It is not. Franceschi goes on to say that Suarez "apparently bought a house illegally." It is unlikely that Franceschi knows exactly how Suarez purchased her home. Consequently, any allegation of illegality is, at a minimum, irresponsible.

It is also important to note that the Immigration and Citizenship Services doesn’t consider all undocumented persons criminals. When the Immigration and Citizenship Services publishes information about its enforcement activities involving undocumented workers, it are always sure to make a distinction between "criminal" and noncriminal aliens.

Another myth is that the term "illegal aliens" is a term of art or is legal jargon. This term is not found anywhere in the INA or in Blacks Law Dictionary. The INA refers to undocumented persons as either an EWI (entered without inspection) or as someone who has overstayed their visa. "Illegal aliens" is a term invented by anti-immigrant groups designed to put undocumented persons in the worst possible light and to instill fear in Americans. It is intentionally designed to associate undocumented persons with criminality.

This xenophobic view that undocumented persons are "simply criminals" comes from the historical stereotype that the foreign-born, especially undocumented immigrants, are responsible for higher crime rates. This misconception has deep roots in American public opinion and popular myth. This myth, however, is not supported empirically and has repeatedly been refuted by scientific studies. Both contemporary and historical data, (including U.S. governmental studies) have shown that immigration is associated with lower crime rates.

The studies have uniformly shown that recent immigrants (including the undocumented) are less likely to be involved in violent crime, and that when there is an increase in immigration patterns, violent crime decreases. This has been shown to be true in large cities with heavy immigrant populations.

In the most recent of these studies, The Myth of Immigrant Criminality and the Paradox of Assimilation (2007), from the Immigrant Policy Institute, it was found that among men age 18 to 39 (who are the vast majority of inmates in federal and state prisons and local jails), immigrants were five times less likely to be incarcerated than the native-born in 2000.

During the Proposition 187 debate, then-Gov. Pete Wilson published statistics that stated that
12 percent to 15 percent of the state prison population had Immigration and Citizenship Services holds or potential holds. The Department of Corrections analyst who compiled these numbers said Immigration and Citizenship Services holds are placed on inmates who were born outside of the U.S. (therefore 12 percent to 15 percent of the prison population was immigrants). The immigrant population at the time in California hovered at about 25 percent, showing immigrants were much less likely to be incarcerated than the native born in California.

In short, the data shows you are much safer if your neighbor is an immigrant.

Franceschi owes Suarez an apology. I am also surprised that the Tracy Press allowed a commentary to run without checking the facts. Although commentaries are designed to allow for the expression of differing opinions, the First Amendment is not as generous with misstatements of facts — especially when the facts can be libelous.

For the immigration debate to be a healthy one, we should strive for a debate based on facts, not myth or tired stereotypes. We should also not let our position on this topic strip us of one of the great qualities we possess as people — the ability to be compassionate.

Arturo E. Ocampo of Tracy has been a practicing attorney since 1985, with an expertise in immigration rights and class action lawsuits on behalf of immigrants, including the way the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 was implemented, Border Patrol’s raids and Proposition 187. He is director of diversity and equal employment opportunity for the San Jose/Evergreen Community College District.

heather | 4.10.09 @ 8:09PM

did anyone ever think that all these imagrants will have to pay fees for paper and fines for entering illegal this will creat money that the goverment can use to help bussinesses out of the hole they are in eveyone look so poorly on imagrantes but in the end the are always the people that pull the americans out of the rocks we put ourselves under I think that this would be a good thing becouse instead of thrm sending that extra money they have to mexico it will be re invested back in to the united states, and this will exspand our funds for other things that need to be done....

Also if you didnt know becouse you have never had to deal with imagracion, the paper work has to be perfect so there for the will have to pay a lawyer or some consultant to do the papers for them this will make alot of job avaliable to people who speak more then one language, in return these people will recieve money they will spended and still more jobs will become avaliable. This will start a chain, this is what we need someone to put the money back to where it belongs. I thimk that this is great its briliant what he is doing i hope he does it soon this will help our money situation, or job situation and our very well being stop being so closed minded

jonnyboy| 4.11.09 @ 12:24PM

This country was founded by immigrants. When immigrants came in to elies island they did not have a visa or any other travel documents. over 80% of americans if they were to trace back their ancestors history they would find out that their ancestors were ilegals too. With that said i am not advacating iligal immigration to the usa. What has always drown me to the republican party has been is its emphasis on family values and conservative fiscal policies. These are values that are neglected when talking about immigration reform and subsituted by fear and ignorance. Most Americans support immigration reform, if the Republican party doesnt want to alienate a large pro immigration reform constituency we need to follow the footsteps of Reagan and help unite familes, build our economy and fix our borders.

wonderwill| 4.11.09 @ 3:45PM

How ironical! We have descendants of illegal immigrants ranting against new illegal immigrants. I challenge everyone who posted an anti-immigrant comment here to go back to their own family records and figure out how many of their ancestors were illegal at one time or another! If you are Italian or Irish, the likelihood that you are a descendant of so-called illegals is very high. An illegal is only illegal until he legalizes himself. Hundreds of thousands of illegals become legal every single year!
Now, there is no doubt that immigration has been good for America, legal or illegal. Ask Pete Domenici, the son of an illegal Italian woman who became a US senator, or most of the people of New York and New Jersey!
Some of the loser's arguments that I see here make me think of the native American's plight. Count your blessings, folks.. you live in a great country founded on the backs of slaves and illegal immigrants (if you ask the Natives). Go out there and get a life and stop imagining that you can stem the tide of human history! Denying the inevitable may be good for one generation, but it is not good for posterity as the Republican Party will soon find out. The numbers have become so lop-sided that the correct approach is to recognize that if you cant beat them, join them. Otherwise, you will be crushed.
Why is the US in such an economic mess? Could it be that its engine of growth, also called immigration, has been stifled in recent years. Has anyone ever tried to imagine what the impact of a legalization program would be on the economy? Many immigrants are loaded with cash which they will not spend because of the uncertainty in their lives. They can't buy a new car because they dont have valid social secutiry numbers even if they have money to put down a deposit. They cant fly back home on holiday once every two years for fear of not being able to return. Tourism, airlines, the auto industry, housing would benefit tremendously from legalization.

"Whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is (un)pleasant....think about these things", my friends.

Frosty| 4.12.09 @ 10:01PM

Kick the illegal aliens out! They are bankrupting us.

Green Card Lottery| 7.19.09 @ 12:06AM

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Green Card| 8.24.09 @ 8:17PM

From a humanitarian perspective, our fellow human beings, who migrate to support their families, continue to suffer at the hands of immigration policies that separate them from family members and drive them into remote parts of the American desert, sometimes to their deaths. This suffering should not continue.

Now is the time to address this pressing humanitarian issue which affects so many lives and undermines basic human dignity. Our society should no longer tolerate a status quo that perpetuates a permanent underclass of persons and benefits from their labor without offering them legal protections.

Samuel| 7.7.10 @ 6:26AM

Obama and the Democrats could make a real effort to pass a comprehensive bill that would, among other things, explicitly preempt the Arizona bill they like to rail against. But they won’t, because that would imperil their House and Senate members — well, imperil them more than they already are. It will be interesting to see how Obama explains in 2012 why he did absolutely nothing on an issue he supposedly cares so dearly about.