William Turnbull
By William Turnbull
For Northwest Asian Weekly
Calls for comprehensive immigration reform are now abundant. These are nothing more than calls for an open immigration policy and amnesty for 12 to 20 million illegal aliens.
New American Media, in its commentary, published by the Northwest Asian Weekly (July 4–July 10) calls on this country’s “core values” including “economic opportunity, equality under the laws regardless of ethnic background, and an embrace of the world’s most innovative, energetic, and ambitious workers.” I always thought that our core values included following the laws of the country, but evidently that was not convenient to mention.
Let’s tell the truth.
We had amnesty in 1986 under Republican President Ronald Reagan. In that year, Congress passed the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA). This was supposed to be a “one time” amnesty. This was not the case. Since 1986, Congress passed a total of seven amnesties for illegal aliens covering more than 5.8 million:
Under the IRCA, the border was to be enforced and illegal immigration was to be halted.
The amnesty happened and the border enforcement did not. Illegal immigration increased dramatically.
Those who continue to immigrate illegally knows that they are in flagrant violation of our laws. They sneak across borders, overstay their visas, and thumb their noses at our immigration regulations. They forge documents, use other people’s social security numbers, and steal identities. These are not the kind of citizens we need to attract. They need to be removed.
Breaking up families is another concern being raised. Keeping a family together can be simply achieved by the family reuniting in the country where the parents are of legal residence.
Children, including those who are U.S. citizens by birth, can return with the parents to the country where the parents are legal residents. As U.S. citizens, the children may also have the option of staying in the U.S. with guardians.
The problem of family reunification is really the stubborn refusal of those who don’t want to return home, and their insistence that since their child has a right to stay here, so do they.
Are other countries really so bad that people cannot live there? Would children living in other countries suffer so badly? Yet why, at immigration rallies, do we see demonstrators waving the flags of their home countries?
There are situations where people come here and seek political asylum. There are cases where they fear execution and persecution upon returning to their homeland. We have laws to address these situations.
Those who come to the United States and expect to circumvent our laws should suffer the consequences. In many cases, those consequences hurt their entire family and that is sad. However, the blame should be on the perpetrators, not those who enforce our laws.
Laws exist to provide for economic opportunity and equality under the laws regardless of ethnic background. I would be the first to object to anyone being denied opportunity or equality under the law. That does not mean that illegal immigrants have the same rights as those of legal citizens.
As citizens, we should insist that laws on the books be enforced by our authorities. We now have situations where cities, including Seattle, refuse to allow police to inquire about the immigration status of a suspect. They are discouraged from cooperating with immigration authorities and are not allowed to assist in the enforcement of existing laws.
This is a disgrace. Such cities and localities should be denied of any federal funding of any type until they remove such restrictions.
The argument that illegal immigrants do not compete with legal immigrants and citizens is no longer relevant. With our unemployment figures approaching 10 percent, how can we offer any jobs to those who are here illegally? These are jobs which could be taken by the unemployed or students as entry-level jobs.
Roofers, landscapers, and concrete companies employ huge numbers of illegal aliens. These are respectable jobs which honest, hard working Americans need and have the right to.
As for needed labor to harvest crops and other jobs, which open borders groups claim Americans will not do, there is no problem with a guest worker program. Allow people willing to perform these jobs to come here, work for a period of time, and then return home. It should not be an open door to citizenship. It is not an immigrant visa. It is an economic opportunity.
Our country is in debt. We are borrowing money from foreign nations in record amounts. Yet, we have somewhere between 12 and 20 million illegal aliens in this country sending an estimated $45 billion out of the economy. We cannot afford this.
Those who have immigrated here legally have gone through the long process. They have waited, they have undergone investigations, and invested time, money, and effort in applying to legally immigrate. They should be adamantly opposed to amnesty for those who simply cross the border or overstay a visa.
I cannot understand why there is not more of an outcry from those who have followed the law, including Northwest Asian Weekly readers, who now see their jobs, opportunities, and wage levels affected by those who ignore the law.
What is the solution?
Enforce existing laws. Enforce border security. Most importantly, fine and imprison those found hiring employees who are illegal aliens. Cut off their work, and those that are here illegally will go home. Toughen the laws on employers. If the word gets out that serious enforcement is taking place, employers will not take the risk.
We do not need comprehensive immigration reform if that means another amnesty. But we do need to enforce the immigration laws as they are written. ♦
William Turnbull can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.
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1 third party tone of voice about Cnn in the Television show. He carries a definitely hard immigration plan. This individual managed to graduate on the Harvard Higher education. Currently he has the a single Stereo Show. He do not similar to the actual Nation us president.
Emergency medical to illegals is huge. I saw firsthand the amount of calls coming in to the state – the bilinguals from LA who “have to be hired” – what a gimmick.
And forced to sit through the diversity training – managed by — guess who? – LA Hispanics!
Tom Tancredo is a former junior high teacher.
Why would he need to become famous for spreading the word – because he is a “failure in life”?
He isn’t a failure at all.
And there are many American Hispanics who are also spreading the word – about the problems of illegal immigration – who are not failures.
Just the opposite. They give of their own time to help our country stay halfway competent.
There are plenty of Asians who are NOT wanting more immigration by Hispanics – they aren’t publicizing their views and they aren’t old males.
They ARE Medicaid employees, employees of law enforcement agencies, medical professionals, etc.
TRUTH has some SERIOUS ISSUES. I’ve lived in Los Angeles. No MATTER what ANYBODY says, those illegals have terrorized that state and many other states, with their ‘over bloated’ ignorance, and overpopulated lifestyle that CANT be supported except on the BACK of all americans. They have made Los Angeles a disgrace. That city and the state are now the PITS because of illegals. There are 28 cities now looking like hell holes because of ‘hispanics’ over burden in THIS society. TAKE YOU MESS BACK HOME. And I’m BLACK. NO ONE, can DISPUTE these facts.
Senetor Jeff Sessions of Alabama, Lou Dobbs, Tom Tancredo, Rush Limbaugh, the poor author of the ‘article’ pubished above…what do they have in common: they are all old, angry good’ole boys, blaming ‘the other’ for their failures in life. Before it was blacks, now it’s latinos and immigrants.
I’ve got news for you, Billy Bob: you lost, get over it! A comprehensive immigration reform w/ path to citizenship is a matter of when not if! And it is the right thing to do!
Hey, learning a few Spanish words won’t hurt your 2 brain-cells, will it? Pathetic hicks!
Sven,
Please respond to the issues raised and you will contribute to the discussion. Why should those who are here illegally be give amnesty and a path to citizenship ahead of those legally applying and following our laws?
Just FYI, I have lived overseas for many, many years, speak Chinese and maybe understand a little Spanish and, just so you know, the path to citizenship is by far not a done deal.
Sven
I hate to tell you but there are many of us Asian Americans who love Tom Tancredo, especially.
We aren’t old white males, but we agree with them.
In Hawaii, there were ICE raids and the locals (of mixed Asian descent) were cheering them on -ICE, that is.
way to go Turnbull! tell it like it is! its time to start bounty hunting these illegals!
American citizens killed by illegal aliens!
http://www.ojjpac.org/memorial.asp
http://www.immigrationshumancost.org/
heres some illegal immigrant numbers!
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3741611&postcount=12
Mexico’s second highest income is from illegals sending money home! google it! do you understand how really HUGE that is?? how many of them MUST be here illegally to make that happen?? 12 million? HA! more like 40 million?? we are being invaded, without one shot being fired! does anybody have a CLUE?? whos job it is to protect and defend the United States?? to ABIDE by the CONSTITUTION???? what does it mean? to break the law? why all the infighting? they broke the LAW! period! google “operation w*tback” Eisenhower had this very same problem. he quietly and EFFECTIVLY took care of it! why can we not do the same??? they walked, rode, swam over here. they can do the same going home taking their anchor babies with them! and then, if they want. they can GET IN LINE. like all the rest of the “LAW ABIDING ” people that do it the RIGHT WAY!!!
I can’t say the ILLEGAL ALIENS are completely to blame for the shape of our economy, but they are a BIG part of the problem. The ILLEGAL ALIENS send BILLIONS upon BILLIONS out of this Country every year, money we will NEVER see again. Does this help our economy?
How about the BILLIONS the American taxpayers fork out for the ILLEGAL ALIEN BABIES, the schooling of them, the medical care and the list goes on, and on, and on.
How about the MILLIONS upon MILLIONS paid to jail ILLEGAL ALIENS for the crimes, then the cost to deport them. Does this help our economy?
Then you have these activist groups, the Catholic Church and the ACLU that want AMNESTY for these ILLEGAL ALIENS. It would be absolute suicide for this Country if AMNESTY were granted to the 20 million or so ILLEGAL ALIENS. We have more and more people out of work everyday and they want to add another 20 million to this Country? I say, “NO”!
If AMNESTY were ever granted to these 20 million ILLEGAL ALIENS, you can bet big money that 3 years from now, there would be ANOTHER 3-5 million ILLEGAL ALIENS demonstrating on our soil for AMNESTY.
An end MUST come to this illegal immigration. The perfect tool we have so far is E-Verify. It MUST be used by ALL businesses and Government Social Services. EVERY employee must be checked! If they are illegal, they are to be dismissed!
I believe it is time for all 50 States to pass a State law, like Arizona, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Missouri, South Carolina and a few others. It is time for these ILLEGAL ALIENS to go back to their home Country and get out of this Country. The problems they are causing will not go away until the ILLEGAL ALIENS are out of this Country. I think that is plain to see.
It’s time for ZERO TOLERENCE with these ILLEGAL ALIENS. It’s time for them to get back to their own country where they belong. If they truly want to be part of America, let them apply and wait their turn like the millions of others who want to come to America LEGALLY.
The truth is that this is a one sided Biased article, why did they remove my postings , what do you have to hide besides your Rasicim?
Anticipating the argument, the Immigration Policy Center has already put together its defense for why immigrants are NOT a drag on government-supported health care.
Yesterday, the center issued its own fact sheet showing that: U.S. citizens make up more than three-quarters of the uninsured; immigrants incur significantly fewer health care costs than the rest of the population because they tend to be younger and healthier; and legalizing immigrants will add to the number of healthy, working-age people paying into Medicaid, Medicare and any new government-supported health care programs and thus reduce the burden on the rest of U.S. taxpayers.
Truth,
You, just as most organizations favoring amnesty, fail to distinguish between legal immigrants and illegal immigrants. There is no need for what you call “legalizing immigrants”. What we do not want is amnesty, which would forgive the violation of laws, including immigration violations, forgery, fraud, etc.
Whether “illegal immigrant is in Blacks legal dictionary or not, it is a common term understood by all.
Dear William, YOU CANT STOP ALMIGHTY GODS CHILDREN. YOU ARE NO BETTER THAN ANY OTHER HUMAN CREATED BY ALMIGHTY GOD. GET IT??
Over the past year, public opinion has become more favorable to immigration reform. The most recent figures in a Pew Research Center survey demonstrate that nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of Americans favor a “path to citizenship” for illegal immigrants in the United States if they pass a background check, pay fines and work. This is up from 58 percent last fall.
truth you are a moron! and i doubt anytime soon that your going to WAKE UP!
Just because we are all “Gods Children” doesn’t mean that we can’t all be “Gods Children” and follow the law. Sorry, that argument makes no sense whatsoever.
I am a legal immigrant. I waited for 6 months for the visa before I came to the States. Then, after I registered marriage with my husband, I paid, waited for another 3-4 months for work permit and green card before I started working legally here in United States.
If you claim you are almigthy God’s children, then please respect the law of the land, as you would respect God. By willfully breaking the law, I am very ashame to call you my brother or sister in Christ.
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. Get Educated .
“Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Wednesday that the claim by some conservative activists that illegal immigration is to blame for all of the state’s fiscal problems is ignorant and bigoted.”
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.Ignorance is Bliss: Those who have NO CLUE or QUALIFICATIONS about Immigration are those who show their IGNORANCE 🙂
College District.
Daniel Griswold: Immigration law should reflect our dynamic labor market
Daniel Griswold is director of the Center for Trade Policy Studies at the Cato Institute in Washington. His writings on immigration can be found at http://www.freetrade(DOT)org; e-mail him at dgriswold@cato(DOT)org.
Among its many virtues, America is a nation where laws are generally reasonable, respected and impartially enforced. A glaring exception is immigration.
Today an estimated 12 million people live in the U.S. without authorization, 1.6 million in Texas alone, and that number grows every year. Many Americans understandably want the rule of law restored to a system where law-breaking has become the norm.
The fundamental choice before us is whether we redouble our efforts to enforce existing immigration law, whatever the cost, or whether we change the law to match the reality of a dynamic society and labor market.
Low-skilled immigrants cross the Mexican border illegally or overstay their visas for a simple reason: There are jobs waiting here for them to fill, especially in Texas and other, faster growing states. Each year our economy creates hundreds of thousands of net new jobs – in such sectors as retail, cleaning, food preparation, construction and tourism – that require only short-term, on-the-job training.
At the same time, the supply of Americans who have traditionally filled many of those jobs – those without a high school diploma – continues to shrink. Their numbers have declined by 4.6 million in the past decade, as the typical American worker becomes older and better educated.
Yet our system offers no legal channel for anywhere near a sufficient number of peaceful, hardworking immigrants to legally enter the United States even temporarily to fill this growing gap. The predictable result is illegal immigration
In response, we can spend billions more to beef up border patrols. We can erect hundreds of miles of ugly fence slicing through private property along the Rio Grande. We can raid more discount stores and chicken-processing plants from coast to coast. We can require all Americans to carry a national ID card and seek approval from a government computer before starting a new job.
Or we can change our immigration law to more closely conform to how millions of normal people actually live.
Crossing an international border to support your family and pursue dreams of a better life is not an inherently criminal act like rape or robbery. If it were, then most of us descend from criminals. As the people of Texas know well, the large majority of illegal immigrants are not bad people. They are people who value family, faith and hard work trying to live within a bad system.
When large numbers of otherwise decent people routinely violate a law, the law itself is probably the problem. To argue that illegal immigration is bad merely because it is illegal avoids the threshold question of whether we should prohibit this kind of immigration in the first place.
We’ve faced this choice on immigration before. In the early 1950s, federal agents were making a million arrests a year along the Mexican border. In response, Congress ramped up enforcement, but it also dramatically increased the number of visas available through the Bracero guest worker program. As a result, apprehensions at the border dropped 95 percent. By changing the law, we transformed an illegal inflow of workers into a legal flow.
For those workers already in the United States illegally, we can avoid “amnesty” and still offer a pathway out of the underground economy. Newly legalized workers can be assessed fines and back taxes and serve probation befitting the misdemeanor they’ve committed. They can be required to take their place at the back of the line should they eventually apply for permanent residency.
The fatal flaw of the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act was not that it offered legal status to workers already here but that it made no provision for future workers to enter legally.
Immigration is not the only area of American life where a misguided law has collided with reality. In the 1920s and ’30s, Prohibition turned millions of otherwise law-abiding Americans into lawbreakers and spawned an underworld of moon-shining, boot-legging and related criminal activity. (Sound familiar?) We eventually made the right choice to tax and regulate alcohol rather than prohibit it.
In the 19th century, America’s frontier was settled largely by illegal squatters. In his influential book on property rights, The Mystery of Capital, economist Hernando de Soto describes how these so-called extralegals began to farm, mine and otherwise improve land to which they did not have strict legal title. After failed attempts by the authorities to destroy their cabins and evict them, federal and state officials finally recognized reality, changed the laws, declared amnesty and issued legal documents conferring title to the land the settlers had improved.
As Mr. de Soto wisely concluded: “The law must be compatible with how people actually arrange their lives.” That must be a guiding principle when Congress returns to the important task of fixing our immigration laws.
Daniel Griswold is director of the Center for Trade Policy Studies at the Cato Institute in Washington. His writings on immigration can be found at http://www.freetrade.org; e-mail him at dgriswold@cato.org.
Mr WILLIAM, This is the REAL TRUTH why don’t you write this? Your Article is only one sided?
Undocumented immigrants paying more taxes than you think!!
http://www.immigrationpolicy.org/
http://www.immigrationpolicy.org/images/File/factcheck//EconomicsofCIRFullDoc.pdf
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
The Immigration Policy Center (IPC) has released a wide-ranging review of academic and government data that shows what legalizing undocumented immigrants would mean for the U.S. economy today. Legalizing undocumented workers would improve wages and working conditions for all workers, and increase tax revenues for cash-strapped federal, state, and local governments. (April 13, 2009)
Washington, D.C. – The dollars and cents of immigration reform make a lot of sense for the beleaguered U.S. economy. The net economic gain would be $66 billion in new state and federal revenue, according to a new report.
The review, from the nonpartisan Immigration Policy Center, notes that Florida is one of the states with the most to gain if undocumented workers were provided a pathway to legal status. About 500,000 immigrant workers would be affected.
Economist David Kallick with the Fiscal Policy Institute contributed to the study. Right now, he explains, those billions of dollars are lining the pockets of employers – who hire folks in the underground economy and avoid contributing to payroll and other taxes.
“The cost of the underground economy to taxpayers is pretty substantial. The idea is, bringing undocumented immigrants into the ‘above-ground’ economy and making sure that they pay taxes just like everyone else.”
Critics of reform accuse undocumented workers of “stealing” American jobs; some want to deport everyone who is in the U.S. illegally. Kallick argues that immigrants do not steal good-paying jobs, and more legal workers in the labor pool will help grow the entire economy.
That’s also the view of Esther Lopez, director of civil rights and community action for the United Food and Commercial Workers Union International. She says labor groups see that legalization is good for all workers, and she considers it an important step in rebuilding the middle class.
“We need an immigration system that is part of our national economic recovery program. We need immigration reform that punishes employers who ‘game’ the system to drive down wages and working conditions.”
Why should Americans who curbed the population explosion by having only two children – in the 70’s and 80’s – now be welcoming massive and uncontrolled immigration? And why should they want their neighbors to be speaking another language – and having kids who cannot graduate?
Our nice neighborhood was hit by the Norteno gang who sprayed fences with grafitti 50 feet long and 6 feet high.
So much for diversity.
I can’t tell you how many people are sick of this type of diversity. And they are very well educated. Many are experienced in education, medicine and other fields where they see first-hand the abuses.
numbers USA,and American PAtrol are racist right wing extremist propaganda ..we all know that…even hate speech monger ,banned in europe zealot Michael savage says that…how sad this birthers shame my race….we are not all like them….they are the minority only loud and ignorant……keep up the good fight latino brothers
I love Numbers, USA and recently a black professor had her video aired there.
Her research shows that illegal immigration creates a bad situation for American Hispanics and blacks.
You are the hate mongers – those who are in denial.
“Mercy to the guilty is cruelty to the innocent.” – Adam Smith, economist and ethicist. Americans deserve to be secure in their own country and not walked upon all over by foreigners deciding our immigration policy
Everything you need to know about immigration and what to do about it humorously told.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBw1nUlf38I
(Roy Beck and NumbersUSA are the “gumball” heroes)
Ooops: yet another angry WASP blaming everything on illegals…tough luck, Sir: good ole’ boy America is no more and a comprehensive immigration reform with path to citizenship for hard-working immigrants is a matter of when, not if! It is the right thing to do, since no human being is illegal.
And sa for you, Sir, you do fit a stereotype: people like you always have somebody to blame for your own failures in life: blacks, Latinos, gays…
Demographics is against you: we are living in a tolerant America: it is no longer 1855!!!
What WASPS? I know plenty of Asian Americans who are riled up.
But, dream on, Jose.
In my opnion you are an extremist. Times change. And circunstances too.
David, instead of calling me names, what is your solution? Open borders? I don’t mind being called names but it really disappoints me that people like you can not even articulate what they would propose to solve this problem!
From the beginning its been previous administrations ultimate fault, that illegal immigration has never been retired. Years of neglect and intentional overlooking of the laws that were in place? It’s grandiose excuse to allow the 20 million plus illegal immigrants to stay on American soil. Congress when enacted the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986 has been flagrantly ignored. The IRCA toughened criminal sanctions for employers who hired illegal aliens, denied illegal aliens federally funded welfare benefits, and legitimized some aliens through an amnesty program–EXCEPT THESE LAWS NEVER WERE ENFORCED?
There has always been complicity since the earliest days, between the lawmakers, big business, the open border zealots and radical pro-immigration and anti-American sovereignty organizations. Just like the Globalist they have an attitude that American taxpayers should accommodate every illegal family, with free medical care, schooling and a comfortable prison cell, for criminals and for the thousands of illegal alien drunken drivers every year. That globalist agenda has always been a free movement of cheap labor, between all of South America, Canada and Mexico, just as secretly arranged with the 3 countries leaders in Waco, Texas, at the end of March 2005. ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION IS CORPORATE WELFARE?
Americans only forceful action is to build on E-verify, but not to replace it? Sen. Charles Schumer, D-New York and chairman of the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on immigration wants consider up-grading the application, with modifications to authenticate the employee’s identity by using a specific and unique biometric identifiers? Schumer, stated “improving employment verification is critical to boosting public confidence about curbing illegal immigration, which will build support for comprehensive immigration reform.” These politicians just don’t get it? Outside of the American Civil War, there will be a battle over giving illegal immigrants a path to citizenship free-ride? What about the millions of people with integrity and believe in the Rule of Law, who sit and wait in far off foreign countries for an entry visa?
Whatever the outcome it will not be easy to pass any Immigration reform or AMNESTY? Say–NO– because it going to cost trillions of dollars (with a T) in enactment. Health care, Pensions, retirement and a rush on government benefits, for those who haven’t already cheated the system. Then they will want their immediate families here? And waiting millions will swarm the open areas of the sovereign border fence? IT WILL NEVER END? Call your Politician today at 202-224-3121 GOOGLE—NUMBERSUSA, AMERICANPATROL for facts, that will not be found in most press releases.
As a Independent voter, I do believe in a alternative government medical system, but I adamantly disagree on donating my taxes from public treasuries free health care to anybody who steals across our border or anything that smells of AMNESTY?
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