Rubio puts the brakes on immigration reform

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David S. Addington from the Heritage Foundation defines amnesty as follows:

“The term “amnesty” is often used loosely with reference to aliens unlawfully in the United States. Sometimes it refers to converting the status of an alien from unlawful to lawful, either without conditions or on a condition such as a payment of a fee to the government. Sometimes it refers to granting lawful authority for an alien unlawfully in the U.S. to remain in the U.S., become a lawful permanent resident, or even acquire citizenship by naturalization, either without conditions or on a condition such as payment of a fee to the government or performance of particular types of work for specified periods.

Amnesty comes in many forms, but in all its variations, it discourages respect for the law, treats law-breaking aliens better than law-following aliens, and encourages future unlawful immigration into the United States.” [My emphasis]

Roy Beck from NumbersUSA notes, “The Senate Gang of Eight was doing high-fives all weekend about an agreement between business and labor lobbyists that supposedly would allow their comprehensive amnesty bill to be rushed to the Senate floor for a vote by May.”

“But suddenly, it was the Gang of Seven, with the wayward eighth member, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), talking about the need to let the other 92 Senators find out what is in the bill and study whether there might be better ways to reform our immigration system,” states Beck.

Rubio demanded something rather extraordinary Beck reports: hearings of experts, an open amendment process and a full debate before the television cameras:

“(T)he success of any major legislation depends on the acceptance and support of the American people. That support can only be earned through full and careful consideration of legislative language and an open process of amendments.”

Beck states, “The Gang of Seven has not embraced Rubio’s attempt to slow-down the fast-track process by which pro-amnesty supporters have planned to rush the still-secret bill through the Judiciary Committee in a couple of weeks and get a vote on the Senate floor within a month with little debate and amending.”

The fast-track approach always attempts to side-track the public while giant amnesties and immigration increases are created in secret and then hurried through the legislative process before most elected officials even know what is in the thick bills.

“Sen. Leahy (D-Vt.), the Judiciary Committee chairman, announced last week that he did not intend to hold any hearings on the Gang of Eight bill once he receives it and that he would not allow opponents to slow-down his plan to get it to the floor by May,” reports Beck.

So, the “process” is the big issue of the moment and maybe this entire week.

This is comforting news for those of us who oppose a bill that would further harm the 20 million Americans who can’t find a full-time job and the millions more whose wages are depressed by a labor market glutted with 26 million foreign-born workers.

Many Floridians who suffered through years of Marco Rubio killing immigration enforcement legislation when he was in the state legislature doubt their junior Senator’s sincerity in his flap with other amnesty supporters. Others believe he will hop off the amnesty train if his demands for an open process are not met.

Whichever Marco Rubio is at work here, he has provided a fantastic set of principles that you should be able to demand of your two Senators.

Sen. Rubio has at least temporarily broken with his fellow Gang members by sending an open letter to Chairman Leahy, who has not yet shown how he feels about a freshman suggesting how he should run his committee.

Rubio’s letter included this:

“I respectfully suggest that such a process must begin with a careful examination in the Committee including: hearings that explore multiple perspectives on the scope of the problems we face and the efficacy of the solutions we propose, markups in which a broad range of amendments can be considered, and a robust floor debate.”

“All of this, and any Conference Committee deliberations, should occur in the full view of the American people, broadcast on CSPAN, and streamed live on the internet.”

Chairman Leahy has already stated that he has held hearings on immigration over recent years and that he doesn’t need to do any more.

Rubio says about that claim:

“I am certain that those hearings deepened your knowledge of these issues and will guide much of your work this Congress. But they cannot be a substitute for fresh hearings to consider specific legislation as part of a national conversation.”

Beck asks, “If Chairman Leahy and Senate Majority Leader Reid (D-Nev.) refuse to hold these in-depth hearings, how can Rubio vote for the comprehensive amnesty bill? How can he remain in the Gang at all, if the other seven Senators refuse to step away from the fast track?”

RELATED COLUMN: Rubio Says Process Counts In Immigration Overhaul

RUBIO: NO DEAL ON IMMIGRATION LEGISLATION YET

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Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) issued the following statement regarding the status of immigration reform legislation being developed in the Senate:

“I’m encouraged by reports of an agreement between business groups and unions on the issue of guest workers. However, reports that the bipartisan group of eight senators have agreed on a legislative proposal are premature.

“We have made substantial progress, and I believe we will be able to agree on a legislative proposal that modernizes our legal immigration system, improves border security and enforcement and allows those here illegally to earn the chance to one day apply for permanent residency contingent upon certain triggers being met. However, that legislation will only be a starting point.

“We will need a healthy public debate that includes committee hearings and the opportunity for other senators to improve our legislation with their own amendments. Eight senators from seven states have worked on this bill to serve as a starting point for discussion about fixing our broken immigration system. But arriving at a final product will require it to be properly submitted for the American people’s consideration, through the other 92 senators from 43 states that weren’t part of this initial drafting process. In order to succeed, this process cannot be rushed or done in secret.”

George Borjas’ book “Heaven’s Door” pointed out that during the late 1990s, the U.S. took in over one million immigrants annually. This inflow was most harmful to low-wage workers.

Now, more Americans are treading water in the very part of the job market that is most vulnerable to immigration. Given the current economic downturn, people with advanced degrees are searching out low-skilled, low-wage jobs. Increasing competition with low-skilled immigrants would further crowd the narrow avenues of subsistence.

“Back in 1986 it was ‘unrealistic’ to round up and deport the three million illegal immigrants in the United States then. So they were given amnesty – honestly labeled, back then – which is precisely why there are now 12 million illegal immigrants,” Thomas Sowell in 2007 noted, when an amnesty proposal was rejected. In 2007, conservatives and many Republicans recognized that amnesties were simply going to continue until they were stopped.

NumbersUSA, a think tank that supports sustainable levels of legal immigration, notes seven amnesties in recent history:

  1. Immigration and Reform Control Act (IRCA), 1986: A blanket amnesty for some 2.7 million illegal aliens
  2. Section 245(i) Amnesty, 1994: A temporary rolling amnesty for 578,000 illegal aliens
  3. Section 245(i) Extension Amnesty, 1997: An extension of the rolling amnesty created in 1994
  4. Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (NACARA) Amnesty, 1997: An amnesty for close to one million illegal aliens from Central America
  5. Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act Amnesty (HRIFA), 1998: An amnesty for 125,000 illegal aliens from Haiti
  6. Late Amnesty, 2000: An amnesty for some illegal aliens who claim they should have been amnestied under the 1986 IRCA amnesty, an estimated 400,000 illegal aliens
  7. LIFE Act Amnesty, 2000: A reinstatement of the rolling Section 245(i) amnesty, an estimated 900,000 illegal aliens

Immigration policies are often not as advertised.

The president pledged that the Affordable Care Act would not cover undocumented aliens. However, if those undocumented aliens are given amnesty, they could easily receive Obamacare, along with Medicaid and a range of other social services.

Florida’s Javier Manjarres re-launches HISPOLITICA

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Javier Manjarres, founder of The Shark Tank, is  inviting Floridians and every American to Hispolitica. Manjarres envisions Hispolitica as a “place where a legitimate conversation about Hispanics in America can happen…without the narrative filters imposed by mainstream or Hispanic media.”

Manjarres notes, “Given how badly both major political parties suck at Hispanic engagement, and the fact that immigration will not always be on the table, now is an opportune time to get the conversation going. Feel free to jump in.”

Full text of the video:

Hi, I’m Javier Manjarres.

I’m proud to announce the re-launch of Hispolitica.  Hispolitica brings a balanced journalistic approach to the issues and concerns of Hispanics in light of their increasing influence in the American political process. Hispolitica will provide  equal time and space to political personalities across the spectrum whose viewpoints are of interest to Hispanics across the country.

The Hispanic electorate continues to grow, and most political observers believe that this coveted vote is in a state of flux and very much in play for Republicans and Democrats moving forward. Although the immigration reform issue is at the forefront of today’s political debate, trends show that Hispanics assign greater importance to a number of issues other than immigration

Before we can more effectively engage the Hispanic community, we must  understand that first and foremost, Hispanics are primarily concerned with their own economic prosperity and prospects for advancement in our society based on their own efforts, merits and accomplishments.

Unfortunately, both of the major political parties have major short comings as they approach the Hispanic voting bloc. Their actions- or in some instances their inaction- shows that they are both incapable of messaging and winning the trust of the Hispanic community.

On the one hand, we have a political party that refuses to make the distinction between legal and illegal immigration, and actively seeks to bribe hispanics with the prize of U.S. citizenship. On the other hand, we have a party that has proven itself of having ineffective messaging and lacks in its efforts to reach out to immigrants.

The diversity of the Hispanic community goes well beyond the stereotypical depiction in the media, specifically by Spanish-language TV networks that cater to a subset of the Hispanic demographic while passing themselves off as representatives of ‘all’ Hispanics. These networks have refused to criticize race-baiting special-interest groups whose agenda is divisive and does not serve the best interests of Hispanics at large.

Earlier generations of Hispanic immigrants were very socially and fiscally conservative in their beliefs, regardless of their political affiliation. Hispanics have always been a people of faith, and have articulated a strong belief in God. Their strong family values are directly correlated to their unwavering dedication to their religious faith.

Hispolitica seeks to provide an alternative viewpoint to those expressed in the mainstream and Hispanic media. We’re looking forward to having this conversation, and thank you for joining us.

Que dios los bendiga

Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Rand Paul (R-KY) will respond to the State of the Union speech

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Earlier today, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) rehearsed the Republican Address to the Nation. Senator Rubio is set to deliver a live response from the Speaker’s conference room in the U.S. Capitol, immediately following the President’s State of the Union address. He will pre-record the same speech for Spanish-language networks earlier this evening. At the same time Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) will give the TEA Party Address to the Nation from the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Viewers will be able to watch Senator Paul’s speech live on the conservative website RedState.com.

Who will be the most watched: Marco or Rand?

Frank Hagler from Policy Mic reports:

For the third year in a row, two Republicans have been selected to give the GOP response to the SOTU address. Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) will give the “official” GOP response and Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) will give the Tea Party Express response. This unusual practice started in 2011.

After the Tea Party helped usher in a Republican majority in the House of Representatives, they began exercising their power in the party. The Tea Party Express tapped Michele Bachmann to give a response that was televised to the nation. Tea Party Express Chairwoman Amy Kremer explained “The Republican Party doesn’t represent everybody in the Tea Party movement, and they certainly don’t speak for us.”

Scott Conroy from Real Clear Politics reports:

With Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul set to deliver the Tea Party’s third annual response to the State of the Union speech on Tuesday, the pressure is on for the group to prove its ongoing influence, particularly amid growing criticism from establishment Republicans who accuse it of promoting un-electable candidates at the larger GOP’s expense.

In an interview with RCP, Tea Party Express Chairwoman Amy Kremer acknowledged the moment’s significance.

“I really think it’s more important than ever for us to do it this year because there have been reports of the Tea Party’s demise, but we’re absolutely still here and focused and engaged,” Kremer said. “The Republican Party doesn’t represent everybody in the Tea Party movement, and they certainly don’t speak for us.”

The TEA Party is flexing its muscles with the creation of the TEA Party Community website. Launched on February 2, 2013 the site now has over 109,000 members.

The struggle within the Republican party pits the old guard lead by Karl Rove, against the conservative faction lead by Senator Paul, Michele Bachmann and others. It was the old guard that gave Florida the likes of former Governor Charlie Crist who won the state house as a Republican, lost the race as an Independent for the US Senate seat currently held by Rubio. It is expected that now Democrat Crist will run against incumbent Republican Governor Rick Scott in 2014.

Conroy notes, “Now, with Paul eager to rev up the Tea Party engine just as a new civil war against establishment Republicans appears on the horizon, the setting will look familiar.”

Perhaps now is the time for a civil war within the GOP?

“COMPREHENSIVE” IMMIGRATION REFORM MUST EVALUATE ALL ASPECTS OF IMMIGRATION!

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The following letter was received from a Florida citizen. It was so well done that the WDW – Florida Editorial Board decided to post it for comments.

Senate President Reid

Senate Minority leader McConnell

Senator Leahy Chairman of the Committee On The Judiciary

Senator Grassley Ranking Member of the Committee On The Judiciary

Senator Schumer Chairman of the Immigration, Refugees and Border Security Committee

Senator Cornyn Ranking Member of The Immigration, Refugees and Border Security Committee

Speaker of The House Representative Boehner

Representative Goodlatte Chairman of the Committee On Judiciary

Representative Conyers Ranking Member of the Committee On Judiciary

Representative Gowdy Chairman of The Subcommittee On immigration and Border Security

RE: IMMIGRATION

Honorable Senators and Representatives:

I developed a more than casual interest in Congressional action and Executive Branch inaction regarding immigration and enforcement since Representative Simpson proclaimed on the Floor in the House this would be the one and only amnesty ever in the history of the Republic so Congress approved it and President Reagan signed it.

There were three promises made by Congress in exchange for passing mass amnesty in 1986:

The government would make a concerted effort to control the borders. Today 70 miles north of the border there are signs warning travelers to be on the lookout for illegal aliens. The Border Patrol estimates they interdict 61% of border violators which may be an optimistic estimate. When there was a major hiring of new recruits years ago to build up the border patrol they stopped giving lie detector tests because so many applicants failed the test. Please tell me how we can successfully protect South Korea’s border for over 50 years but can’t defend our own?

An effective employer verification program would ensure that only legal workers were hired. Finally, in 2008 President Bush issued an Executive Order for Federal Contractors only to use mandatory E-Verify, twenty two years after Congress promised to cover all businesses in the United States. During the Obama administration states reeling from the onslaught of illegal aliens such as Arizona have been sued by the Federal Government, aided by the countries who supply the bulk of illegal aliens, while simply trying to enforce Federal Immigration Law.

One-time amnesty would be granted for people illegally in the United States. It is obvious Congress can’t be trusted since they didn’t keep the first promise made in 1986, twenty seven years ago and instead issued 6 additional amnesties for another three million not counting President Obama’s directive granting amnesty by fiat for who knows how many illegal aliens between the ages of 16 and 30 without so much as a peep from Congress whose authority has been usurped by the president.

Amnesty proponents like Senator Rubio who ran for the Senate opposing amnesty, cites three million receiving amnesty in 1986 from the Simspon Mazzoli legislation and then fast forwards to 2013 saying we now have 11 million who need amnesty while some estimates are as high as 20 million being here illegally.

I don’t know if it is a deliberate deception or lack of knowledge of the history on the proponents of yet another mass amnesty or part of an attempt to rewrite the recent immigration history but it strikes me as odd they would ignore the other six mass amnesties and amnesty adjustments from 1986 through 2000 of time giving a grand total of 6 million granted mass amnesty when the promise initially was for only 3 million forever. This deception has been told so many times most people don’t know Congress has indulged in insanity by doing the same thing over and over again each time expecting a different result. The proposed legislation by the so-called group of eight senators if enacted would simply be the eighth failure resulting in a call for an additional amnesty in another couple of years.

Which brings me to the point of asking if you really want what is in the best National Interests of the Citizens Of the United States of America you swore to protect or what is in the best interests of the lobbyists trying to turn the Country into a marketplace allowing free entry and exit to all?

If you want what is in the best interests of the citizens then I strongly suggest a Commission similar to the one Barbara Jordan headed in the 1990s to cover all aspects of immigration be formed and an exhaustive in depth and non-partisan report be made. Following the report ensure the recommendations are included and enforced.

I suggest a commission be put in charge because it is obvious the proponents cannot get beyond politics and ethnicity. Read what is contemplated being proposed and if you show it to Alan Simpson he would probably have the same comment he did about the 2007 bill because the two are similar which was “Then there will be more amnesties and more chaos.”

The current proposed legislation is neither “Comprehensive or Reform.” It is simply a repeat of the insanity exercised since 1986 costing taxpayers trillions of dollars which demands a commission be appointed to bring sanity to situation.

Here are questions not addressed at all in the current immigration discussions but should be included as topics for a complete and Comprehensive evaluation by a commission:

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF IMMIGRATION? Throughout history immigration has primarily served the purpose of settling virgin lands and that reason was eliminated generations ago. Even President Kennedy in 1962 asking for immigration reform legislation said “We have no lands to settle”. Immigration allowed in then was roughly the equivalent of people leaving the country which was less than 250K a year. The large majority of today’s immigrants settle in the balkanized barrios of cities around the country. Allowing in workers with skills needed in the National Interest has long been replaced with a source of cheap imported labor even including maids and lawn mower operators. We are the third most populated country in the world and on our current course of mass immigration we will have an estimated population of 800,000,000 million by the turn of the century. If you have children and grandchildren is that the kind of overpopulated country you want to leave to them?

WHAT IS THE OPTIMUM POPULATION THE UNITED STATES CAN COMFORTABLY SUPPORT? Isn’t it time to take into consideration the environment that sustains the population and how it is affected by rampant population growth? I assume no one wants us to be as populated as China or India which is the path we are on if we don’t change our current mass immigration policies.

SHOULD WE HAVE MASS IMMIGRATION? Congressional and media pundits scratch their heads and pontificate as to why we can’t lower our poverty rates while ignoring the the 125,000 new immigrants entering the country every month the majority of whom are unskilled, uneducated and non-English speaking. 68% of legal immigrant Mexican families with American children are either in or near poverty. Twenty years after immigrating to the USA over 50% of Mexicans are still on welfare. Roughly 18% of all Mexicans legal or illegal now reside in the US. 67% of EL Salvadoran families are in or near poverty and constitute 20% of all EL Salvadorans. When the worst recession since the Great Depression hit 5 years ago causing massive unemployment in the double digits around the country not one person in Congress even mentioned the common sense idea of a pause in the incoming immigrants joining the workforce every month. 7,500,000 legal immigrants have entered the country from 2008 till now with the large majority entering the workforce.

SHOULD THE IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION ACT BE CHANGED? Currently it is estimated 200,000 births a year are primarily to illegal aliens who then establish an anchor to the government welfare teat. It is a magnet that even attracts wealthy pregnant women from around the world to come via “birth tourism” junkets so their child is born here, given a SS card and passport to then go back to wherever they came from. In the future the child will return an American citizen knowing nothing about the country and in fact may be coming to cause harm.

SHOULD THE PENALTY FOR ENTERING THE COUNTRY ILLEGALLY OR OVERSTAYING A VISA BE CHANGED? The scary thought of a misdemeanor for entering illegally deters no one. Overstaying a visa results in being barred from the country for a period of time. Perhaps the promise of a felony charge would be a much greater deterrent.

SHOULD THE CUBAN ADJUSTMENT ACT BE REPEALED? Currently 18% of all Cubans are residing in the United States and are the preferred immigrant, legal or illegal over all other immigrants dating back to the Cuban Missile Crisis days. Come illegally and put one foot on dry land and you get instant legal status and a green card in 12 months. Cuba is now allowing Cuban citizens to travel overseas which could result in another Mariel type influx of Cubans if they want to take advantage of the existing Act.

DO WE NEED A DIVERSITY VISA PROGRAM? The program brings in 55,000 legal immigrants from around the world annually to increase our diversity. Would someone please tell me what country in the world has a more diverse population mix than ours?

DO WE NEED A TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS PROGRAM? The only thing temporary about this program is the name. In 2001 over 200,000 EL Salvadorans were brought into the country to be selected as our guests following an earthquake and they have not been returned receiving another eighteen extension recently signed by President Obama.

REVIEW THE CORRUPT UN RUN REFUGEE PROGRAM Today the UN basically decides who the 85,000 refugees to be selected will be in a program reportedly rampant with corruption and payoffs. Those imported cost the Federal Government approximately $20,000 each for shipping and handling then dumped in communities with no advance notice to the residents.

REVIEW THE WORK VISA PROGRAM There are firms that coach employers on how to avoid hiring American workers and then work various strategies to avoid paying certain taxes. Milton Friedman correctly identified the work visa program as simply corporate welfare.

None of these ten items I listed were even mentioned by the gang of eight senators or the President which means what they are considering is neither “Comprehensive or Reform.”

Show you put the National Interests of the Citizens of the United States of America ahead of partisan politics and call for a Commission. We’ll be watching to see what you decide.

George Fuller
Sarasota, Florida

Food Fight Over Senator Rubio’s Immigration Initiative

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Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) has taken the lead in attempting to solve the broken immigration system. According to the Federation for American Immigration Reform, Florida spends over $5.4 billion annually to incarcerate, medicate and educate illegal aliens. Americans have seen old/new initiatives like these end in failure, while contributing to the end of the careers of Republican politicians. John McCain comes to mind.

Will Rubio’s political career end on a sour note? 

Florida resident and immigration expert George Fuller notes, “People talk about Immigration all the time but what is the purpose and do we in fact have a need? We have no lands to settle. We are world’s third most populated country and we should be able to provide all the brainiacs needed for industry, if not, then there is a terrible problem with our education system. To me no one ever asks the question: If we need immigration and why?”

The Shark Tank reported that in 2009 candidate Rubio had a different take on immigration than Senator Rubio in 2013. Javier Manjarres in his column Marco Rubio, The Immigration Reform Savior or Fraud? quotes then candidate Rubio on immigration in a video interview conducted March of 2009:

“No. Never have been. I am strongly against amnesty. The most important thing we need to do is enforce our existing laws. We have existing immigration laws that are not being adequately enforced. Nothing will make it harder to enforce the existing laws, if you reward people who broke them.

It demoralizes people who are going through the legal process, its a very clear signal of why go through the legal process, if you can accomplish the same thing if you go through the illegal process. And number two, if demoralizes the people enforcing the laws. I am not, and I will never support any effort to grant blanket legalization/amnesty to folks who have entered, stayed in this country illegally.“ [My emphasis]

Fast forward to this statement from Senator Rubio during an interview in January 2013:

“So, we have 11 million people that are undocumented. We understand that we have to deal with this issue because we have 11 million people that, by all accounts, are going to be here the rest of their lives with or without documents. Our objection has been in the past that we can’t do anything to deal with 11 million people that number one, is unfair to the people who have done it the right way. Or number two, that would encourage illegal immigration in the future.”

Some, like Eric Erickson from RedState.com think the Rubio initiative is a mistake. Erickson wrote in his column I Don’t Like Marco Rubio’s Plan, “I think this plan is warmed over McCain-Kennedy and will do nothing to solve the problem. I say this as someone to the left of much of the readership here at RedState and the conservative base.” “The GOP was smart to put Marco Rubio as the face of the plan because many of us like him personally, support him still, and consequently don’t want to seem critical. But the plan makes the actual problem of immigration more difficult to solve,” writes Erickson.

So what is the real issue behind this Rubio initiative? Why votes in 2014.

Senator Rubio states in a reply posted on RedState.com answering Erickson’s concerns that, “On the political front, a growing number of voters of Asian and Hispanic descent have been convinced by the left that conservative opposition to immigration reform equates to being anti-immigrant. This is unfair, and it is untrue. But they have pulled it off and, as a result, our ability to convince these fast-growing communities that the principles of limited government and free enterprise are better for them than big government and collectivism has been impaired.”

The fundamental questions are: Do we really need immigration at all, do we want carry the huge financial burden of illegals aliens? Are we a nation of laws or or men?

RELATED COLUMNS:

Immigraiton Reform Requires Caution

Reforming America’s Immigration System

A Florida Citizens Letter To Senator Marco Rubio on Comprehensive Immigration Reform

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The following is a letter WDW recieved from a Florida resident. The letter was sent to Senator Marco Rubio:

VIA: senator@Rubio.senate.gov

RE: “Comprehensive” Immigration Reform (Read Amnesty)

Senator Rubio:

Let me say as a Florida resident I vividly remember you blocking 6 immigration bills when you were Speaker of the Florida House in 2008 stating “The House was too busy” to deal with state immigration laws.

I remember you campaigning to be senator opposing amnesty (though you supported the Florida Dream Act early in your state legislative career) as you followed in the footsteps of previous Cuban Senator Martinez who campaigned opposing amnesty and three years later in 2007 led the charge for it. It seems you couldn’t wait three years to change positions back to what you supported during your early state tenure.

That said, let me respond to what I have read regarding your proposed legislation and zero in on Comprehensive which to me means dealing with all related topics to amnesty.

It is a well known fact constantly blared by open border types Hispanics are the fastest growing segment of the population and that is correct having researched all the latest numbers. Their chant is you better deal with the criminal illegal aliens if you want our support. Look at the immigration numbers and they are correct. The tail is now wagging the dog and how did it happen? It happened through the Family Reunification immigration program you heartily support with no limits basically emptying peasant villages in Mexico and Central America and moving them into balkanized barrios around the country. It has also happened through the failure of the U.S. Government Executive Branch performing its duties in protecting our borders and regulating visa holders with no outcry from Congress.

WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE PURPOSE OF IMMIGRATION?

In 1962 then President Kennedy called for a reform of the immigration system. He did not call for an increase in immigration quotas stating we need not increase the level of immigrants allowed because “we have no lands left to settle.” Following his death the Democrat controlled Congress concocted the Family Reunification visa program introducing mass immigration favoring Hispanic countries and why is a good question? Prior to 1965 the large majority of under 250K allowed in the country annually were educated, had a skill and spoke English. Following 1965 legislation the overwhelming majority imported have been a perfect democrat candidate being unskilled, uneducated and non English speaking. When politicians and talk show hosts scratch their heads about the level of poverty in the country and how to lower it they aren’t looking at the primary cause being the importation of an endless stream of poverty. Statistics show 68% of legal MX immigrants with children are in or near poverty. The study by CIS also shows over 50% of Mexican immigrants are still on welfare 20 years after arriving in the country. Other Hispanic immigrants have similar statistics.

You have recently stated you are a BIG BELIEVER in family based immigration. Please explain why since it has shown to simply be the conduit for exporting poverty from banana republics to here?

We never had a mass amnesty in this country until President Reagan in an unwise move granted the first ever amnesty in 1986. From then until 2000 there were 6 more for a grand total of 6 million amnesties granted in 14 years. In 2012 President Obama directed an amnesty by fiat without Constitutional authority affecting more than a million criminal illegal aliens and nary a peep was heard from Congress. Representative Steve King promised on 8/17/2012 to challenge Obama’s amnesty by fiat and in my inquiry a week ago to his office he was still gathering facts. WOW!

As a result of the 7 previous amnesties we now have, based on government numbers I find highly suspect, 12 million waiting in line for amnesty. If that is the number you want to use then promise to cap it at that number.

Attempting the same thing over and over again is a form of insanity. Actually, I believe the Congress is quite content with the millions of unskilled joining the work force ranks keeping wages low for their large corporate donors like Walmart and at the same time providing them ever new customers. As far as illegal immigration goes it satisfies the needs of criminal illegal alien employers wanting cheap labor in a modern day version of slavery.

If Congressional members really cared about American workers do you think they would have allowed 125K new immigrants a month to continue to be imported to worsen the employment picture for 23 million Americans suffering through the worst recession since the great depression? I never heard a word from one Congressman or woman to at least suggest a pause of the onslaught of the endless stream of immigrants month after month. Not one word was ever even uttered and that silence is a damn loud message to American workers and all citizens.

Senator Rubio, these are tasks that need to be accomplished long before the amnesty discussion even begins for criminal illegal aliens. You said in an interview you wanted to solve their problem. Sir, who cares about solving their problem since they brought it upon themselves. The most important thing is how it will affect the citizens of this country. They are the ones who self inflicted their pain and it could end quickly by returning to their home country instead of demanding a path to citizenship.

End the nonsensical family reunification visa program that has simply uprooted tens of millions of peasants who couldn’t even spell the United States of America in English before arriving and come simply to start sucking on the government teat that is nearly dry.

Secure the borders. President Obama and Sec. Napolitano say the border has never been more secure. I suppose then the signs posted 70 miles north of the border warning travelers to beware of illegal aliens were previously 100 miles north of the border. The Border Patrol recently issued a statement they only intercept 61% of illegals attempting to enter the country and who knows how little as a percentage of the drugs entering illegally.

Senator, when you talk about securing the border I hope you mean the same way we protect the Korean border at the 39th parallel. We have been there for 60 years and rarely if ever is the border breached by anyone. If that is the case then great. However, what you promise has to be executed by the Executive Branch and President Obama has no appetite for securing the border. In fact, neither has Congress since it was promised over 25 years ago. We protect a foreign countries borders half way around but not our own and the citizens deserve to know the reason why.

Get the Visit USA program to work so visa over stayers can be located and deported. Over 40%, or perhaps more of the criminal illegal alien population has supposedly come legally and just melted into a city to live and work. With over 100 Million visitors to the United States annually the 40% number of total criminal illegal aliens appears awfully low.

Make it a felony to enter the country illegally or overstay a visa. This is a common sense measure since we currently treat the crime like jaywalking. Get permission to house the lawbreakers in Guantanamo to end their appetite for breaking our laws.

Make E-Verify mandatory for all employers and direct the SS administration to check the user is who they say they are. You achieve that by having the SS office issue a new tamper proof card with picture to all prospective employment seekers to eliminate document fraud (HR98). Regarding Mandatory E-Verify in a poll conducted by Pulse Opinion Research 89% of Whites, 81% of Blacks and 76% of Hispanics and Asian-Americans were in favor of it.

Pass and enforce Childbirth legislation that would remove a magnet to come here now granting citizenship to babies born in the USA to foreign parents by amending the Immigration and Naturalization Act (HR140) requiring at least one parent be a citizen ending the anchor baby link to the welfare system. Over 200K births like this are performed annually with taxpayers footing the majority of the bill. There is a cottage industry for birth tourism for wealthy foreign women making a mockery of our citizenship requirements. Coincidentally you would not have been a citizen either if the law is changed since when you were born your parents were not citizens of the United States but still of Cuba.

Repeal the antiquated Cuban Adjustment Act which is a knee jerk cold war relic reaction meant to damage Castro’s Cuba after the Bay of Pigs fiasco and grants any Cuban who arrives in the USA anywhere preferred treatment and a path to citizenship. This is especially important since Cuba is now granting travel Visas to their citizens. The last thing we need is an aerial version of the Mariel boat lift that forever changed Miami into what is now the fifth most impoverished City in the USA and where English is the second language.

End the corrupt Diversity Visa lottery Program that brings in people to the USA from supposedly countries that need greater representation under the guise of diversity. Senator Rubio, name a more diverse country than the United States of America; You can’t.

End the Temporary Protected Status program that is permanently temporary. Case in point are the over 200K EL Salvadorans brought here after an earthquake in their country and undoubtedly sucking on the welfare teat since. They are only here temporarily 10 years later wink wink.

Dramatically reduce the corrupt refugee program and remove the UN’s participation in determining who comes and make the US groups profiting from the refugee business get the approval from the locales where they want to dump the refugees before doing so. I understand every refugee entering costs the U.S. government $20K for shipping and handling.

End the work visa program which Milton Friedman correctly identified as corporate welfare. Work visas that allow maids and lawn mower operators into the country as specialty occupations illustrates the lengths companies will go to avoid paying U.S. workers and the fica. If the US is not graduating candidates to fill America’s needs whose fault is it since we are the third most populated country in the world and had, I emphasize had, a great education system when I attended and undoubtedly has been ruined since by the teacher unions and Federal interference.

Commission a study to determine the impact of the 12 million criminal illegal aliens will have on our welfare system, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, environment and the impact on American workers.

Commission a independent study to determine the optimum population the United States can comfortably sustain. When talking about immigration I have never heard a politician mention what our optimum population should be regarding Natural Resources and avoiding similar terrible human conditions suffered today in India, Bangladesh and China. Publish all the findings.

Senator Rubio, do those tasks necessary to get a clear picture of what you propose to do and its impact on American Society so the facts speak for themselves as to whether it is in the national Interest of the citizens of the United States of America to support or reject amnesty for the criminal illegal aliens.

I am also sending along a speech given by Democrat Ex. Governor Richard D. Lamb several years ago titled “I Have a Plan to destroy America and many parts of it are underway.” Read it and see if you can relate it to what is happening in the country today from a speech written 10 years ago.

George Fuller

Sarasota, Florida

Failure to Arrest Illegal Alien Senate Intern Demonstrates Obama Administration Cannot Be Trusted to Enforce Immigration Laws

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According a report by the Associated Press, political appointees at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) repeatedly instructed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents not to arrest an illegal alien sex offender who was employed as an unpaid intern in the office of Senator Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) until after the elections. If confirmed, this overtly political act further demonstrates the shocking politicization of immigration enforcement under the current DHS leadership, charged the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR).

“The Department of Homeland Security knew that Luis Sanchez Zavaleta was both an illegal alien and a registered sex offender as early as October. Nevertheless, high ranking DHS officials placed electoral politics ahead of public safety and the law, when they instructed ICE agents not to arrest Mr. Sanchez until after the 2012 elections,” said Dan Stein, president of FAIR.

These latest actions of DHS officials ratify charges by career ICE agents that the Obama administration is recklessly disregarding immigration law. In a 2010 press release, the union representing ICE agents accused DHS and ICE leadership of having “abandoned the Agency’s core mission of enforcing United States immigration laws and providing for public safety” and have instead focused their attention on promoting amnesty for illegal aliens.

“This case calls into question the ability of Secretary Janet Napolitano to serve as the nation’s top immigration enforcement official,” stated Stein. “There is now even greater doubt than before about whether Secretary Napolitano and those around her can be trusted to faithfully execute the responsibilities of their offices. Based on the allegations of the ICE officers and strong evidence that DHS leadership interfered in a criminal arrest for political reasons, there must be a full and independent investigation.”

Today’s revelations also underscore the inherent dangers in granting illegal aliens amnesty, whether through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, the DREAM Act, or a “comprehensive” immigration reform bill. The fact that it was local law enforcement officers who tipped off the federal government regarding Mr. Sanchez, plus the different treatment juvenile offenders receive, demonstrates that the federal government may in fact have no idea whether an amnesty beneficiary is in fact a criminal.

“It has been clear for years that the Obama administration has been politicizing enforcement of U.S. immigration laws. The case of Mr. Sanchez, and the manner in which it was reportedly dealt with by DHS, raises serious questions about whether our immigration laws are being subverted to serve the political aims of this administration,” Stein concluded.

The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) is a national, nonprofit, public-interest, membership organization of concerned citizens who share a common belief that our nation’s immigration policies must be reformed to serve the national interest.

Visit FAIR’s website at www.fairus.org.

Florida Victory: Feds Grant Access to SAVE Database

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The Department of Homeland Security will give Florida access to the SAVE law enforcement database of illegals. The access will be used by Supervisors of Elections to determine if ineligables are on the Florida voters rolls. The Department of Homeland security granted access only after Florida sued in a related case and the suit was upheld by a Federal District Court.

Governor Rick Scott issued the following statement about the victory:

“Access to the SAVE database will ensure that non-citizens do not vote in future Florida elections. I’m appreciative that the federal government is working with us cooperatively. This is a step in the right direction. This commitment from the United States Department of Homeland Security marks a significant victory for Florida and for the integrity of our election system.

“We’ve already confirmed that non-citizens have voted in past elections here in Florida. Now that we have the cooperation of the Department of Homeland Security, our state can use the most accurate citizenship database in the nation to protect the integrity of Florida’s election process.”

The Orlando Sentinel’s Charles Babington reports, “Democrats say that the government’s concession is less troubling than some GOP-controlled states’ push to require voters to show photo identification.” An Indiana law requiring voters to show a photo ID was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in Crawford v. Marion County Election Board, 553 U.S. 181 (2008).

This decision may prove pivitol in the swing states of Florida, Colorado, Nevada and North Carolina.

 

Cost of Illegals to Floridians

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Florida is a state on the road to economic recovery. Unemployment has dropped 2.3% since Governor Rick Scott was sworn into office. The question is what will be the impact of President Obama’s executive order giving legal status to some, but not all, illegals on Florida and its economy?

As Dr. Thomas Sowell in his TownHall.com column “The Immigration Ploy” notes, “People cannot plan their lives on the basis of laws that can suddenly appear, and then suddenly disappear, in less than a year. To come forward today and claim the protection of the Obama Executive Order is to declare publicly and officially that your parents entered the country illegally. How that may be viewed by some later administration is anybody’s guess. Employers likewise cannot rely on policies that may be here today and gone tomorrow, whether these are temporary tax rates designed to look good at election time or temporary immigration policies that can backfire later if employers get accused of hiring illegal immigrants.” [My emphasis]

Professor Sowell asks, “Why hire someone, and invest time and money in training them, if you may be forced to fire them before a year has passed?”

The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) estimated the illegal population in Florida at 820,000 in 2010. FAIR estimated in 2009 the annual cost to educate, incarcerate and medicate illegal aliens in Florida at over $5.4 billion. The Florida Chamber Foundation in its January 2011 Immigration and Florida’s Economy report written by Carrie Blanchard, Ph.D. and Dale A. Brill, Ph.D. states, “While the number of unauthorized immigrants is more difficult to determine, an estimate by the Pew Research Center indicates that there are approximately 1 million unauthorized immigrants that reside within Florida, or about 5.7% of the state’s population, and approximately 750,000 unauthorized immigrants in the labor force, which represents 8.2% of Florida’s labor force (Passel and Cohn, 2009).”

The Florida Chamber Foundation report states, “While unauthorized immigrants are not eligible for most state aid programs, states do incur expenses related to immigration, especially in the areas of criminal justice and education. Further, hospitals that are mandated to provide service regardless of immigration status also incur non‐reimbursed expenditures related to providing care to unauthorized immigration. Still, a cost‐benefit analysis must include both sides of the equation as many studies demonstrate the net positive impact of immigration on the economy and tax revenues.” President Obama’s executive order would make those granted amnesty eligible for all state aid programs at least on a temporary basis. This makes it difficult for the state to estimate costs based on the premise that this executive order can be over ridden by Congress or another President.

The Florida Chamber Foundation report noted, “A separate analysis on the effects of immigration and wage was performed for the four states with the highest levels of immigration – California, Florida, New York and Texas.  The results show that the overall effect of immigration on native‐born worker wages was positive 0.7%, or $6.44 per week; however, the subgroup of native‐born male workers with less than a high school degree in these states fared slightly worse, with Florida males with less than a high school education experiencing a relative decline of $2.13 in weekly wages (Shierholz, 2010). ”

As FAIR executive director Dan Stein noted in congressional testimony on March 4, 1999, “Our laws should not reward illegal immigrants to the United States regardless of the political or natural upheavals in their homelands. Otherwise, experience shows that we will encourage further illegal immigration. By now, we should have learned from experience that TPS is misnamed — what we offer as “temporary” protection is most often seen by the aliens residing illegally in the United States as a foot in the door to legal permanent residence. They are happy to accept our offer of humanitarian concern, but they have no intention of departing the United States when TPS status expires.”

Dr. Sowell writes, “The principle involved — keeping children from being hurt by actions over which they had no control — is one already advanced by Senator Marco Rubio, who may well end up as Governor Romney’s vice-presidential running mate. The Obama Executive Order, which suddenly popped up like a rabbit out of a magician’s hat, steals some of Senator Rubio’s thunder, so it is clever politics. But clever politics is what has gotten this country into so much trouble, not only as regards immigration but also as regards the economy and the dangerous international situation.”

The real economic impact on Florida taxpayers of President Obama’s executive ordered temporary amnesty will not be know until November 7, 2012. If President Obama is reelected then the order will stand, unless the new Congress intervenes, or a new President rescinds the order. Only time will tell. Till then Floridians, Florida businesses and the legislature will have to wait and see – living in economic limbo.

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