Immigration - What CAN Be Accomplished

Coming from Arizona and being kinda in the middle of all the immigration stuff, I'd like to pass along my thoughts on the subject. Here are the issues I've seen raised:

1. Tighten the borders, round up the 15,000 people who've come here illegally over the past years and deport them back to where they belong. After all, it's the law, dammit. Oh, and while you're at it, make it a criminal offense to aide or abet any illegal allien.

2. Tighten the borders and give guest worker permits to anyone who either is living here illegally now or wishes to come work here. So what if you're bypassing people who've legally been waiting to become American citizens.

3. Give guest worker permits to anyone who either is living here illegally now or wishes to come work here. Everyone knows American's don't want those jobs anyway.

4. Grant amnesty to anyone who is living here now illegally and open the borders to anyone else who'd like to come here. This is a country built on the backs of immigrants. Legal/schmegal. To the Native Americans, we're all illegal immigrants.

5. Do nothing and mayhaps the whole mess will settle itself. It worked the last time this was an issue.

I think I've covered all the bases. Give the wording a push or shove and that's about what's come down the pike so far. Unfortunately, none of these solutions are workable no matter how loudly people are screaming for them. In every case, someone will get hurt. In most cases, that someone is the American Middle-Class Taxpayer.

Now here's what Marcia Ellen thinks should be done:

First (1st). Congress should pass a bill funding the securing of all our borders by means of a combination of increased border security personnel and technology that will get the job done. The 1,000 or so people per day crossing the border illegally must be cut to a trickle of 0-5 people per day. Set a date, 6 months to a year out for this to be accomplished and for gawd's sake, fund it REALISTICALLY.

Second (2nd). Pass a bill that starting from the date of the security attainment mentioned above, it will be a crime to hire illegal immigrants. Any employer caught doing so will be fined $(x) per offense, with mandatory jail time. Then, set up a Federal Bureau to oversee the enforcement of this law. The bureau will be self-supporting, with the fines paying the way.

Third (3rd). Pass a bill that starting from the date of the security attainment mentioned above, all people who've entered this country illegally must register for a special work visa. If you do not register within 60 days from the date of the security attainment and you are caught, you will be deported immediately. The special work visa will provide the following:

(3a) Legal status as a foreign worker in America for up to five years. Within that time you must learn English, take citizenship classes and apply for citizenship in the United States. There will be no extension other than up to three months for proven extenuating circumstances.

(3b) Any job you perform in the United States must pay you the going minimum wage unless lower wages for particular jobs (such as teenage fast food workers) are set up under the law. Any employer paying less than minimum wage for legal foreign workers will be dealt with under the provisions of (2nd) above. Wages paid to all foreign workers will be subject to all Federal, State and local taxes.

(3c) Foreign workers will be eligible for health care under in-place employee plans.

(3d) Legal status may only be granted to foreign workers who have not committed a felony during their stay in America. If you have committed a felony in the past or commit one in the future, you will be immediately deported to your country of origin.

(3e) Legal status includes the right to obtain a motor vehicle license in accordance with state law. This means also obtaining insurance where applicable. Any foreign worker caught driving without a valid driver's license or without applicable insurance will have committed a felony and they will be deported immediately.

The grace period for all the above is the time it takes Congress to implement the border security act (1st).

With the above, no one gets a free pass to citizenship. The wage system survives intact. People won't flock over the borders to take advantage of this because the borders will be secured. The only real losers are the people who should lose - those employers trying to take advantage of cheap foreign labor for US jobs by hiring illegals and bigots who don't want foreigners in our country. Foreign workers pay their fair share of taxes and their wages will be spent within the communities they live in.

If followed as outlined above, the whole illegal alien problem disappears in no more than 6 years tops.

Send this to your Senators and Congressmen. And stop whining about it.

Thanks!!

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