Immigration Reform: About That Amnesty Thing

Our illegal immigration gravy train runs mainly on the railroad built by the politics, and economies, of two countries, the U.S. and Mexico. You can’t blame people for jumping on board as quickly, and as often, as they can. I mean, look at the stops along the way. Better jobs, better pay, better living conditions, free education, free healthcare and a bunch of other free welfare stuff. The conductor doesn’t even have to yell, “all aboard”. The passengers are already there. Because it’s like Disneyland, only they don’t pay for the ride. Somebody else does.

If life were like a free Disneyland, it would be magical indeed. There’d be all kinds of gravy trains, running every which way, taking people wherever they want to go. But, we don’t live in a fairy tale Magic Kingdom that can support everyone who wants to live here. We’re in a Country with national debt careening out of control like a runaway freight train. With the highest level of persistent unemployment since the Great Depression. With an economy so slow in recovering that, right now, it’s stalled on the ragged edge of double-dip.

Part of the not so magical picture is the $100 billion annual net cost of illegal immigrants to our taxpayers. And it’s not going to change because the illegals are unskilled labor. They’ve been likened to 10 million high school dropouts. That may have a harsh ring to it, but it’s also the truth. Here’s another truth: immigration should be about what’s good for the Country, not what’s good for the people who want to immigrate. What’s good for reducing our skyrocketing debt problem is shutting down the illegal immigration launch pad.

But, how about just one more wave of amnesty? How about, no way. Amnesty begets amnesty. Grant it now and there will be a next time. Guaranteed. Just look at recent U.S. history. Amnesty to millions in 1986, a worse problem today. Why? Two reasons. First, amnesty removes the pressure that motivates politicians to act. Once the special interests are satisfied, the best interests of the Country, its citizens and economy are forgotten. You don’t think so? You don’t have to look as far back as 1986 for an example. Look at the past 18 months. Congress has turned itself into a slaughterhouse creating all the special interest pork in our new ‘reform’ laws. And the majority of taxpayers? Gone begging.

Plus, you can’t reward illegal behavior and expect the behavior to end. The 1986 amnesty inspired four times the number of illegals to immigrate to our Country. It continues to entice people to act illegally in the belief that the next amnesty wave is just around the corner. To permanently derail the gravy train, it has to stop.

This means deporting people who are here illegally. To the claims of “social injustice”, I say let’s talk about reality rather than firing off emotionally charged words designed to disengage the brain. People here illegally know their status. When they entered our Country, they consciously took the risk that they would be caught and deported. They made the decision to become line cutters, crowding ahead of people waiting to immigrate legally. Now, they go to the back of the line to fill out their papers and take their turn like everyone else.

If you want to be upset about something or someone over a deportation solution, try aiming your guns at the Mexican Government. If that bunch did not keep most of its people in abject poverty, they wouldn’t opt for illegal entry into the U.S. If they had jobs and decent living conditions, they’d be happy at home. After all, do you see U.S. citizens streaming illegally into Canada for work? If you really want to help illegal immigrants, join Amnesty International, and similar organizations, and fight the problem at its roots.

If we want to do something else in the best interests of the Country, we could enact a righteous guest worker program. One that is not a pathway to citizenship but is a way for people temporarily in our Country to work “above ground”. No families, just workers. Employers pay taxes and fees for them similar to those paid for citizen employees. An economic win-win-win for the workers, the employers and the Country. Now, that’s a change we can believe in.

See you in the mirror.