TexasCajun wrote:So what is the answer? What do we DO about the current situation? Let's see some solution on here. I'm not of a mind to simply curl up in a corner & hope things get better (or worse, hope things don't go further downhill). I'm willing to take action, just point me in the right direction. I didn't start this thread so that we could sit around & mope about how unfair things are. My original intent was to try to take a step back out of the frustration & feeling of loss in order to begin moving forward.
You are absolutely right; we must do something or accept the United States as a 3rd world country with ever-dwindling constitutional rights!
Immigration reform is absolutely the key to getting Hispanics to join the Republican Party and/or vote for Republican candidates. Such reform doesn't have to mean "fee stuff" anymore than being an American citizen means I get "free stuff." Free healthcare is a separate issue and now it's tied directly to Obamacare that's not going away for at least four years, if ever.
As noted in my first post, I'm a life-long conservative and until very recently, I've said what most other conservatives say, "if you are caught illegally in this country, you should be deported on your first offense and jailed on subsequent offenses. Ignoring illegal immigration is unfair to American citizens and to aliens to follow the law and come to this country legally." I still feel this way, but the reality is clear, we either compromise on this issue or lose everything. I know some conservatives feel "compromise" is a dirty word, but that's absurd. We compromise every day with our family, friends, co-workers and many other groups. We'd better do so in the political arena, or we'll be like two old Brits in a pub talking about the glory days when the sun never set on the British Empire.
As for specifics, if I were crowned king tomorrow, here's what I'd do about immigration:
- 1. Establish a guest worker program for Mexican nationals (not other countries) that is not the same as a work visa;
2. People must have a verifiable, written job offer to apply for a guest worker permit;
3. If you are illegally in the country and have a job in the U.S., you can submit the required paperwork without leaving the country;
4. If you are illegally in the U.S., do not have a job, then you must leave and follow procedures;
5. U.S. Dept. of Labor or the Border Patrol maintain a database of jobs available (voluntarily submitted by employers) for which Mexican nationals can apply;
- a. If the jobs are temporary or short term, the guest worker permit will have an expiration date;
b. If an employee quits or is fired, the employer must notify the U.S. Border Patrol and the guest worker permit would be revoked;
6. Children of illegal aliens and guest worker permit holders born on U.S. soil would not be American citizens, but they would be eligible for resident alien "Green Card" status upon reaching the age of majority, if they 1) do not have a criminal history; and 2) graduated from high school (not GED).
7. After a 12 month amnesty period, anyone found illegally in the U.S. will be deported and cannot apply for a guest worker permit for five years;
8. Provisions for the commission of crimes by guest workers would have to be established, including impact on family members in the U.S.
Obviously, this is just an off-the-cuff plan and much more detail would have to be developed. Such a program would give Hispanics in the U.S. a way for their relatives to legally come to this country and that is key.
Chas.