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April 06, 2006
Illegal alien reconquistas take the U.S. Senate
Hugh Hewitt spoke with uber-columnist Mark Steyn this afternoon about the Senate GOP surrenduring to Ted Kennedy and his minions on illegal immigration.
Hugh Hewitt: I'm joined now by Mark Steyn, columnist to the world. You can read his work at www.steynonline.com. Mark, good Thursday to you.
Mark Steyn: And happy Thursday to you, Hugh.
Hugh Hewitt: There's a lot to cover, but we've got to start with the immigration "compromise." Now I've only seen what's on the New York Times, which says you know, if you've been here five years, you get on a path that takes you so long, and two to five years, and one year. But I have been told by senior Republican sources on the Hill that the border fence is indeed part of this. But John Cornyn just took to the floor to denounce the lack of border security and the lack of a temporary worker. Thus far, with what little we know, what do you make of it, Mark Steyn?
Mark Steyn: Well, it doesn't sound to me like a compromise. It sounds like the people who want to legalize every illegal immigrant to the United States have got their way. And we talked about this last week, and I always feel slightly uncomfortable talking about this, because I am a foreigner. It's hardly my place to tell Americans who should be coming to America. But just to put this into perspective, as someone who's been through the immigration bureaucracy here, and as someone who crosses the U.S. land border, I would guess, more frequently than 90% of Americans do, what I don't understand is how they will be able to distinguish these categories. By their definition, illegal immigrants are not people who are in the computer records. So who's to say whether somebody's been here five years, or two to five years. Essentially, an illegal immigrant can give his own date for that. And what means do they have of sifting through the evidence? I would say that essentially, these people will be able to declare what it is they wish to declare, and an already overloaded immigration bureaucracy will effectively just take them at their word.
Hugh Hewitt: In reality, isn't it likely that those who can easily prove their duration, or can come up with the counterfeit documents will stay. The rest will stay underground, but that we'll get the fence. Is that a good enough of a deal for you?
Mark Steyn: Well, I do think legal immigration, including the fence on the Southern border, has to be fixed, and has to be streamlined. And this is a bureaucratic agency that has a sort of pathological inability to prioritize. And I hope that there will be ... if there is no enforcement mechanism here, and if there is no fence, then it is a waste of time. You know, someone said to me the other day, I'd actually crossed the border yesterday, and I was joking with one of the guys up there. And he was talking about the compromise bill, and I said you know, I think my ideal compromise would be that all 300 million of us legal residents and citizens get to become undocumented, too, because I think the undocumented guys have a great deal. They're living in the shadows, so-called. They're not paying any taxes. If they have to produce I.D. for anything, they produce fake I.D. that gets accepted everywhere, they get their free health care and free schools. Personally, as a legal immigrant, I feel overdocumented. And I do think there is a danger that this particular issue can backfire very badly, and that it's essentially rewarding bad behavior without showing that that bad behavior will stop in the future.
The GOP deserves the nickname, "The Stupid Party." This "compromise" is a "F--- you" to the more than 60 percent of the American public who want Congress to stop illegal immigration. The House of Representatives passed a tough bill; the Senate has settled for flipping the voters the bird and using the other hand for a Broke Back Mountain-esque gesture of friendship.
One can only presume that the House is more responsive because of the two-year election cycle; they have to pay attention to us. The useless senators, on the other hand, believe that their six-year terms shield them from the stoopid voters.
The Stupid Party is in for a surprise come November. Conservatives are prepared to stay home -- or vote for Democrats who are willing to crack down on illegal immigration. My father sends GOP solicitations for donations back with notes saying, "Not one dime until you protect the borders."
He's not alone.
Posted by Mike Lief at April 6, 2006 06:18 PM
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Comments
You can't stop people who are determined to bring their families to a place where they can live a better life. We need to stop thinking of world where walls and barriers separate races and classes of people. We should encourage a world where love, cooperation, and economic compassion set the tone for international relations.
Posted by: Sbarro at April 6, 2006 08:43 PM
Of course you can stop people from entering the United States illegally; a moat filled with crocodiles would do the job. Or a border patrol force comprised of black Americans who are losing jobs to illegal aliens willing to work for lower wages.
With regards to "love, cooperation and economic compassion set[ting] the tone for international relations," let me be the first to say that I'd love it if you'd show your compassion by making an international move to share your wealth.
Of course, if you went to Mexico, you'd find that you had no right to own land; no right to demonstrate; no right to welfare; no right to comment on or participate in the political process; and precious little interest in listening to anything a gringo might have to say about their country.
Forgive me if I'm not impressed with your talk of "walls and barriers separat[ing] races and classes."
No nation offers the opportunities to achieve, to climb from poverty to unimaginable wealth, that are available to all in the United States.
That's why people want to come; we're the world's biggest ATM. But as with anything else, resources are not infinite. And the latest wave of illegal aliens don't seem interested in becoming Americans -- hence the Mexican flags dominating the protests, along with the talk of "reconquista."
I therefore feel no sympathy for, nor interest in the aspirations of illegal aliens who do not want to become law-abiding members of American society.
Posted by: Mike Lief at April 6, 2006 10:30 PM
Sbarro's comment is incredibly inane.
Many of the illegal aliens in our country are from Mexico.
Our family loves Mexico and vacations there every year. Guess what? When we get off the plane the first stop is with the Mexico immigration authorities where we have to present our passports and completed visa requests in order to enter their country. A reasonable requirement.
After clearing customs, we head to the rental car company to pick up our rental car. The rental car company representative advises us that our car insurance in the United States does not provide coverage. In order to avoid being arrested for being in an accident and not having Mexican insurance, we pay for coverage during our stay. Another reasonable requirement.
During one of our vacations, we looked at a condominium for sale overlooking the ocean. It was a beautiful unit with a spectacular view. However, the sales person explained that we could not purchase the property in fee simple. Only Mexican citizens can own property close to the ocean and be able to pass it to their heirs. If we wanted the condominium, we could lease it, but eventually the property would revert to the leassor. Mexico has opted to protect its coastline by restricting foreigners from full property rights. Again, it is their country and their decision.
While we are guests in Mexico, we abide by their rules and their laws. It is not unreasonable for our country to be able to ask the same of those persons who come here.
Macman
Posted by: Macman at April 7, 2006 12:52 PM