What Part Of Illegal Don't These 9/11 Survivors Understand?

The short-hand reference for the casualties of the 9/11 attacks is usually the "3,000 Americans" who died in the World Trade Center. What's always overlooked is that some of the casualties were foreigners. Some were illegal aliens.

Legalization for the illegal alien survivors has not come yet because the bill to address their plight is pending in Congress.

"The bill, called the September 11th Family Humanitarian Relief and Patriotism Act, is attached as an amendment to the immigration reform package that is tied up in the lame-duck Congress.

Bill Fugazy Jr., vice chairman of the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations, said the bill should be pulled out of the immigration package and given a vote on its own merits." (Here.)

You might think even the opponents of illegal immigration would be willing to make an exception for this small group of families. You'd be wrong. Check out this choice quote in the same article from Jack Martin, spokesperson for the Federation for American Immigration Reform.

"'Those people have come into the country in violation of the laws,' Martin said. 'We don't think that the fact that they have suffered a loss of this type should be grounds for awarding them the permanent residence they would have tried to maintain illegally in this country, without that event having happened.'"

Does that seem FAIR to you?

The anti-illegal crowd is the cruelest, least compassionate political movement to rise up in America in a long time. That this tribal crowd is making inroads into the Republican Party and conservatism dismays this long-time Republican.

Conservatives and Republicans are searching their souls trying to figure out where they went wrong and why they lost. One thing that keeps being said is the need to return to their principles. Maybe so. But if they decide their principles include the kind of mindless, knee-jerk response to tragedy demonstrated by FAIR, then count this Republican out.

If you're a Republican or a conservative, ask yourself this question about the plight of these 9/11 survivors. Would you rather do what Ronald Reagan would do or what Pat Buchanan would do? You know in your hearts that Ronnie would let them stay. But Pat? He'd throw them out with his own two hands.

-tdr

Technorati: Immigration, Illegal immigration.