Thanks For Nothing, Pat Buchanan Republicans

This Zogby poll shows the consequences of the Republican Party's transformation from being the party of Ronald Reagan to the party of Pat Buchanan. (Here.) The GOP's embrace of Buchanan-style nativism has alienated Hispanic voters, who until 2006 were moving towards the Republican Party. President George Bush won 40% of the Hispanic vote in 2004. The 2006 anti-immigration version of the Republican Party saw its share of Hispanic votes fall to 30%. (Here.)

Way to go, guys. It's not as if Hispanic voters are declining in numbers. Says Zogby, "Hispanics were 5% of 95 million voters in 1996, 6% of 105 million voters in 2000, and 8.5% of 122 million voters in 2004." (Here.)

Republicans are reeling and asking themselves what they did wrong to lose in 2006. Here's a thought. Maybe alienating a fast-growing segment of the electorate is a losing strategy not a winning one.

-tdr

Technorati: Immigration, Politics, Elections.

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.

The Vatican's Border Policy

Anti-immigrationists are up in arms because the Vatican dared to criticize plans to build a wall between Mexico and the United States. The Pope of the Church of Nativism himself, CNN's Lou Dobbs, is especially outraged.

"Well, I'm frustrated and I'm a little angry about something, and that's the Vatican holding forth on U.S. policy. I've about had a bellyful of bishops, cardinals and the Vatican telling the United States what it can or cannot or should or should not do, and I don't care what religion it is." (Here.)

Even worse. Apparently, The Vatican has a wall. (Here.) Ooo, hypocrisy. Papists who live in glass houses and all that.

But wait, what about those millions of tourists and immense crowds in St. Peter's Square that always show up on TV? How do they get into the Vatican? The Vatican has a wall! What does it do? Not much, apparently.

The online World Travel Guide describes the onerous procedures necessary to enter the country known as Vatican City.

"There are no formalities required to enter the Vatican City, but entry will always be via Rome, and Italian regulations must therefore be complied with." (Here.)

Maybe we should adopt the Vatican's policy. Build a wall that does nothing and let people enter the United States without formalities. Since entry to the US would generally be from Canada and Mexico, visitors would have to comply with the travel laws of those two countries. But as for entering the United States? No problemo!

-tdr

Technorati: Immigration, border, Lou Dobbs.

Lou Dobbs Congress Redux

Last week we argued that Democrats should thank Lou Dobbs for his hard work preparing the way for them to take over the Congress. (Here.) Apparently, Peter Beinart says that Democrats are moving closer to Lou Dobbs's simple-minded positions on illegal immigration. (Here, via John Derbyshire on NRO's Corner.) It's understandable really. Five years after 9/11 Democrats still don't know who America's enemy is. Lou Dobbs provides an answer. The enemy is Mexico and all those oh so scary Mexicans who come to the United States to work.

This is another issue that George Bush has got right and his base has got wrong. He proposes some additional border security and legalization for illegal aliens. Dobbs brands this amnesty because it forgives people who broke the law. For Dobbs and his supporters it's all so simple. Illegal aliens broke the law so anything less than deportation is amnesty. But many illegal aliens actually add value to this country. Many have put down roots here and this country is now their home. Legalization would benefit them and us.

In the criminal law context, defendants who break the law but who can be reformed, or who pose no threat to society, or who have something to offer don't necessarily get sent to prison. They get probation. We should offer the same option to illegal aliens in this country.

Probation for illegal aliens not amnesty.

-tdr

Technorati: Illegal Immigration, Border, Bush, Democrats.

The Lou Dobbs Congress

The pundits overwhelmingly are predicting Democratic gains, if not takeovers, in the House of Representatives and the Senate. There's a lot of bad news in the world and it is rebounding back on the Bush Administration's political party. Even the good news of the economy does not appear to be making a difference for Republicans in the minds of the voters. Anyone who watchs Lou Dobbs Tonight knows why. Dobbs has been hawking gloom and doom on CNN for a long time now. To Dobbs, there is a "War on the Middle Class" and ordinary Americans are being squeezed by corporate fat cats, uncaring government officials, and an invasion of illegal aliens from Mexico.

In 1994 when the Republicans took the Congress, the incoming freshman class of GOP Congressmembers made Rush Limbaugh an honorary member of their class. If the Democrats sweep into power this election, they probably would not want to make Dobbs an honorary member of their class. His harsh position on illegal immigration is antithetical to most Democratic politicians. But they should send him a great big thank-you card. They wouldn't have been able to do it without him.

-tdr

Legalizing Illegal Aliens Benefits American Workers

The San Diego Union Tribune contributes an objective analysis of the costs and benefits of illegal immigration. (Here.) There are costs associated with illegal immigration but there are benefits too. More importantly, legalizing illegal aliens would benefit American workers. For instance:

"History shows that wages rise after undocumented workers are legalized, as they did after the government offered amnesty to 2.7 million undocumented workers in 1986. Within five years, real wages of formerly undocumented workers rose an average of 15 percent, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Wages for many of the jobs had been declining prior to legalization.

Wages would also rise for native-born workers or legal immigrants who work in similar jobs. A University of California Los Angeles study five years ago estimated that if undocumented workers were legalized, wages for all workers would rise by about 5 percent in agriculture, 2.75 percent in services and 2.5 percent in manufacturing.

Legal immigrants or native-born workers who lack the skills or education to qualify for less-strenuous work would be the beneficiaries, economists say."

Anti-immigration demagogues who profess to care about the American worker should take note.

-tdr

Technorati: Immigration.

It's The English, Stupid.

A story in today's San Diego Union-Tribune shows a way forward on immigation. The article describes the improvements in English proficiency among California students from Spanish-speaking households. (Here.)

School officials say the increase in fluency among students is real, and they credit new laws at the federal and state levels for the improvement.

Proposition 227, which California voters passed overwhelmingly in 1998, changed the focus of schools from bilingual education to an English-immersion model. Now, parents who want their English-language learners taught in a bilingual setting must go to the school and sign a waiver. Otherwise, the children are “immersed” in English in the regular classroom.

Since 2002, the federal government's No Child Left Behind Act has required schools to report test scores of English-language learners, and other special-needs children, in their own subgroup rather than lumping them in with the scores of all students.

Both laws have placed significant pressure on schools, and more specifically classroom teachers, to raise the English proficiency level of their students. If schools don't, they risk being cast as “underperforming” and face sanctions.

Laws designed to improve English proficiency among immigrant children are working. Proficiency in English is probably the most important step in assimilating immigrants into America's culture. For those Americans who are afraid of the influx of immigrants from Mexico this story should offer reassurances at America's ability to assimilate that population. For those Americans who claim to care about immigrants but oppose laws that mandate English education and accountability in education, may this story cause them to reconsider their opposition.

-tdr

Technorati: Immigration.

Flaunting The Cracker Within.

If you're an anti-illegal immigrationist and you don't want to be called a racist (here and here), you might not want to make statements like the one made recently by a leader of a group affiliated with the Minutemen. (That's pronounced my-newt-men, as in men who are minute: "Exceptionally small; tiny. See Synonyms at small. Beneath notice; insignificant.")

"'These people coming here are the poorest of the poor, the undesirables – not everyone, but the vast majority,' [Jeff] Schwilk said. 'They include a large criminal element, and many of them are diseased. We are all compassionate people, but there is a limit to our compassion'" (Here.)

You've got to wonder whether somebody who uses the word "diseased" to describe illegal immigrants is thinking of them as human. The word "diseased" is not typically used to describe people who are sick. It usually refers to animals or meat. Don't agree? Well, I hope you keep your diseased kids home from school when they aren't feeling well.

-tdr

Technorati: Immigration, Illegal immigration.

Our Constitution En Espanol Courtesy of Lou Dobbs

Anti-immigrationists made a big fuss a few weeks ago about a Spanish-language interpretation of our national anthem. They have also argued in favor of making English America's national language so that all government business would be done in English only.

So imagine Mister Americano's shock at discovering the official website of the anti-immigrationists' demagogue in chief has a link to a Spanish translation of the Constitution. (Here.) That's right, the website of Lou Dobbs links to a site that translates America's most hallowed document into the language of the invaders flooding our country from the south. The site translates the Constitution into the language of another enemy, French. It also translates the document into Arabic, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portugese, Russian, and simplified Chinese. (Here.)

How odd that Dobbs would allow a link on his website to foreign language translations of the Constitution, especially since he put the link in a special box that lists required reading for Americans. Here's his personal message introducing the link.

"Required Reading

'I believe there are two historical documents that should provide a frame of reference for every American. The Declaration of Independence and our Constitution are too often ignored or poorly understood by our elected officials from City Hall to the White House. We're providing these two documents on our Web site for your convenience, and I hope you will join me by reading them often and regularly.

All the best,'
Lou Dobbs"

It's wrong to do a Spanish riff on the national anthem but it's okay to translate the Constitution so that Americans can read it in other languages? Isn't multilingualism a threat to America's unity as a nation? Maybe Dobbs is a multiculturalist at heart.

-tdr

Technorati: Illegal Immigration.

Canada Has Terrorists, Mexico Has Peasants: Where O Where Should We Build That Wall Now?

Probably the stupidest argument used by anti-immigrationists in favor of building a wall on our southern border is the need to protect the US against terrorist infiltration. While anti-immigrationists are going nuts over a so-called security threat represented by the unwalled border with Mexico, Canada has just arrested 17 terrorists who were planning to blow up Canadian landmarks. (Here.) The New York Times story doesn't say much to identify the terrorists. All the story says is the terrorists have no known links to Al Qaeda and they are of South Asian descent. Somehow I doubt that they are Hindu or Buddhist.

The AP has a more useful report on the arrests. (Here.)

"Luc Portelance, assistant director of operations with Canada's spy agency, CSIS, said the suspects 'appeared to have become adherents of a violent ideology inspired by al-Qaida' but that investigators have yet to prove a link to the terror network.

Five of the suspects were led in handcuffs Saturday to the Ontario Court of Justice, which was surrounded by snipers and bomb-sniffing dogs. A judge told the men not to communicate with one another and set their first bail hearing for Tuesday.

Alvin Chand, a brother of suspect Steven Vikash Chand, said outside the courthouse that his brother was innocent and authorities 'just want to show they're doing something.'

'He's not a terrorist, come on. He's a Canadian citizen,' Chand said. 'The people that were arrested are good people, they go to the mosque, they go to school, go to college.'

FBI Special Agent Richard Kolko said in Washington there may have been a connection between the Canadian suspects and a Georgia Tech student and another American who had traveled to Canada to meet with Islamic extremists to discuss locations for a terrorist strike.

Syed Haris Ahmed and Ehsanul Islam Sadequee, U.S. citizens who grew up in the Atlanta area, were arrested in March."

The threat represented by the men appears to be real and substantial. The New York Times reports:

"The men accused in Canada operated what the police called training camps for its members. At their news conference, the police displayed at least one pistol, electronics components, military fatigues, army-style boots and two-way radios they said were used at the camps, although they would not disclose their locations.

The Toronto Star reported that in 2004 the intelligence agency began monitoring Internet exchanges, some of which were encrypted. According to the newspaper, the training in camps took place north of Toronto. Members of the group, according to that account, often visited a popular Canadian chain of doughnut shops to wash up following their training sessions.

Counterterrorism officials said that interviews with suspects would provide greater clarity about the nature of the plot, but they said that the men had taken a significant step, moving beyond the planning stage, toward acquiring a large quantity of potentially explosive fertilizer."

So, while Mexico has millions of poor peasants who come to America to work and provide a better life for themselves and their families, Canada has Islamist terrorists and terrorist training camps. Yet anti-immigrationists want to build a wall to keep out Mexicans. Between the two countries Canada is probably more of a risk for terrorist infiltration than Mexico. Let's not forget that the Y2K terrorist was caught trying to enter the US from Canada not from Mexico.

It'll be interesting to see if the anti-immigrationists who use security as an excuse to attack Mexico will turn their attention to the risk of terrorist infiltration from Canada.

-tdr

Technorati: Terrorism, War, Immigration, Mexico, Canada.

What An Outrage! The Senate Wants US To Talk To Mexico!

Here's the amendment that passed the Senate requiring consultation with Mexico before building a fence.

(d) Consultation Requirement.--Federal, State, and local representatives in the United States shall consult with their counterparts in Mexico concerning the construction of additional fencing and related border security structures along the international border between the United States and Mexico, as authorized by this title, before the commencement of any such construction in order to--

(1) solicit the views of affected communities;

(2) lessen tensions; and

(3) foster greater understanding and stronger cooperation on this and other important security issues of mutual concern.

O my God! Now we have to talk to Mexico about our mutual border? Is there any part of America's precious sovereignty that the Senate is willing to protect?

The anti-immigrationists* have latched onto this amendment to claim the Senate is requiring the US to ask Mexico for permission before building a border wall. Of course it doesn't. Consultation is not the same as seeking permission. The amendment is entirely reasonable, unless you view Mexico as an enemy country.

-tdr

* At one time we used the term "anti-illegals" but events have shown that the anti-illegals were lying when they claimed they were only opposed to illegal immigration. One such event occurred when the anti-immigrationists lost their cool after the Heritage Foundation's study claimed millions and millions of new legal immigrants would flood into the country as a result of President Bush's reform proposal. The Foundation's claims were wild exaggerations but they created a huge stir. The anti-immigrationists' opposition to the guest worker program, which would import workers legally, also demonstrates they are against more than illegal immigration. What part of the word illegal have these people forgotten?

Technorati: Immigration.

Shoved To The Back Of The Immigration Queue: So What!

It ought to be obvious but it's not. Immigration policy is not about right and wrong, fairness or unfairness, upholding the law or undermining it, or doing what is best for individual immigrants or even individual Americans. Immigration policy is about the national interest of the United States, and immigration policy should serve the national interest.

John Derbyshire hits on that point on National Review Online's The Corner

"Immigrants, legal and otherwise, are human beings and should be treated fairly and humanely. U.S. govt. policies, however, should be directed towards what is good for America and our citizens, not towards improving the lives of foreigners, least of all foreigners who ignore the established procedures for seeking entry to our country." (Here.)

That immigration policy should be about America's interests and not the interests of foreigners is the reason it doesn't make one bit of difference if the consequence of legalizing the illegal aliens who work in this country already is that some foreigners get shoved to the back of some line for citizenship or Green Cards. Nor does it make a bit of difference that legalizing illegal aliens would be rewarding their flouting our immigration laws.

Like it or not, and many Americans apparently don't, Mexico is our neighbor. Not China, not England. Our immigration policy should at least take into account that fact. It should also take into account that Mexico is not our enemy and that Mexicans come here to work and contribute their labor to increase America's wealth, even the illegals.

-tdr

Technorati: Immigration, Illegal immigration.

Uno De Mayo: A Lonely Lunch Hour In San Diego.

Mister Americano's office is half a block away from the Mexican consular office in San Diego. Interestingly, the diplomats were on the job. But the great little taco stand across the street was closed as was the best deli on the block, which is owned and operated by a legal immigrant family from Mexico. Lunch was a sad time today.

Mister Americano blames Lou Dobbs. Today's boycott is a backlash against the politics exemplified and stirred up by his constant and intemperate Mexico bashing. Thanks for nothing, Lou.

-tdr

Technorati: Immigration

Reposted for technorati tag.

Getting Serious About Enforcing Immigration Law.

Congress returns from their two-week recess on Monday. Negotiations will begin again on an immigration reform bill. (Here.)

The anti-illegal crowd, led by Lou Dobbs, will be pushing lawmakers to pass an immigration law that gets serious about cracking down on illegal aliens. They've got their wall to build, illegal aliens to turn into felons and deport, and American employers to criminalize as well.

The wall has a chance although turning illegal aliens into felons probably won't fly. But what appeals to every political side in this debate is that handy scapegoat: Big bad business, employers.

If there's one thing Republicans and Democrats agree on in the illegal immigration debate, it's that Americans who employ illegal aliens are bad. They're bad! So tougher employer sanctions probably will emerge.

Who knows? Maybe to make sure only Americans and legal aliens can work in our free country we'll all get our very own tamper-proof ID card. Won't that be a great day for America? Home of the free.

Make no mistake, employer sanctions are a pernicious attack on American freedom. The American government now exercises the power to decide which adult is entitled to earn a living and which adult is not. Got it? Work in our country is a privilege granted by the state. And Americans have willingly gone along. Indeed, Americans have fallen all over themselves giving their government the power to decide who can work and who can't.

But years of employer sanctions have shown them to be an ineffective deterrent to illegal immigration. The country is in the mood for serious action against those illegals who come here and "steal our jobs." Anti-illegals say, "America's workers are under attack!" "Our country is being invaded from Mexico!" Lou Dobbs says there's a "war on the middle class."

These are desperate times, and desperate times call for desperate measures. The popular push for employer sanctions shows that Americans are willing to give up a measure of freedom to keep jobs away from foreigners. So let's go all the way. Enough with half-measures like employer sanctions. It's time for reform with teeth.

Let's make it a felony for any illegal alien to buy anything in our country. Even trying to buy something without citizenship or legal residence should be a felony. The privilege of being a consumer in the United States should be limited to Americans and legal aliens.

To make this reform work, the US government will give every American and legal alien an ID card that must be shown with any purchase, whether cash or credit. Just watch the illegal aliens stream back across the border to Mexico when they can't buy anything. "Vaya con dios, amigos!"

Who cares if this reform will give our government the power to decide who can buy food and who can't? Our country is under attack from illegal aliens. What part of illegal, don't you understand? Our very sovereignty is at stake. To protect its citizens against foreign invasion, a country's gotta do, what a country's gotta do.

-tdr

Technorati: borders, illegal immigration, immigration, politics.

More Sense On Illegal Immigration; And Knowledge Too

Today Alan Reynolds adds another sensible comment on illegal immigration from the conservative side. Even better, his commentary is informed by the fact that he knows what he's talking about. Would that the anti-illegals were paying attention. Go here to read what he has to say. It may change your mind.

Meanwhile today's San Diego Union-Tribune publishes Tom Friedman's column in which he echoes this blog's metaphor from last week that if the US builds a wall to secure our borders, we should include big, wide-open gates. (Link unavailable.) Great minds think alike. So do ours.

-tdr

Technorati: borders, illegal immigration.

Getting Unstuck From Stupid On Illegal Immigration.

Today brings more sense from a conservative commentator on what to do about the problem of illegal immigration. This time from Linda Chavez. (Here.)

Not that the anti-illegals will pay it much heed. They can't get past the word "illegal" to the word "immigration" when thinking about solutions. Let's read what Chavez has to say about the contributions of illegals to our country:

Third, the overwhelming majority of illegal aliens pay taxes, including Social Security, Medicare and property taxes, not to mention sales taxes. The chief actuary of the Social Security Administration estimates that three-fourths of all illegal aliens have Social Security (and Medicare) taxes deducted from their wages. How? It's simple.
Since it is illegal to hire someone who does not present a Social Security number (and show other documentation of legal residence), many illegal aliens use phony numbers or cards to get jobs. In 2002 alone, the Social Security Administration reported it had collected $7 billion in payroll taxes and $1.5 billion in Medicare taxes from workers who could not be matched with valid Social Security numbers.
In addition, illegal aliens pay property taxes just like everyone else, either directly, if they own homes (and surprising numbers of illegal aliens do), or indirectly through their landlords' property taxes in the form of rent. Most illegal aliens pay income taxes -- since these, too, are automatically deducted -- but they fail to claim any refunds since they are fearful of drawing attention to their illegal status.

Then, after recommending illegals pay a fine for violating our immigration laws, she suggests a broader solution that echoes what this site has argued (here and here).

The more difficult question is how to stop more people from coming here illegally -- and the best way to do that is to increase border security and change our current, inflexible laws to make it possible for more people to come here legally.

Increased border security, expanded legal immigration opportunities from Mexico, and legalization of current illegals is the right mix of solutions for our country.

-tdr

Technorati: borders, illegal immigration, Mexico.

More Workers, More Prosperity.

Larry Kudlow of National Review Online makes an excellent point about the positive relationship between an enlarged workforce and more economic prosperity. (Here.) He makes the following recommendations for solving the illegal immigration problem.

As long as the American boom beckons, Mexicans in search of prosperity will continue to stream to this country. They have a strong incentive to do so. The only way to reduce illegal immigration, therefore, is to raise the unskilled H-2B visa level and bring it in line with job openings in the United States. This is the only feasible economic solution to the chronic problem of illegal immigration. The idea worked forty years ago with the successful Bracero program for farm workers. It can work again.

Today’s low visa limit of only 140,000 has caused illegal flows to skyrocket. This must be changed. Tamar Jacoby of the Manhattan Institute estimates that U.S. labor-market conditions can absorb about 400,000 Mexican immigrants per year. This would balance labor supply-and-demand conditions and illegal immigration would plummet.

You can build a fence, but desperate Mexicans in search of economic opportunity will climb over it or tunnel under it. This is the reality. And by the way, our H-1B visa program for skilled workers, now at only 65,000, should be unlimited. We need all the scientists and engineers we can get.

Not only do his recommendations make a lot of sense, they are more in keeping with the best of America's nature. Too bad Kudlow doesn't have Lou Dobbs's job. Our country would be better off if he did.

-tdr

Technorati: illegal immigration, Mexico.

What Part Of Family Don't You Understand?

In the heated aftermath of Hurrican Katrina as New Orleans awaited the arrival of another potentially devastating hurricane, Lt. General Russell Honore gave the best advice anybody could hear about anything: "Don't get stuck on stupid." The anti-illegal immigration crowd would do well to think hard about the general's remark.

The anti-illegals have a favorite slogan when debating the issue: "What part of illegal don't you understand?" The slogan is thrown out as if it provides a self-evident solution to the problem of illegal immigration. It doesn't.

Recent estimates put the number of illegals in the US at 10 to 12 million people. Let's leave aside whether it's reasonable to aggressively look for and deport them all. It's doubtful that anti-illegals even want to do that. Their solution is to solve the problem the same way we're doing such a bang up job at solving drug abuse: criminalizing it. They propose to make illegal entry and residence in the US a felony.

Criminalization might lead to self-deportation as some illegals voluntarily leave the country rather than risk imprisonment. It's just as likely that illegals will stay and be driven further underground into deeper marginalization and exploitation. Criminalization has not exactly eliminated drug abuse in our country.

Moreover, criminalization has one really huge downside that is evident to anybody who chooses to listen for the real reason why hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets in the last week. Illegal immigrants don't live in this country in isolation. They live here in families. Those families include citizens and legal residents.

If we criminalize illegal immigrants we attack those families and in many instances we make criminals out of entire families as aiders and abettors. If we criminalize illegals we make political enemies of their relatives who are citizens and legal residents.

Many of the radicals who have had a hand in organizing the demonstrations might like to believe the protests have been about reconquista and Aztlan; that is, taking the Southwest United States back for Mexico by changing the demography with Mexican immigration. With apologies to La Raza, it's not. Radicals have been pedaling that nonsense for decades now and have gotten no traction in the general Mexican-American population.

No, these protests have not been about recapturing faded Mexican glory. These protests have been about the same things that have always motivated ethnic minorities to take to the streets in this country: ethnic pride, respect, equal rights and opportunity, and inclusion in the American family.

Anti-illegals are making a huge mistake by trying to criminalize the illegals and their families. These people want to live here and contribute, they want to join the American family, many of them are already voters, and many will become eligible soon. Don't believe for one minute they will forget who was with them and who was against them when the next elections come around.

Anti-illegals need to get over their hangup with the word "illegal." Don't get stuck on stupid. The solution to the problem of illegal immigration is not to turn on our neighbors who have come to this country to make a better life for themselves and their families. The solution is a mixture of border enforcement and legalization. Those 12 million people aren't going home; they're home now. Deal with it.

-tdr

Here's a sampling of quotes from the past week to demonstrate what these protests are really about.

“We're not criminals! We're not criminals!”
Chant by hundreds of high school students at a peaceful rally in Escondido's Grape Day Park
“All we want is equality and equal opportunity, just like everybody else. We're trying to unite, not to isolate.”
Maria Fernandez, student at Orange Glen High School in Escondido
“I think the Mexicans, we are the ones who work more and do more for our children so they can have a better life.”
Julie Mejia, 19, a mother

(Here.)

Amy Cervantes, 17, said she learned about the House bill at school and on television. On Friday, the Morse High School senior and two younger sisters joined other teens and a few adult chaperones in a downtown San Diego march that drew roughly 4,000 participants.
“It's that law,” she said of her reason for participating, though the House bill has not yet become law. “That 4437, where anyone who helps someone illegal is a criminal.”

(Here.)

Jacqueline Mundo, 17, said she walked out of Clairemont High on Tuesday and marched for miles to Chicano Park with about 1,800 students from about a dozen San Diego schools.
Yesterday, she sat calmly along the parade route eating pizza next to her mother, Alejandra Justo, who came to San Diego from the coastal Mexican city of Acapulco 23 years ago. “I'm proud of her because she's fighting for our rights,” Justo said of her daughter, “but I'm not happy because she missed school.”

(Here.)

Parents who missed work yesterday to retrieve their children at schools and the police station were torn between pride for their children and concern for their safety.
“My daughter is expressing her rights as a citizen and I'm proud of her. But she needs to be in school,” said Lucila Aguilar, who had to leave her job at Sea World to pick her daughter up after she was arrested for leaving Memorial Academy of Learning and Technology.

(Here.)

“I don't think that immigrants are felons. They're just trying to make a better life,” said Castle Park High School freshman Rebecca Ortiz, who was among those cited yesterday for loitering.
Rebecca, 14, said her grandfather immigrated illegally and was bitten by snakes as he made the arduous journey.

(Here.)

“We're here to support our friends. This whole thing is ridiculous, making immigrants felons. Our complete country was built by immigrants,” said Hawk Adlimakado, a 16-year-old junior at San Dieguito.
Some parents took off from work to accompany their children on the march. Some pushed baby strollers and carried toddlers.
Nicholas Quintero, 15, a ninth-grader at Memorial Academy, said, “We're here because they're treating us badly. The Mexicans just want a better life and they're just doing what white people did a long time ago.”

(Here.)

“Illegal immigrants are not criminals. They just want to be here to support their families. They are not like terrorists,” said Mayra Mendoza, 18, a senior at Escondido High School.
Annette Medina, 14, a freshman at Mount Miguel High School, was among about 340 students protesting in Spring Valley. “I have family that was born in Mexico, a grandmother, grandfather, Mom, Dad and uncles,” she said. “My uncle got deported because he wasn't a citizen. I don't think that's right.”

(Here.)


Technorati: borders, illegal immigration, Mexico.

America Has Real Enemies: Mexico Isn't One Of Them.

How should America deal with the fact that millions of people live in our midst who came to this country illegally, most to work and make a better life for themselves and their families?

Today on Laura Ingraham's show Hugh Hewitt said something that captures the polarization of partisan politics fairly well. "Democrats see an illegal and see a voter. Republicans see an illegal and see a worker." He went on to say that we should see an illegal and see a threat. Not a cultural or an ethnic threat, but a security threat.

For some time now conservatives have been riled up over the presence of illegals in this country and a lack of security at the border. Some use the language of war and describe the flow of illegals across the border as an "invasion."

Mister Americano hates talk like this. Mister Americano lives in San Diego and doesn't see illegals as a threat. Mister Americano sees an illegal and sees a neighbor.

Mexico is not America's enemy. The flow of Mexicans across the border is not an invasion. Mexicans do not risk arrest and their lives to come to our country to do us harm. They come to America for the same reasons everybody before them came here; to make a better life for themselves and their families.

Immigration in general benefits our country. Immigrants from Mexico, legal and illegal, benefit our country as well. Far from being invaders or security threats they are security assets.

The US exists in a world of demographic change. The survival of our country depends on population growth. The countries of Europe are in decline in no small part because of their population declines. The US is one of the few fully developed nations with high population growth. Immigration helps us to sustain a level of population growth that will protect our status as the world's only superpower.

It's in our security interest to let more people in and to legalize those who have already chosen to live here. This doesn't mean the US shouldn't protect its borders.

If it means building a fence to protect our border, then, fine, let's get on with it and build one. But if we're going to build a fence, let's make sure we include plenty of big, wide-open gates.

We build a fence and leave open the gates because we want to make sure we don't cut off immigration while we secure our border. Rather than building a fence to stop immigration, let's use it to channel a considerable number of legal immigrants into our country.

For those illegals who are our neighbors now, grant them amnesty. The US is lucky that the illegals here now share so much of America's values. Unlike the immigration problem facing Europe, we have immigrants who could readily assimilate into American society. To be fair to the legals who are here and in line, put the illegals at the end of the line for citizenship, but let's not deport them and let's get them out of the shadows.

We should also increase substantially the number of legal entries permitted into the country so that nobody who would be tempted to come here illegally has to because there is a legal spot available to them instead.

The current drive against illegal immigration is fueled by the fact that the United States lives in a time of war. The war is not simply a shooting war. It's an ideological war. Mark Steyn has identified the crux of the conflict as a battle of civilizational confidence. He has argued that the West's weakness against the Islamists is that we don't have enough confidence in our civilization. (Here.)

The current conservative attitude towards illegal immigration is a sign of civilizational insecurity not confidence.

We have nothing to fear from fellow North Americans who have come to this country illegally so they may work and better themselves and their families. Nada! We should show more confidence in the ability of our own society to absorb this wave of immigrants and we should do what must be done to make it happen. Face it, that's what Ronald Reagan would do, the godfather of us all.

-tdr

Technorati: borders, illegal immigration, Immigration, Mexico, war