Immigration Bill, Color Me Suprised

Mark Pryor's vote on the Immigration Bill suprised me. I thought for sure that he was going to vote for it. Well, a great big Kudos to him. Pryor's press release

We must reform our nation’s broken immigration system with tough, fair and realistic legislation. I voted against the President’s immigration plan today because the border security and enforcement measures are inadequate and the bill fails to effectively address the individuals who are already here illegally. We should not pass a plan the Congressional Budget Office estimates will only reduce annual illegal immigration by 25 percent.

The Senate has now failed to pass immigration reform for the third time. It’s time for a new approach. I advocate that we strengthen and implement the enforcement measures in this bill and show we can fully enforce immigration laws. As the Senate works behind the scenes to draft a stronger and more sensible bill, President Bush can and should take immediate steps to enforce the laws already on the books. He can do better, and so can the Senate.

Immigration, Another Round

It looks like the immigration bill is going to come back up soon. President Bush is trying to sweet talk GOP Senators to pass the bill. It might be more difficult to try to get it to pass. Senators have been hearing from their base and are starting to change their mind about the bill. Senators Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) and Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) sent President Bush a letter asking for an emergency supplemental spending bill to fund border security.

They believe emergency supplemental funds to secure the border will go a long way towards restoring the confidence of the American people in the federal government’s commitment to border security.

It'll help some but there is still the really big problem of granting immediate amnesty to 12 million people.
That instant amnesty for the 12 million should just be dropped. It would make passage of an immigration bill easier. Instead of giving blanket amnesty to everyone the bill should do two things. First, we need to emphasize legal immigration. We should welcome those who abide by immigration laws and are willing to work hard, learn English, and embrace the civic duties of an American. Second, for those who are just looking for work, create flexible legal opportunities to work in the United States. A well-constructed temporary-worker program would lessen the incentives for illegal immigration. These are already in place in our current immigration policy. We just need to fix the problems in the current system. The biggest problem is the government's refusal to enforce the current laws.
We definitely need to get rid of those illegals who have no desire to become Americans or participate in a worker program. They are here for the free health care and social services.

"I am sad because I have brothers and other family members who don't have the legal residency, but I would like to see them have access to health services if the immigration reform is approved by the Congress," said Benjamin Miranda, 54, of Springdale.

Guess what's going to happen to our social services when these illegals get "legal". Our social service system is already swamped nationwide. Our hospital and medical facilities, welfare and all the other freebies are already being drained by these illegal immigrants demanding and receiving them. I don't think it's right to push them ahead of many others who went through proper channels and are entitled to be here. To give these people benefits and rights that even those of us who are lifelong American citizens can't get is morally wrong and can't be allowed to happen. I'm already paying way too much money to the government and I have no desire to contribute more to people who break our laws.