What is it about the word “illegal” that is so difficult to understand

The Illegal Drain

What is it about the word “illegal” that is so difficult to understand? When it comes to immigration, “Undocumented” means just that—that they have broken the law!

Amnesty is a dirty word when it comes to the question of illegal immigration. We tried that route in the eighties, and it’s fairly obvious how that worked out. That is the reason the immigration bills going through congress is causing such an uproar right now: because of our mistakes in the past. I can’t imagine a group of people who have more of a right to be angry with the dressed-up Amnesty being offered by Senator McCain and others in the Senate than those who have jumped through the hoops and paid the prices that come with legal immigration. A Peruvian or Irishman who has paid his or her fees and filled out the requisite paperwork (often waiting for years) for legal emigration to the U.S. should be incensed that 12 million people are about to be offered the opportunity to earn their citizenship for no better reason than that they broke the law and jumped a fence (or crossed a river) to get here.

There are those who would say that these people’s only crime is wanting a better future for themselves and their families. There are also those who claim that their being here is the responsibility of those who employ these immigrants and that they fill a necessary role in our economy. The only thing on which I would agree with these opponents of harsher immigration reform is the responsibility that is borne by the employers of illegal immigrants. These people should be fined very heavily if not charged with treason against the economic interests of the United States. The claim that these immigrants are fulfilling a necessary role in the U.S. economy, however, is patently false, and those who endorse this view are criminally complicit in the death of the American middle class.

Those who espouse this view often state it as though “these immigrants are only doing the jobs no American will take”. This is absolutely incredulous! It should be stated thus: “these immigrants are doing jobs for wages no American should accept”. Since I have had to try to support a family before completing my degree, I can unequivocally state that no responsible American who is suddenly facing unemployment would refuse a job that paid well enough to support his or her family on the basis of pride. He or she may, however, refuse to do a job that meant he or she would have to work 80 hours a week just to put food on the table and a roof overhead.

I have spoken to housepainters in the Phoenix valley of Arizona who are having to look for other work. The reason for this is because the work that they were doing for $10-12 per hour (livable wages if you work over 40 hours per week with overtime pay) is now being done by illegal immigrants for $25 per day. The only reason illegal immigrants are able to work for such low wages is because they live with several families in one apartment building. Not only does this lower the wages employers are willing to offer law abiding citizens, it also dramatically lowers the standard of living, property values and overall quality of life in several neighborhoods.

It is difficult to argue that the wages of the lower and middle classes have not gone down in the recent past. From 1979-1994, the lowest quintile (the 20% of the population that makes the least) has had their after-tax wages drop by 16%. The second quintile went down by 8%, and the middle quintile (40-60%) also dropped. Only the 40% of the population making the highest wages have seen any kind of increase at all. In addition, poverty rates have risen continually since 2000, with the highest increases among non-Hispanic whites (Sources: Congressional Budget Office and US Census Bureau). Although it is difficult to ascribe these figures to any one cause, the presence of 12 million workers who are not protected by minimum wage laws and are willing to work for practically nothing cannot possibly help those who are looking for work at a livable wage.

There are those who would argue that doing away with these workers would increase the cost of goods and services. This is possibly true, but it has a simple answer. The difference between the CEO salaries and the salaries of the middle class is going to have to shrink. A business can still be profitable and pay its workers livable wages if CEO’s didn’t make an average of 305 times what the company’s average worker makes (compared to 41 times in 1980) (source: Business Week, see FairEconomy.Org). Perhaps prices would go up, but if wages went up to match it would be okay.

In order to stabilize our economy, we are going to have to wean ourselves off of artificial sources of cheap labor, like illegal immigration and out-sourcing jobs (a whole other issue, I know). These means of lowering prices actually weaken the economy by contributing to unemployment and driving down the wages of middle class earners. In addition, illegal immigrants who work here often send money home to Mexico, reducing the amount of money in circulation in the US by millions each year.

So, if illegal immigrants are not contributing to the economy in a positive way, and are actually more likely dragging the economy down, McCain’s and others’ bills that tacitly endorse a version of Amnesty (by any other name) and those endorsing them are doing a grave disservice to our country. I will go out on a limb and say, unequivocally, that all illegal immigrants should be deported, immediately. INS officers should be showing up at all the protest rallies and demanding to see the proof of citizenship. Anyone who can’t show it should be shipped across the border post haste. Once their back in Mexico, we can re-evaluate the unemployment situation, and implement a “guest worker program” that extends the same wage protection to immigrants that US citizens receive. Then, and only then, will we know if there are jobs that Americans “will not do” at a fair wage. If any of them owe back taxes, then they cannot come back until they pay them. We should also give first priority to those who have actually been trying to come over legally.

The only reason you do not hear more of an outcry from immigrants who are here legally is because they are outnumbered by US citizens that only became citizens the last time we granted Amnesty. If we pass McCain’s bill in the Senate, we will only run into this problem again in 20 years, except that the voices of US Citizens who feel that you should not follow immigration laws to become a citizen will have increased by 12 million. What lesson are we giving to those across the border who are debating whether to jump through the hoops necessary to gain legal entry and eventual citizenship or simply swim across a river and live underground until the next round of Amnesty.

We need to send a strong message to all those who may be tempted to cross the border illegally as well as those who are tempted to hire them. Show no forgiveness to those who have flouted US laws by coming here illegally. Fine them, hold them in jail for a year or two, then deport them. Fine those who are hiring them, and perhaps give them jail time similar to those who embezzle funds and evade taxes (since that is basically what they are doing). And finally, fix the border. Our security is more compromised by a border with virtually no regulation than it could ever be by the occasional passenger on an airline slipping through with toenail clippers.

Afterword

For those that don't know about the compromise, it basically states that those here for over five years will get a blanket Amnesty, those here for more than two years but less than five must present themselves to a port of entry, and can then get right back in. Only those here less than two years will be deported.

Besides the obvious problem that this is simply an Amnesty similar to that passed by the Reagan administration (Indeed, it gives precedence to those who broke the law over those that have wiated to enter legally and doesn't even require a criminal background check), it is also an open invitation for fraud. I can see the counterfeiters printing out rent records and utility bills going back five years. In addition, this "compromise" does very little (if anything) to address enforcement of immigration laws or increasing security on the border (north or south).

Frankly I am appalled at our Senators on the Committee that authored this "compromise" both conservative and liberal. I don't see how they can possibly claim to be serving their constituents or even their voting base. Conservatives who claim to be tough on security are rewarding those who treat our borders as if they don't exist, and are failing to protect us from any terrorist who seeks to enter our country over land. Liberals who claim to support the working class and unions are going directly against the wishes of Unions who have expressed their displeasure at the massive presence of cheap labor that drag their wages down.

The only people who stand to benefit from this "compromise" is big business, who want to keep the ready source of cheap labor. I urge those of you who vote to look at how your Senator votes on this issue. Then ask yourself if he or she supports increased security or increased profit margins for his or her corporate sponsors. Ask yourself if your senator is more interested in improving his or her constituents' working conditions, or in improving the level of his contributions from special interest groups dependant on slave labor.

I am usually a fan of Senator McCain, and live in his district. I have supported his run for the presidency in the past. But if he continues to support this bill, and continues to block a vote on that sponsored by John Cornyn and John Kyl, I will have to assume that he is no longer interested in protecting his constituents' interests and is more interested in pleasing the Real Estate Developers and Mining Interests that make up a huge portion of his political contributors--both industries that rely heavily on the cheap labor provided by illegal immigrants.