llegal Immigration and the Hypocrites

The debate has continued regarding"illegal" immigrants in large part throughout the summer and now going into the Fall. It is largely due to the impass on any political progress by the National Democrats with regard to the Iraq issue as well as the State Republicans with regard to solving the transportation abuser fee promise.

The issue will certainly play a larger part in the election of 2008 than in statewide elections but officials are using the rather negligent Congress as an excuse for attempting to solve the issue of illegal aliens at the State level. And as they should.

Much of the heat State Republicans are taking is by way of progressive and liberal blogs piggybacking the transportation dilemma and focusing much of their scopes on folks like David Albo of the 42d House district (Fairfax) and to a lessor extent Jay O'Brien 39th Sen district both of course Republicans in Northern Virginia.

Albo was the first official to propose legislation that would prevent illegal aliens from the ability to secure Virginia driving permits as well as sponsoring bills that would prevent illegals from securing benefits from state and local taxes. O'Brien, an Irish-Amercian has supported such measures in the Senate as well and has been quoted as saying:

"the time has come for Virginia to stand up to criminal illegal aliens and protect families...and stop rewarding illegals the benefit of in-state tuition for higher education" (deemed as hate mongering??)

O'Brien has been a big proponent of propping up Virginia law enforcemnt agencies and the ability for those to turn over illegals to the Department of Homeland Security in SB 1045. O'Brien represents some 30 localties in Fairfax and 9 in Prince William County where the issue of illegals is red hot. O'Brien is supported by many Virginia associations including the Virginia Farm Bureau, Association of Realtors, State Police, Va Medical Society, Va Society of Certified Public Accountants, Va Independent Insurance Agents and Independent Auto Dealers.

And yet the progressive blogs are somehow enraged at what they call the hypocricy of State Republicans largely because of the fact Republicans, and they are not alone on this score, have secured large contributions from employers such as Smithfield that have less than clean records with regard to employing illegal workers.

In effect this is where the debate is moving, the so-called hypocricy and not focused at the very issue at hand and that is the illegal alien issue itself.

It seems Progressives would largely like to make or keep illegal immigration a Federal issue and yet we see time after time where members of the Federal Government attempt to pass the responsibilities of dealing with illegals off to the States. The following measures in the very least provide instruction for the States under the Federalist system:

Immigrant Childrens Health Improvement Act :
addreses XIX XXI of the Social Security Act to provide States with option to cover certain immigrants under medicaid and childrens health insurance programs

DREAM Act: co sponsored by Hillary Clinton in fact to address the Illegal Immigrant Reform Act to allow for States to review and determine State residency requirements for higher education with regard to immigrants
Also here the DREAM Act says "the US should protect its borders and enforce its immigration laws. The consequences of illegal entry should be deportation"

So if this debate is being shaped by "hypocricy" why is it we are not talking about the fact that liberals are attacking Republicans calling them proponents of hate and linking them to KKK circulations in PWC for simply emphatically calling for what the DREAM ACT seeks in SB 1545.

The hypocricy might just be that Clinton, Schumer, Spector, and Mikulski all NOW very critical of how Republicans are shaping the arguement against illegal immigration in Congress are all co-sponsors of legislation that states that "the consequences of illegal entry should be deportation."

This blitz to judge Republicans and yet not acknowledge the language that very Democratic leadership have drafted in the past is worrisome at the very least. It very well may represent a shift solely based on political posturing and not the solving of the issue before our country.

The above mentioned Democrats in the Senate also sponsored along with (R) John McCain and Sam Brownback the Agricultureal Job Opportunity Benefits and Security Act sponsored by none other than SD (R) Larry Craig....yes that Larry Craig whom all of these folk have distanced themselves from in the last two weeks. The irony. This measure seeks to address the H-2A worker program and in particular Section 218. Then there is also the Access to English/Employment Acquisition Act that further places it upon the States to determine programs for bilingual education for immigrants.

So we have the Congress placing in large part much of the issues around immigration and its impacts upon the States and yet we are surprised when there is a call for accountability in the area of determining just who is eligible for all these programs. Is it immigrants of any status or is it the "legal" or "documented" aliens? If it is left to the State to make the distinction, so be it.

If a State is to use tax payer , public revenues, should they not perform due diligence to insure that state revenues go for the purposes of funding individuals who are indeed of legal status and residents of the Commonwealth? Should that not be the requirement? Is it not logical then for us to demand that illegals not be granted in-state tuiton? Is that not what SB 1545 from Congress is saying?

And it seems to me many of the more liberal folk tend to forget or never read "Hope and History" by Bill Clinton where on page 133-34 he states that :

" we are both a nation of immigrants and a nation of laws.Immigrants who enter our country legally and begin the process of attaining citizenship today are little different from the striven who were our ancestors..we must not tolerate illegal immigration...since 1993 we have removed 30 thousand illegal workers from jobs across the country"

Again we have reference not only in legislation but also in the works of Bill Clinton making the case against "illegal" immigration and yet it is the Republicans portrayed as hate mongers going after immigrants in an effort to identify those that are illegal and have them uniformly turned over to ICE for hearings and deportation...ie following the intent and protocal of the law.

It seesm to me that :

Addressing illegal aliens and eligibility of driving on Virginia roadways

Addressing illegal aliens in terms of securing in state tuiton rates for Virginia Universities

Addressing illegal aliens from securing State/Local tax benefits

Addressing the requirement for providing proof of citizenship ( if we would require it to leave the country why do we not have the same expectation of people already in the country )

It gets us off to a good start since the Federal Government is leaving it to the states under the basis of the Federal System and its own own hypocricy on the very issue itself. Let the debate begin.

Let see who carrys the water forward.

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