Some teeth in the Senate bill

The Senate has added a $20,000 fine for each illegal immigrant an employer hires to its version of the immigration bill.

It's about time they did something besides adding perks for breaking the law!
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Pomeranus said…
It is of interest to me as one who many years ago resided in Rep. Sensenbrenner's district to observe how he has been vilified. He is a very low-key, tenacious guy. He was vilified post-Katrina for opposing the mindless appropriations which lacked accountability. He was not lauded when later proven right by wanton abuse of the debit cards and by outright fraud. He was vilified by the parents of the young abducted girl in Utah when it was actually Democrats who were holding up passage of an effective bill. There was later recognition by the parents of Sensenbrenner's serious efforts to pass effective legislation. I heard him yesterday on the radio giving an account of what he is trying to accomplish. He has been labeled as nativist, reactionary, etc. His position can be summed up simply: solutions should be effective, not cosmetic. His efforts have been in the direction the Senate is finally moving. It is amazing (well, maybe not) that so much of the debate is based on feelings, rather than rational deliberation. As the spouse of a green card holder, I am very aware of the hurdles one must jump in order to enter this country legally. Some of the most vocal critics of the feel-good approaches are not nativists, but immigrants themselves. Part of the problem is that the Mexican government wants their citizens to have preferrential treatment. That sounds very unfair in the midst of the clamor for fairness. I hope fair-minded tenacity can win out in the end and we can have a rational policy in this country again. I sympathize with immigrants because I once faced extradition from Germany myself because my work permit was from the wrong employment office. I know the fears and anxiety. I also know that everyone has to play by the same rules. Hopefully that can become the case again.
Pomeranus Americanus
5/23/2006 11:25:00 PM
Dan @ Necessary Roughness said…
They've got to pay for illegal Social Security somehow. :)
5/24/2006 10:19:00 AM
Robert Elart Waters said…
Parenthetically, Dan, they've already paid for that Social Security- through Social Security taxes. Not that I necessarily agree that they should get it, but that was the basis upon which the Senate voted to let them collect it.

And I'm not interested, Pomeraneus, in villifying Sensenbrunner. Just in pointing out that, whatever his intentions, an enforcement-only immigration bill will not be any more effective than the enforcement-free ones.

I agree that it's both surprising and discouraging that so much of this debate is being carried on in the realm of emotion rather than logic. In fact, that's exactly my point. This is not an argument between soft-headed, "feel good" immigration doves on one hand and and hard-nosed immigration hawks on the other. The "solutions" suggested by the "hawks" are apt to be no more effective than those suggested by the "doves." Nor are they finally any the less aimed at making those who advance them feel good!

Which makes those of us in the middle, who are trying to find a solution that will actually work, so hard to hear amidst all the emotional screaming from the extremes.
5/24/2006 12:27:00 PM
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