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<td width="343" valign="bottom"><p class="date"><!-- InstanceBeginEditable name="date" --><a href="default.html">01/22/04• Vol.
128, No. 1</a><!-- InstanceEndEditable --></p></td>
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<h1>Bush's immigration plan will spur more problems</h1>
<p><strong>By Lori Nakaguchi</strong></p>
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<td><p><a href="ImmigrationPolicy.jpg"><img src="ImmigrationPolicy_t.jpg" alt="" name="Photo" width="100" height="125" border="0"></a></p>
<p align="justify">THE UPS AND DOWNS OF BUSH'S PROPOSED IMMIGRATION
POLICY</p>
<p class="byline">-Photo by John Rios</p>
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<p>Once upon a time, people came to the United States legally, worked hard,
learned English and saved money to send for their families to come to
this country. Their main aspiration was assimilation, American citizenship
and all the opportunities it afforded. Each immigrant was required to
go through a medical exam, and those with communicable diseases or who
were likely to become indigent were excluded from entry.</p>
<p> There was no public welfare, life was hard, and subsequent generations
improved their lot, following in the footsteps of their hardworking,
law-abiding predecessors. To the cheers of some, and to the detriment
of America, those days are over.</p>
<p> Experts estimate there are more than 8 million illegal immigrants living
in this country, with approximately 1.5 million more arriving each year. </p>
<p> Illegal aliens are significant users of the welfare system. It is often
stated that immigrants put more back into the economy than they take
out, but research has shown this to be a faulty premise. </p>
<p> One thing that cannot be disputed is that the costs to taxpayers for
health, education, and welfare services for illegal immigrants (and legal
immigrants as well) and their families are enormous, not to mention the
costs of incarceration for the 25 percent of aliens in the criminal justice
system. After considering the taxes that illegal aliens do pay —and
many of them work for cash and pay no taxes— American taxpayers
are left with a net loss in the tens of billions of dollars. </p>
<p> Those who hire unskilled alien workers for low wages are the real winners,
while native-born low-skilled workers lose big time. The hiring of
low-skilled alien workers at sub-standard wages is thought to account
for about 1/3
of the wage-loss for similarly skilled American workers, according
to Harvard University researcher George Borjas. The consumption of public
services by low-income immigrant populations at the expense of taxpayers
is essentially a subsidy to those who hire them. </p>
<p> American immigration policy tramples on a long tradition of self-reliance
and the rule of law. President Bush’s immigration reform may be
good for Mexico and businesses that want cheap labor, but it is bad for
America. If illegal aliens have not respected the law in the past, what
makes anyone think they will abide by the rules of the new law if it
doesn’t suit them? </p>
<p> Legalizing large numbers of illegal immigrants will make them eligible
for even more government services. Citizens of Mexico make up about
half of this illegal population, and while they send $10 billion back
to their
home country per year, hospitals are going bankrupt and schools are
struggling to keep up with the growing influx of their children, many
of whom require
expensive special services. </p>
<p> Those who stay for long periods of time tend to consume more welfare
services—not less, and are creating large pockets of poverty in
the areas where they settle. </p>
<p> Assimilation does not seem to be a priority. It is common to find non-citizens,
especially those from Latin America, who have been in the country for
long periods of time but cannot communicate in English. Unfortunately,
there are so-called immigrant advocates who encourage this kind of
self-defeating behavior. </p>
<p> The best immigration policy for America right now would be to place
a moratorium on further immigration, enforce the standing laws and secure
the borders. A Constitutional amendment tying the citizenship of America-born
children to that of their parents is in order as well. </p>
<p>
Enforcing the law means deporting illegal aliens and levying significant
financial penalties on employers who hire them. Access to cheap labor
stifles innovation and depresses wages for the native born. Employers
will find an adequate workforce when they invest in current technology
and offer appropriate wages. </p>
<p> The constant influx of third-world poverty we are experiencing is creating
a culture of dependency, which is not consistent with the history of
immigration that made this country great. </p>
<p> The American dream depends upon swift, appropriate action which respects
the law and is consistent with American tradition.</p>
<p> —
Responses to this column may be sent to collegian@csufresno.edu</p>
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