July 18, 2006

RI Senate '06

Chafee and Laffey on Immigration II, Part 1

Carroll Andrew Morse

Katherine Gregg describes about two-thirds of the immigration debate, within the context of the Rhode Island Senate race, in today’s Projo. I say two-thirds because the immigration "issue" actually consists of multiple issues…

  • Will America secure its borders and enforce its existing immigration laws?
  • Will America modify its existing laws allowing foreign nationals to work legally in the US?
  • What should America do about the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants already here?
Ms. Gregg’s article almost exclusively confines itself to the subjects of guest worker and amnesty policies.

Here's the background. On May 25 of this year, the Senate passed its version of immigration reform. The key provision of the Senate bill is the so-called “Martinez-Hagel compromise” that divides illegal immigrants currently within the United States into three groups. Illegal immigrants who have been in the US for more than 5 years are immediately eligible to pay for amnesty with back taxes and fines. Illegal immigrants who have been in the US for between 2 and 5 years are able to enter the pay-for-amnesty program after returning to a valid point of entry into the US. Illegal immigrants who have been in the US for less than 2 years can only stay if they became "guest workers". The defining characteristic of "guest workers" versus other categories of non-citizens legally in America is that "guest workers" are only allowed to stay in the US for as long as they are employed.

Senator Lincoln Chafee voted in favor of the Senate bill. Steve Laffey, his challenger in the Republican primary, would have voted against...

A spokeswoman for Laffey said he would not have voted -- as Chafee did -- for the compromise bill creating a path to citizenship for some of the estimated 11 million to 12 million people living in the United States illegally that cleared the Senate in May with support from the likes of Sen. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee.
Mayor Laffey opposes the amnesty provisions of the Martinez-Hagel compromise. Under the right circumstances, he would support the creation of a guest worker program. Senator Chafee, on the other hand, voted in favor of an amendment that would have replaced the 3-tiered system with an even looser system -- amnesty for illegal immigrants within the borders of the United States as of January 1, 2006. The amendment failed by a vote of 37-61.

Coming in part 2: Bringing home the Davis-Bacon...

2:11 PM
Comments, although monitored, are not necessarily representative of the views Anchor Rising's contributors or approved by them. We reserve the right to delete or modify comments for any reason.

If Laffey wants to be taken seriously on illegal immigration, he should immediately and publicly recind his moronic and insulting consular card policy in Cranston that has done nothing more than turn the city into a haven for illegals. Then he needs to send the police over to Georgia Ave and arrest the 100 or so illegals that work for Ira Green making medals and insignia for our military forces.

Posted by: Greg at July 18, 2006 2:59 PM

Greg:

Instead of being an angry man with nothing to say you need to inform yourself of the facts.

Fact 1. The consular cards are for ID purposes and give the holder no special rights or privileges beyond current legal bounds. That is they help the Cranston Police ID people who when stopped, arrested, or otherwise detained by a police action need to show ID. The cards allow ethnic leaders to help immigrants (legal or illegal) begin the process of immigrating to the United States.

Fact 2: It would be the responsibility of federal immigration or labor agents to investigate your allegations.

Now that you have the facts stick your head in a bucket of cold water and cool off.

J Mahn

Posted by: Joe Mahn at July 18, 2006 6:13 PM

Keep drinking that ill-informed kool-ade.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/936316/posts

FBI Criticizes Mexican Consular I.D. Cards
Los Angeles Times ^ | 6/26/03 - 1352 PT | Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar


Posted on 06/26/2003 6:08:48 PM PDT by Tancredo Fan


FBI Criticizes Mexican Consular I.D. Cards


The cards, held by more than a million immigrants in Califoria and elswhere, are prone to fraudulent use, the agency tells Congress.


By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar
Times Staff Writer


1:52 PM PDT, June 26, 2003


WASHINGTON - The FBI told a congressional panel today that the Mexican consular identification card used by more than 1 million immigrants in California and elsewhere is prone to fraudulent use by criminals and possibly terrorists.


"The Department of Justice and the FBI have concluded that the matricula consular is not a reliable form of identification," said Steven McCraw, assistant director of the FBI's intelligence office. "As a result of these problems, there are ... major criminal threats posed by the cards and (a) potential terrorist threat."


Resembling a driver's license and displaying the bearer's address in the United States, the cards are accepted as valid identification by more than 70 banks, 800 police departments and numerous local governments, including the city of Los Angeles. The California Legislature is considering measures that would require statewide acceptance.


McCraw's testimony brought into the open a debate within the Bush administration, as it struggles to develop a government-wide policy on consular identifications.


Currently, they are not valid for admittance to federal buildings but can be used to board an airline flight. Within the administration, the departments of State and Treasury have taken a tolerant view of the cards, while the FBI is raising strong concerns. The Homeland Security Department is voicing some reservations.

Posted by: Greg at July 18, 2006 6:23 PM

Let's just simmer this down to its essence: Chafee is in favor of anmesty and Laffey is not. Simple as that. Why should these criminals be afforded any special privileges? Will US citizens currently jailed for felony tax evasion be accorded the same rights? Of course not.

A criminal mentality does not just turn on and off. It is a constant. Those commiting crimes to enter our country will not just become solid citizens by a wave of the government wand. If they really cared so much about the dear old USA then they would at least learn a modicum of English.

I know from personal experience that a high percentage of fugitives in the US are illegal aliens. They skip bond and pay a few hundred dollars for a new ID. This can happen multiple times with impunity. If the heat gets too much then they simply leave the country.

Our whole mentality towards illegals breeds criminal entrants into our country and then continually reinforces the behavior.

There should be no amnesty whatsoever. Say what you want about Laffey's alleged contortions on the issues - but his position has been ultra-clear to me for months now.

Posted by: bountyhunter at July 18, 2006 8:45 PM