Current Events, Pt. 2, Immigration

Okay, so now that you all think I am off my rocker, crazy, or just plain nuts, on to some enforcement ideas.  You see, my previous ideas will not work unless we come up with something to finally address the underlying issues.  Think of it like this.  The amnesty stuff is like putting pressure on a wound.  By doing that, we can stem some of the bleeding while we treat the causes.   As I see it, there are three main causes which I believe strict enforcement will address, if it is coupled with the sane approach that I advocate in “Pt. 1, Immigration.”  They are porous borders, insatiable demand for cheap, illegal labor by businesses, and a very small chance of deportation once you are in. Put the US Military on our borders.  Not just the roads, but in the deserts, mountains, valleys, everywhere.  On all of our borders, not just Mexico.  The symbolism of doing the same on our Canadian border will go a long way in Latin America.  Remember, not one September 11 terrorist entered through Mexico, but they did enter though Canada.  Yet most of our enforcement efforts have been focused on Mexico.  This has only ticked off our neighbors to the south.  Now when other countries complain, kindly point out to them that we are only doing what they do to protect their borders.  This should serve a couple of purposes.  One, our military gets some experience that will be valuable in the future.  Learning how to peacefully deal with people of other cultures.  If we have learned anything in Iraq it is that war is a lot different now than it was in WWII.  If you really want to change people, you will be much more effective with a conversation than with a gun barrel.  Two, we are already paying these forces so the up cost will be negligible.  Now I understand that some of you will bring up “Posse Comitatus”, the law to limit our military from operating in the US, but a simple act of congress can remedy this, or a legal opinion stating that federal troops are already operating as protectors of our borders so this would be nothing new.    Business employers who hire illegal immigrants will be hammered.  This will help us dry up the real source illegal employment.  Does anyone really believe people will pay up to $5000.00 to come to the US illegally if they cannot get a job?  And where are those jobs coming from?  That’s right, big business, small business, homeowners, etc.  So large fines are in order here.  Currently many companies know they will not be audited so they do not worry.  They also know that most fines are lower than $25,000.00.  Now, if you are a large multinational with annual income over 500 million, $25,000.00 is not a large expense.  Particularly if it is unlikely to be a recurring expense.  Let’s make those fines $500,000.00 per illegal employee, with $100,000.00 of that coming from the executive whose signature is on the I-9 federal employment form.  Believe me, as one who has had to fill those out; if I knew I could be liable for a $100,000.00 fine, I would be pretty sure who I was hiring.  For families hiring gardeners, nannies, etc., you too should be liable for hiring illegal immigrants.  For each person you hire illegally, you will be fined $25,000.00.  The money generated by these fines would more than cover the cost of enforcement.  It may also cause some businesses to go under.  However if that is the cost we must pay to fix this problem, so be it.   If you screw up during your probation, you’re out.  Period.  We gave you a chance, the proverbial leg up.  Sorry, you’re heading home.  This will not only include working illegally, but loaning your documents to a friend or relative.  We will welcome you here, but you have to be a good contributing member of society.  If you have kids, you decide how you want to handle that if you are going to be deported.  They can stay, but only if you have another legal family member to take care of them, otherwise they go with you.  All of this will be plainly understood and explained in the amnesty process and we will get native speakers to help spell it out if you can’t read.  As part of the process, each adult person will sign that they understand and agree to abide by the rules, or be subject to deportation.  Remember, this is a five year probation.  During that time, you will also need to become proficient in English, our national language.  When I travel abroad, I expect to converse in the language of the country I am visiting, I do not expect that country to bend their linguistic culture to me.  If they do, it’s a bonus, but not expected.  You must also file and pay your taxes.  If I have to pay 25% of my wages to Uncle Sam as my duty for living here, so should you.  I’ll bet the taxes received from 11 million new legal workers would cover a lot of health care and social security issues. So those are my enforcement ideas.  Something to anger everyone.  Democrats, Republicans, immigrants, and of course, the ACLU.  I’ll await your comments. (The thoughts and opinions expressed here are 100% those of your humble blogger, dave miller, and are in fact protected by all US Copyright Laws.  Permission is hereby granted for use provided that this blog or author is cited as the source. Blessings. ©)