Posted on 04/08/2010 3:22:56 PM PDT by chicagolady
"There is no doubt in my mind," said former Gov. Jim Edgar this morning, "that the immigrant community brought a vitality to the Illinois economy. Often when I would be out and about, visiting the various communities, I would meet with recent immigrants and I would see their enthusiasm to move ahead, to be successful, to work, to raise a family -- all those things that are vital to having a strong economy here in Illinois."
Edgar's remarks came during his keynote address at the launch of the newly-formed Illinois Business Immigration Coalition, an iniative spearheaded by the Illinois Coailition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. The coalition includes over 200 businesses that "support comprehensive immigration reform that legalizes the current undocumented workforce, creates new legal channels for future foreign workers and implements smart and effective enforcement measures."
(Excerpt) Read more at progressillinois.com ...
The Illinois Republican Party will shove Amnesty and Mark Kirk down your throat!
Illegal immigration ping.
Jim Edgar was governor when I lived there. Idiot.
About the only thing positive I can say about him is he’s one of the few recent Illinois governors to escape prison time.
Guess he’s just luckier.
I hope people start wising up
BTT
Right. In a country with 20% unemployment, we have to import illegals to work for sub-minimum wage. I suppose that part of the problem is attitude. Many Americans refuse to do dirty jobs.
Tell that to the program named ‘Dirty Jobs’.
Sure immigrants help the economy, they aren’t taxed to death, get food stamps, college and subsidized housing, they have lots of money to buy stuff with.
ANY republican running for office who supports “comprehensive immigration reform”(AMNESTY) should be defeated.
I am sure it is true that some Americans won't do dirty jobs- but many will and have had their jobs taken away and given to illegals for the past 30+years that I know of. That mantra started in the agriculture industry when they wanted to hire illegals because they were cheaper and would put up with unsafe and otherwise terrible working and living conditions that citizens wouldn't. My family worked on ranches and farms for years and beginning in the 1970s many ranchers and farmers made a decision to hire illegals instead- not because they couldn't get Americans. Plenty of Americans still work on ranches and farms and in packing houses- etc- what is unfair is those ranchers and farmers that won't hire illegals have to compete with those that do, so they make less profit. It is costing businesses money to follow the law and do the right thing. Illegals then took over the construction jobs- not because there were not Americans that wanted the jobs- because again it is cheaper and less hassle to hire illegals. Same for the hotel, restaurant and other businesses. Americans were working those jobs, until illegals were allowed to pour in and take them.
I want you to think about a couple of things- Americans do jobs like morgue work- septic system work- rodent removal- many many horrible jobs that are nearly exclusive to Americans, not illegals. There are Americans doing all the same jobs illegals do. Illegals are less than 10% of the work force so there has to be a lot of Americans doing "dirty" jobs. Don't make the mistake of thinking like the politicians do that just because you or people you know won't do the work no American will. I have done nearly all of the jobs that are considered to lowly for Americans and have friends still working those type of jobs.
Bottom line is money- meat packing house work, other work related to agriculture, construction, and service jobs were all decent paying jobs at one time. Men could get in those jobs and support their family and work their way into a better job or even a business using the bottom tier jobs as a stepping stone. As soon as illegals take jobs in an industry, all the wages are kept low, benefits scarce and working conditions deteriote to the point where Americans may not be able to take the job. I was shocked to learn during the housing boom that many construction jobs paid the same as when I worked for a construction company doing payroll in the early 1980s. How many jobs can you think of that are paying 1980 wages? It really is about money.
Americans cannot compete with illegals for low wages- the fact is illegals cannot get by on the low wages either, which is why they have over run our social services to the point of bankruptcy of state government using the medical and other social services.
The only jobs I can think of that we might need illegals for is harvest work on farms. The reason for that is the job is temporary so it is hard to get people to do that work. Not because it is work people are too good for, but because it is a temporary job and it is hard for anyone to count on that for a living. There are programs for farmers to get temporary workers for harvest, but many choose to not participate because there is red tape involved and again it is cheaper for them to hire illegal workers so many do. Not all farmers hire illegals so again it is not fair to those that follow the law to compete with those who don't.
I cringe when I hear "Jobs Americans won't do" or similiar statements- not factually true and is simply an excuse for some business people to break the law to improve their profits, and gives politicians an excuse to condone and support breaking the law or supporting amnesty.
Name one job that Americans aren't doing right now that illegals are. Just one.
Immigrants may help the economy, but let's be clear- ILLEGAL aliens don't help the economy- they drain the economy. They do not make a living wage so they are dependent on social services and free medical care to live on the wages they earn. You said it yourself- food stamps, subsidies- trust me it doesn't even out for the money they may spend here- and truth is tons of the money they earn is NOT spent here, it is absolutely taken out of our economy and sent to Mexico and other countries. How does that help our economy?
You are correct that illegals are taking jobs from Americans and lowering wages for blue collar Americans.
Pre-1860, many poor southern whites moved north to the free states so that they would not have to compete with slave labor. Today poor Americans are competing with illegal labor.
Contractors and builders state that the reason they hire illegal immigrants is because they can’t find Americans that will do the work.
This smoke screen is a ruse used by dishonest employers trying to divert our attention away from their illegal activities.
The fact is, there are plenty of Americans who want to, and will, work. The obvious question is - why are illegal aliens being hired to do these jobs if there are already U.S. citizens ready, willing, and able to do them? The short answer is greed.
Many employers in the construction industry are notorious for this. Undocumented workers are used in order to reduce labor costs in the areas of workers’ compensation and liability insurance, unemployment insurance, and “lower than prevailing rate” wages. They are not interested in hiring American citizens because they know they would have to pay them a fair wage, as well as covering the other associated costs of using documented workers.
Illegal workers will work for less money because, being undocumented, they rarely pay employment taxes or any related insurance costs. Contractors exploit the illegals’ fear of immigration officials (La Migra), and the resultant silence stemming from that fear, for the purpose of fattening their own wallets. Too bad the prices these builders charge for the goods they provide don’t reflect their reduced production costs. Although reduced quality, is often the result.
I don't have to appear "fair" because I'm not Bill O'Reilly.
Jobs for our guys and gals are all but disappeared, and what of our students who desperately need summer jobs.
Forget the "they do jobs our out-of-work citizens won't do".
That's BS, too.
Leni
“There is no doubt in my mind,” said former Gov. Jim Edgar this morning, “that the immigrant community brought a vitality to the Illinois economy....
Translation: Me and every limousine liberal in Illinois have no doubts that the immigrant community made it cheaper for use to get our big houses painted and our lawn care cheaper; at the expense of you legal suckers that have to pay taxes when you take a job.
use = us
I’ll go further than that- ANYONE that supports amnesty for illegals does not support the United States so they need to move out- preferably to one of the countries that needs help with corruption and other issues so their citizens can make a living there and don’t feel the need to come here to begin with. People who want to help the illegals can help them best in their own country.
It is truly past time for us to take back our country from the “do-gooders” that spend our money and trample our Constitution and the livilihoods of our own citizens. It is past time for us to clean house on not only the polticians that support illegals, but also those that support the corrupt politicians.
Remember Rob Krentz, who gave his life because we refuse to secure our own border. Amnesty is a dishonor to all U.S. citizens who have lost their lives and jobs to illegals. Secure the border and deport all illegals. Do it now!!
Ping!
My son just completed his Red Cross training to become a Certified Nursing Assistant. He was interested in having this training because his grandmother (my m-i-l)has had some health problems and he wants to care for her. First day at clinicals, he provided care for a woman with a prolapsed uterus. Some women, after years of childbearing, lose muscle control. He was cleaning feces off of her uterine wall after the "bottom dropped out." So what "dirty jobs" are Americans unwilling to do?
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