Posted on 04/06/2007 7:17:22 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
ESCONDIDO -- U.S. Rep. Brian Bilbray, R-Solana Beach, said Thursday that he would support a guest-worker program similar to the Bracero Program that brought thousands of low-skilled laborers from Mexico starting in the 1940s and ending in the 1960s.
The Bracero Program was widely criticized by human rights groups for abuses, but Bilbray said it created economic opportunities for poor Mexicans.
Bilbray said migrant workers should be allowed to come to work in the United States, but should not be able to become permanent residents, nor should their children born in the country be granted U.S. citizenship.
"The old Bracero program, with all its warts, did more to create a middle class in Latin America than anything else," Bilbray said.
In a two-hour discussion with members of the North County Times editorial board that concentrated primarily on immigration reform and the war in Iraq, Bilbray said he has looked into creating such a guest-worker proposal.
"I knew that eventually I would have to push through a true guest-worker program to show that what was being offered wasn't," he said. "It was an amnesty program."
Bilbray was elected to represent the 50th Congressional District, a swath of North County that stretches from Escondido south to Del Mar, on a platform of immigration enforcement.
In June, Bilbray was elected to temporarily fill the 50th District seat vacated by the imprisoned Randy "Duke" Cunningham, who was sentenced to federal prison for his role in a bribery scam. Bilbray was elected again in November to serve a full two-year term.
Among the more than 50 bills he has authored or signed on to, Bilbray has proposed switching to a two-year federal budget process, requiring employers to conduct employment eligibility verification, denying U.S. citizenship to children born here to illegal immigrant parents and building more fence along the U.S. border with Mexico.
In recent weeks, Congressional leaders have taken up the immigration reform debate that stalled last year.
The White House outlined a proposal that would give some illegal immigrants legal status and create a guest-worker program that would allow foreign workers in. But the plan would not give them an option to stay, nor would they be allowed to bring in their family, according to The Associated Press.
Bilbray said he liked the president's guest-worker proposal, but not his legalization plan. He said the proposal could serve as a starting point for debate in Congress.
"I think it creates a great opportunity, mostly because he's finally separated guest worker from amnesty," Bilbray said. "It was synonymous before ... anytime he was talking about guest worker, he was talking about amnesty."
The president's plan is just one of several being discussed in Washington.
A broad immigration bill introduced last month by Reps. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., and Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., would give illegal immigrants six-year visas and create a guest-worker program, while increasing the number of Border Patrol agents, border fences and surveillance equipment.
Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., is also expected to introduce a similar bill in the Senate.
Frank Sharry, executive director of the National Immigration Forum, an immigrant rights advocacy group, said the new Democratic leadership in Congress and the president want to pass a broad immigration reform plan. He said Bilbray's guest-worker idea is not likely to get much support.
Sharry said the new Democratic majority in Congress is instead likely to rally around comprehensive immigration bills, similar to the Gutierrez-Flake proposal.
"When you suffer a huge loss, like a death in the family or the leadership in Congress, the first stage is denial, and I would say that Bilbray is in denial," Sharry said.
On recent immigration enforcement efforts in North County, Bilbray said he has encouraged local governments to work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to catch illegal immigrants at sobriety checkpoints.
Regarding the Iraq war, Bilbray said he wants Congress to give military commanders and the troops a chance to succeed. Asked what he believed victory in Iraq would look like, he offered Turkey as a model.
"Turkey is a functioning system. That's the best goal that we can hope for down the line," he said.
Bilbray also said leaving a country that is not a "petri dish for terrorism" would be a victory for the United States.
President Bush is expected to veto an Iraq war-funding bill pushed by Democrats that sets a timeline for withdrawing U.S. troops.
Bilbray called the measure a high-stakes "game of chicken" that he said would end with Democrats giving in and funding the troops.
It’s not like we have a guest worker program now. [/sarc]
We already have a guest worker program. What is he talking about?
When I was a kid I lived in an area where migrant (guest) workers picked various root crops and worked on sod farms.
What next, the U.S. needs sharia law????
And we need more drunken Mexicans killing people on the highways too.
Very interesting point.
How about this:
1. You cannot bring your family, only single workers admitted.
2. You can only stay four months, and must go back to Mexico for eight before returning.
3. You will receive your wages in Mexico City, and you must show up in person to collect.
Thats the real truth. This issue is driven by Business looking for cheap labor.
As a result, driving down wages of a variety of American labor jobs.
It’s not just border states or not just southern border states. Here in Michigan we’ve got our fair share of illegals and they ain’t Canadian.
It’s not like we have a few hundred thousand illegals here, there are millions.
I watched a piece with Newt Gingrich (globalist), speaking fluent Spanish addressing the Mexicans south of the border.
One of his comments was, we need to be sensitive to the interest of the Mexican worker in the U.S.
Grrrrrrrrrrr. Newts like Bush, he’za globalist and will work to keep those borders open.
We need a Mandatory Congressional retirement program that would allow No more than 4 terms for the house and two terms for the senate.
We need that more than we need a guest workers program.
Baloney.
I am completely opposed to a guest worker program. If you need a man that bad, then give him and his family residency and full immigrant rights. If you don't need him that bad enough to do that, then you don't need him that bad.
Seal the border. Bring in the people you need, but bring them in as full immigrants, here to stay. If you don't want to do that, then try raising your wages and you'll get all the workers you need.
I have no problem bringing in foreigners with special skills. I am really completely opposed to bringing in laborers, its a mistake to promote the idea that some jobs only foreigners and second class workers will do. Cheap labor is a drug. We need to kick it.
they’re all over here in Northern NJ too
None dare call it treason - the new name is Gast Arbeiten.
What the US really need is a new CCC(see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_Conservation_Corps) for young poor people with no prospects.
There are plenty of people for low skilled “dirty” jobs(construction, farm work etc...) already in the states. However they have no self-discipline and companies have to pay them minimum wage. A program to get these kids off the streets, give them “three hots and a flop” and help them learn self discipline would go a long way towards fixing some of the social problems in the US.
As it stands the US is just increasing the size of its permanent underclass with illegals. Pretty soon the US really will be a 3rd world country.
I would like to see a 30 Ft. high wall 20 miles south of me but it ain’t going to happen.
I would like to see the 12 million + illegls rounded up and back to Mexico, but it ain’t going to happen.
We need to stop the continued problem.
Bilbray has always been tough on the border issue.
The only thing I can think where he is coming from is some kind of give in to the illegals will pass congress and he is trying to find the less problem maker.
Here in San Diego Thousands cross the border every day to work legally, not counting the illegals.
This problem should have been delt with years ago.
Now we have a run away train.
We need 100’s of millions of more illegal aliens/ sarcasm
Actually we will get another couple 100 million in the next 20 years if they pass amnesty. Almost one half of this country will be third world, poor and illiterate.
Just how many will be enough before even the liberals get it?
“Bilbray has always been tough on the border issue.”
Unless he is limiting his idea to a bunch of farm workers,
He’s a lost cause.
Tricked us.
He spoke so strong to Bush before.
FYI, Clinton sold the “midnight basketball” and it was a flop.
So you think a new CCC wouldn’t be UNION, huh?
Hey, I got an idea! Why not pass a Free Trade agreement and then Mexico will be just like the USA and then all the illegals will go home in ten years?
He's a Leftist, why did anyone believe him?
Your gonna have to add something about while your on ‘guest worker’ status if you give birth here that kid is not a citizen.
If your city has tens of thousands of illegals and your city is paying millions a dollars a yr for their health care, etc. and put up with their crime, most won’t learn English and takes down the school system.
You watch in person while 50,000 march and rally with Che t-shirts and signs saying Gringo go back to Europe, this is our country, you might think of a better idea.
I’m gonna wait and see what his position is on putting Baking Soda behind the counter and taking plastic bags out of supermarkets before I make a knee-jerk response.
Easy, because it keeps the illegals out. And I’m willing to bet keeping the poor occupied will pay for itself with less social services used by illegals and a reduction in crime.
*FYI* Midnight basketball wasn’t a flop where I live. And the program was proposed by GHWB not Clinton. Clinton just implemented it.
A government job bank offering illegals sweeping floors at minimum wage? You’re gonna have Civil Right orgs crying slavery and unions wanting “social justice.” And the worlds poor would come in droves knowing the United States will pay them.
RE: *FYI* Midnight basketball wasn’t a flop where I live.
Where do yo live?
Sorry I wasn’t clear.
The issue, at least to me, is that the government and companies are taking advantage of the porous border to fill unskilled jobs with illegals. This is a great situation for the government and companies. Illegals have better work ethics and are easily disposable.
They do have a point. The American underclass lacks the sort of self-discipline they need to improve their lot in life. So what I’m arguing is that we need a new system to deal with the unemployable sectors of society and work on using them as a substitute for illegals.
Regarding unemployment, it depends on where you are. I have the privilege of living in a majority minority area. Minority women don’t have much of a problem, they form the backbone of the economy here. However, minority men are completely unemployable(for good reason).
Something has to give, and fast, or the entire US is going to look like Detroit and LA.
not one to give out PI, but let’s just say it’s a minority area.
Post some statistical data or local story. I’ll even agree that providing physical outlets, distracts the participant from engaging in other behaviors. It’s not the role of government to have a compulsory labor force. Anything less than that competes with the market. We don’t need a “New Deal” program.
We don’t? The problem is there is *no* market outside of the illegals. A friend, a construction contractor, told me more or less that he would love to hire Americans. However the Americans that showed up were either completely antisocial or drug addicts.
It’s fascistic and unamerican, I know. But unless we do something with the underclass we have now it’s only going to get worse. Look at LA.
Here’s a link to Midnight Basketball:
http://rptsweb.tamu.edu/Faculty/Witt/wittpub5.htm
Figure 2
Crime Statistics Changes Due to Recreation Program Initiation
(Witt & Crompton, 1996b)
* Cincinnati, Ohio, reported a 31% decrease in crime incidents in the first six months after the Winton Hills prevention programs began.
* Commerce, California, compared gang related assaults in their city with neighboring East Los Angeles to demonstrate program effectiveness. In East Los Angeles there were 140 gang related assaults and 11 homicides in 1993 compared to seven gang related assaults and zero homicides in Commerce.
* Kansas City, Missouri, reported a 25% decrease in the rate of juvenile apprehensions compared to the previous year in the areas abutting centers in which Midnight Basketball programs were offered.
* In Fort Worth, Texas, crime statistics supplied by the Police Department indicated in a one mile radius of the community centers where the midnight basketball was provided, crime dropped 28%. At five other community centers where these programs did not exist, crime rose an average of 39%.
I agree, in an ideal world, that’s how things would work. But most minority neighborhoods don’t have any of those resources. Where I live the drug dealers have become the de facto community leaders. Until you can provide some sort of alternative, I can’t see any other way out of the mess other than a government program. It’s huge and inefficient, but until there’s a viable alternative that’s the only way. Mandatory military service would be another way, but given the current situation that’s untenable.
Blaming public schools is easy. But when you’ve got children that act no different than animals you do the best with what you have. I have a great deal of respect for the school teachers in my area.
As I understand your point, National Service is what will occur and there are plans from both parties. I'm no fan of compulsory service, but I see they way the wind is blowing. IMO we'll have it sooner than later. That will not solve the problem of a lack of work ethic or moral turpitude. Knowing, understanding and living what is right from wrong is the true way.
Hmmm... is the National Service you’re talking about like Americore? Could you give me a link to some of the proposals?
You can’t get something from nothing. Until there’s a critical mass of young minorities with the skills and discipline they need to survive in society they’ll have the only morality they know. The ghetto.
The best link that shows that both parties involved is from http://www.talkleft.com/story/2004/09/22/510/80101
Some more at FR, use keyword search nationalservice
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1594306/posts
Time to call it a night!
Sure we need a guest worker program, we kit them up and send them to Iraq for a year to assist our troops.
night :)
That is like saying that, if you need a cleaning lady to clean your bachelor house once a week, you should marry her and adopt her kids or do without her cleaning services.
Seal the border. Bring in the people you need, but bring them in as full immigrants, here to stay. If you don't want to do that, then try raising your wages and you'll get all the workers you need.
Why would you want to bring legions of fruit pickers into the U.S. as full citizens or pay a wage high enough to have U.S. citizens do stoop farm labor and have fruits and vegetables priced at the level of a New York strip steak?
Right now, the U.S. is flooded with illegals because the produce needs picking, Americans won't pick it and the only way a Mexican can get here to pick it is to sneak across the desert. Once here, they don't want to risk their life in the desert again.
Once here, the multimillion dollar agribusiness owner does not want his labor force deported and his produce left to rot on the vine so he greases the palm of Congresscritters to ignore the issue of illegal aliens all together.
What, exactly, is so terrible about contracting foreign labor to do the dirty little jobs that are simply not worth $25 per hour and then having them return home with dollars to spend in their home towns at the end of each contract period?
While stationed at U.S. Naval Base, Guantanamo, we had hundreds of Jamaican guest workers doing just that.
Then you need to define what a guest worker can and cannot do.
Right now, agribusiness money is bribing Congress to ignore the entire issue of illegal aliens all together because agribusiness has no way of contracting Mexican guest workers to pick their crops in the same manner that the U.S. Navy contracted Jamaican guest workers to mow lawns, clean toilets and staff chow halls at Guantanamo so that our sailors and Marines could concentrate on their military duties.
You are far too generous with your use of the word “idea.”
The House Borderbot Caucus replaces Tancredo with Bilbray and Bilbray starts softening by saying he would accept a guest worker program.
They should have done this last year.
Rep. Tancredo proposd a guest worker program in legislation that he introduced last session. The Senate version of his bill was introduced by Sen. Inhofe.
Unlike you, Rep. Bilbray and Rep. Tancredo do not support rewarding millions of illegal aliens with legal status and a path to citizenship. Any guest worker legislation that Rep. Bilbray supports will not contain amnesty provisions that reward illegal aliens that have deliberately violated federal immigration laws with legal status and a path to citizenship, the kind of provisions that you support.
Many members of the House Immigration Reform Caucus would have supported legislation that contained a guest worker provision last session. However, they would not support last session and will not support this session a guest worker program that gives amnesty to millions of illegal aliens.
Unlike you, Rep. Bilbray and Rep. Tancredo support 700 miles of fencing along the Mexican border.
Rep. Tancredo properly resigned his position as chairman during a session in which he is running for president. He was not somehow removed from the position of chairman against his will. He campaigned for Rep. Bilbray in his special election last year and wanted Rep. Bilbray to be his replacement as chairman.
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