Fredipedia v2.36: The Definitive Fred Thompson Quick Reference
Fred Barnes is a flaming liberal, and his opinions mean NOTHING!
We need to put a stop this immigration bill immediately and in 2008 when President Obama/Hil take over I am sure they will push through a much better immigration bill./sarc
If they can’t manage to enforce the laws with 12 million illegals running around, how do they propose to enforce the laws with 50 or 60 million running around?
Obviously they don’t intend to. They aren’t even trying now, and they certainly won’t try then.
Barnes isn’t making much sense... perhaps time for him to retire to the country club.
I disagree with Barnes, but we really need to give him credit for discussing the actual features of this bill instead of simply calling opponents of the bill names and leaving it at that.
You know the problem is we fought for and won the FENCE argument last year. But only two miles have been built because of the bizzaro world of the Congress where the passed the bill, but not the money.
Fred Barnes is trying to play Lucy and collectively make Conservatives into Charlie Brown, where we go to kick the football believing, this time, Lucy’s promise not to pull the ball away at the last moment.
Sadly for Fred, we’ve grown tired of this gag are aren’t playing along.
Elsehwere it was reported that the Congress should have and could have passed a series of small atomic bills (fence, english language) that at least some of would have passed. Instead, this Bible-length monstrosity.
Sorry Fred, but the RNC crowd had their shot to do right and blew it. Who want’s compromise when there is blood in the water.
Keep calling !
This question sounds like one of those questions in that old $64,000 pyramid game show.
What I have wondered is if this should pass and once again the feds fail to secure the border, really secure it not just send a hand full of new hires with laptops, and we come to the “I told you so” moment what happens? I know nothing! We don’t have a penalty clause that could take us back, so once this is done we are done.
The border will never be ‘beefed up’ and employers hiring illegals will never be ‘cracked down on’.
All this stuff is just pandering for votes.
Business (large and small) WANT illegal immigrants. End of story.
This is unnecessary. They built the wall last year in last year's immigration bill!
Remember?
Give it up, Fred, and stop drinking the Kool-Aid.
Right Fred, it does that by changing the current law requiring an additional 854 miles of fence, to only building 370 miles of fence before mass amnesty is granted.
Fred, I used to respect your opinions, your take on this proves you don't have a clue.
If there truly is a labor shortage, not just a demand for low cost, benefits free labor, then increase the allowed number of temporary workers in the various immigration worker classes that already exist according to need.
Go after employers who are cheating the tax and social security systems. It's sorta the same logic they use in the war on drugs. Go after the source of the demand, the user, or in the case of illegal immigration, the employers.
Those employers who cheat by hiring illegals make it harder for those who play by the rules. They increase the number of illegals taking advantage of "free" health care, education and other benefits that should be reserved for CITIZENS or immigrants who are playing by the rules and that raises the price (taxes) for the rest of us. It's circular, b/c the increased price (taxes) makes hiring illegals even more attractive. A vicious cycle.
BS!!!! That added security will never be done. Just like the miles and miles of border fence they ahve not built.
Fred, you're opinion on many issues is becoming less and less relevant to conservatives as time passes and you slip into 'liberaltarian' policy mode.
On immigration reform Fred, you're no better then all the other politicos and pundits who've chosen to back the current liberal legislation proposed by Democrats like Fat Ted Kennedy, with the approval of Republicans like Arizona's own Senators, McCain and Kyl, and given the official blessing of Pres Bush and POTUS wannabee Rudy Giuliani.
Amnesty for 15 million illegals is just around the corner. The GOP leadership is slowing killing off the party of Reagan. How long it'll take to be buried is anyones guess.
What a load of crap!
Here is a better article:
May 17, 2007, 5:30 a.m.
No to Bush-Kennedy
By The Editors
“The fight over legalization, or ‘amnesty,’ is all but over,” exults the Manhattan Institute’s Tamar Jacoby, and the “yahoos” who oppose it have been routed. She is right about who has won, at least as far as the Senate is concerned. The Bush-Kennedy immigration “reform,” which is now expected to win broad bipartisan support in that chamber, provides legal status for an estimated 12 million illegal aliens. In exchange for the massive, unpopular amnesty, Senator Kennedy is willing to engage in a little “border dressing” that purports to beef up enforcement of current laws barring illegal entry and the employment of illegal workers. As in the past, supporters of border and workplace enforcement will get the rhetoric, illegal aliens the prize, and taxpayers the huge tab.
The 1986 immigration reform, with amnesty provisions that were implemented and enforcement provisions that weren’t, is instructive. But there is no need to hark back 20 years to illustrate the bad faith of “comprehensive” immigration reformers. Before last year’s elections, the Secure Fence Act, providing for the construction of a 700-mile fence at the southern border, handily passed Congress. In this week’s Republican presidential debate, Rep. Duncan Hunter, the fence bill’s House sponsor, angrily noted, “We have $1 billion cash on hand at the Department of Homeland Security right now for building the border fence. . . . They have done two miles. I think they want to drag their feet and hook this up with amnesty.” They do and they now have.
The Bush administration’s price for its modestly beefed-up border security and workplace enforcement is amnesty for millions and a temporary-worker program for a few hundred thousand more each year. And the proposal’s conservative features vanish upon inspection.
Bush-Kennedy includes some enforcement “triggers” that increase resources at the border and establish an employment-verification program before amnesty or the new temporary-worker program can take effect. But there is no requirement that these measures be proved effective before the full implementation of Kennedy’s wish list, and the reform does not include critical provisions to prevent identity theft and the use of fraudulent documents. Granting amnesty to millions of illegal aliens without first securing the border and ensuring a reliable system of workplace enforcement invites millions of others to follow their example in the hope of being granted amnesty during the inevitable next round of immigration reform.
The proposal contemplates ending “chain migration” by extended family members in favor of a merit system based on needed skills — eventually. The current waiting lists for family members must first be eliminated, and immigration advocates can be expected to aggressively lobby for the status quo. Tamar Jacoby is already arguing against moving to merit. Not even yahoos will be fooled by the bill’s empty promise.
Finally, the enormous cost of granting legal status to millions of illegal aliens is being wholly ignored. Nearly two-thirds of illegal immigrants are low-skilled workers. Based on a detailed analysis of the net cost of low-skill households, Robert Rector of the Heritage Foundation estimates that the typical illegal-alien household receives $19,588 more in benefits than it pays in taxes each year. He explains that these costs would increase dramatically when an illegal alien reached retirement. Rector estimates that if all current illegal aliens were granted amnesty, the net retirement costs (benefits minus taxes) could be over $2.5 trillion.
As bad as the status quo on immigration policy is, it is preferable to this bill. Recent improvements in border security have apparently reduced the number of illegal crossings, and well-publicized raids on workplaces can be expected to have a chilling effect on employers who are in violation of immigration laws. But we suspect that this increased enforcement was largely designed to win passage for amnesty and a guest-worker program, and will end once this goal is achieved. We urge senators to cast protest votes against this bill, and House members to do their best to defeat it.
National Review Online -
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=NTc0MzlkMzI5NjQxNTMwNDQ2NWFjMDlhNGRjOWZmNGI=
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