Fred Thompson's White Paper on Border Security and Immigration

Fred Thompson ^ | 01-08-08 | Fred Thompson

[pgkdan]

Border Security and Immigration Reform Plan

In the post-9/11 world, immigration is much more of a national security issue. A government that cannot secure its borders and determine who may enter and who may not, fails in a fundamental responsibility. As we take steps to secure our borders and enforce our laws, we must also ensure that our immigration laws and policies advance our national interests in a variety of areas, and that the immigration process itself is as fair, efficient, and effective as possible.

Securing the Border and Enforcing the Law

A fundamental responsibility of the federal government is to secure the nation's borders and enforce the law. The following policies and initiatives will put the nation on a path to success:

1. No Amnesty. Do not provide legal status to illegal aliens. Amnesty undermines U.S. law and policy, rewards bad behavior, and is unfair to the millions of immigrants who follow the law and are awaiting legal entry into the United States. In some cases, those law-abiding and aspiring immigrants have been waiting for several years.

2. Attrition through Enforcement. Reduce the number of illegal aliens through increased enforcement against unauthorized alien workers and their employers. Without illegal employment opportunities available, fewer illegal aliens will attempt to enter the country, and many of those illegally in the country now likely will return home. Self-deportation can also be maximized by stepping up the enforcement levels of other existing immigration laws. This course of action offers a reasonable alternative to the false choices currently proposed to deal with the 12 million or more aliens already in the U.S. illegally: either arrest and deport them all, or give them all amnesty. Attrition through enforcement is a more reasonable and achievable solution, but this approach requires additional resources for enforcement and border security:

1. Doubling ICE agents handling interior enforcement, increasing the Border Patrol to at least 25,000 agents, and increasing detention space to incarcerate illegal aliens we arrest rather than letting them go with a promise to show up later for legal proceedings against them.
   

2. Adding resources for the Department of Justice to prosecute alien smugglers, people involved in trafficking in false identification documents, and previously deported felons.
   

3. Maximizing efforts to prosecute and convict members of criminal alien gangs, such as MS-13 and affiliated gangs. These gangs have brought unusual levels of violence to more than 30 U.S. states and have also become very active in drug-smuggling, gun-smuggling, and alien-smuggling.
   

4. Implementing fully and making greater use of the expedited removal process already allowed under federal law.
   

5. Enabling the Social Security Administration to share relevant information with immigration and law enforcement personnel in a manner that will support effective interior enforcement efforts.

3. Enforce Existing Federal Laws. Enforce the laws Congress has already enacted to prevent illegal aliens from unlawfully benefiting from their presence in the country:

1. End Sanctuary Cities by cutting off discretionary federal grant funds as appropriate to any community that, by law, ordinance, executive order, or other formal policy directs its public officials not to comply with the provisions of 8 USC 1373 and 8 USC 1644, which prohibit any state or local government from restricting in any way communications with the Department of Homeland Security "regarding the immigration status, lawful or unlawful, of an alien in the United States."

   
   

2. Deny discretionary Federal education grants as appropriate to public universities that violate federal law by offering in-state tuition rates to illegal aliens without also offering identical benefits to United States citizens, regardless of whether or not they live in the state, as required by 8 USC 1623.
   

3. Deny discretionary Federal grants as appropriate to states and local governments that violate federal law by offering public benefits to illegal aliens, as prohibited by 8 USC 1621(a).

4. Reduce the Jobs Incentive. Ensure employee verification by requiring that all U.S. employers use the Department of Homeland Security's electronic database (the E-Verify system) to confirm that a prospective employee is authorized to work in the U.S. Now that the technology is proven, provide sufficient resources to make the system as thorough, fast, accurate, and easy-to-use as possible.

5. Add to the Cost of Hiring Illegal Aliens. Deny a tax deduction to employers for the wages they pay to illegal aliens, thereby dramatically increasing the real cost of employing illegal aliens. Businesses that do not play by the rules should not be rewarded under our tax system.

6.Bolster Border Security. Finish building the 854-mile wall along the border by 2010 as required by 8 USC 1103. Extend the wall beyond that as appropriate and deploy new technologies and additional resources to enhance detection and rapid apprehension along our borders by 2012.

7. Increased Prosecution. Deploy the additional assets outlined above to prosecute alien smugglers ("coyotes"), alien gang members, previously deported felons, and aliens who have repeatedly violated our immigration laws much more vigorously.

8.Rigorous Entry/Exit Tracking. Complete the implementation of a system to track visa entrants and exits, as has been required by federal law for more than ten years, and connect it to the FBI's National Crime Information Center (NCIC), in order to curb visa overstays and permit more effective enforcement.

Improving the Legal Immigration Process

The United States is a nation of immigrants. We must continue to welcome immigrants and foreign workers who come to our country legally, giving priority to those who can advance the nation's interests and common good. Immigrants and foreign workers who play by the rules need to be rewarded with faster and less burdensome service, not delays that last years. Advancing the following initiatives will require close cooperation between all levels of government, the business community, and concerned citizens:

1. Maximize Program Efficiency. Reduce the backlogs and streamline the process for immigrants and employers who seek to follow the law. Also, simplify and expedite the application processes for temporary visas. This can be accomplished by hiring more personnel at Citizenship and Immigration Services and the FBI. Caps for any category of temporary work visa would be increased as appropriate, if it could be demonstrated that there are no Americans capable and willing to do the jobs.

2. Enhanced Reporting. Improve reporting to the government by businesses that rely on temporary workers so that the government can track whether the visa holder remains employed.

3. Modernize Immigration Law/Policy. Change the nature of our legal immigration system to welcome immigrants who can be economic contributors to our country, are willing to learn the English language, and want to assimilate.

1. Reduce the scope of chain migration by giving family preference in the allocation of lawful permanent resident status only to spouses and minor children of U.S. citizens, and no one else (no siblings, no parents, no adult children, etc.).
   

2. Eliminate the diversity visa lottery.

   4. English As Official Language. Make English the official language of the United States to promote assimilation and legal immigrants' success, and require English proficiency in order for any foreign person to be granted lawful permanent resident status.

   5. Freedom from Political Oppression. Preserve U.S. laws and policies to ensure that the United States remains a beacon and a haven for persons fleeing political oppression, while assuring appropriate admission standards are maintained.

   6. Service to Country. Place those foreign persons who are lawfully present in the country and who serve honorably in the Armed Forces of the United States on a faster, surer track to U.S. citizenship.

[pgkdan]

Visit Fred08.com for all of Fred's White Papers. If you take the time to read them you'll see that he really IS the only consistent conservative in the top tier!

[americanophile]

Fred’s in the top tier now?

[pgkdan]

I posted this one first because polling shows that Immigration is the #1 topic of concern among SC Republicans and because several times during the second NH debate Fred attemnpted to make some of these points but didn’t get the time to really elaborate.

[pgkdan]

He is in my book. Third in Iowa, Second in WY and poised to win SC!

[msnpatriot]

Fine Business! Go Fred ->>>

[SatinDoll]

Huckabee is sucking up all the Christians voting with their bibles. So he is polling on top.

[AuntB]

I’m not finding any mention of addressing the anchor baby situation, did I miss it?

[americanophile]

Honestly, I’m not suprised. I can’t see how you can do anything about that situation without amending the Constitution. Fred’s people know that.

[Friendofgeorge]

He is in my book. Third in Iowa, Second in WY and poised to win SC!

I am for Fred, he is the only one left that has any worth (Duncan is good also)

I heard Bill Crystal say that McCain finished 1st in NH and 3rd in Iowa, I almost pulled out my hair on the Iowa comment.

[Politicalmom]

PING!!

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[Friendofgeorge]

Huckabee is sucking up all the Christians voting with their bibles. So he is polling on top..........................

I am a Christian, but cant warm up to his Bush bashing.It`s disgraceful the way he talks about my President

[skr]

bump

[Prokopton]

I am a Christian, but cant warm up to his Bush bashing.It`s disgraceful the way he talks about my President

There's a lot more Christians against Huckabee than for him.

[pgkdan]

I’m not finding any mention of addressing the anchor baby situation, did I miss it?

No, you didn't miss it. I don't think you can correct that abuse short of an amendment to the Constitution. Fred is focusing here on things that can be accomplished shortly after he's elected. These are issues that a President can have a strong impact on immediately...even with a hostile Congress if he's willing to take his case to the people.

[endthematrix]

Is he going to have a State Department and Trade Rep implementing a policy of US taxpayers supplying the BILLION$ for “opportunity” of Central and South America?

[AuntB]

” I don’t think you can correct that abuse short of an amendment to the Constitution. Fred is focusing here on things that can be accomplished shortly after he’s elected. “

No, the notion that it takes a constitutional amendment to fix a problem that isn’t there in the first place is just that, a notion that was misinterpreted by a judge, not congress. The 14th amendment, as noted by it’s authors was never intended to be abused by illegal aliens. Fred was asked about this by Laura Ingraham. He didn’t have an answer. Plenty of constitutional scholars and lawmakers disagree with you.

[SatinDoll]

So am I, and I apologize if you were sligted in the least by my statement.

But there are some people who just don’t delve into the past activities of people running for office and make their political decisions based on perceived commonalities or emotions.

[rightinthemiddle]

What? Fred clearly stating his plans and polices AGAIN?

I want to know how he’s doing in the polls. What TV show was he on today? What did the pundits say about Fred?

Don’t bore me with positions and strategy. I want Fred kiss my rear end so I can vote for him...as long as everyone else I know is voting for Fred.

I don’t want a President with a clear PLAN! I want a President who’s had Botox!

[John Valentine]

No, you didn't miss it. I don't think you can correct that abuse short of an amendment to the Constitution.

All that's really needed is a Supreme Court that will enforce the 14th Amendment as written, and not as some activist judges wished it had been written. The 14th was completely turend upside down and made to mean precisely the OPPOSITE of what was intended by Congress and the States by the Supreme Courth in the wrongly decided Wong Ark case.

[americanophile]

"All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside." It's relatively unambiguous.