Posted on 05/01/2010 8:45:16 AM PDT by Lorianne
What struck me about Harry Reid’s outline for immigration reform besides the weird, almost medieval, militant framing, like “Further Fortification of America’s Border,” is how some large group of military contractors are set to make a killing at the taxpayer’s expense if this bill ever passed:
As a result of this proposal, the Border Patrol will also receive substantial upgrades in technology—including: 1) clear and secure two-way communication capabilities among all border patrol agents conducting operations between ports of entry; 2) use of Department of Defense equipment at the border; and 3) increases in the number of sport utility vehicles, helicopters, power boats, river boats, portable computers to track illegal immigrants and drug smugglers while inside of a border patrol vehicle, night vision equipment, Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), Remote Video Surveillance Systems (RVSS), scope trucks, and Mobile Surveillance Systems (MSS).
High tech drones, Department of Defense equipment, helicopters–this sounds like an extremely expensive complete militarization of our border. When you are talking about this kind of a bonanza for military equipment makers, my first though is the old expression about understanding politics by “following the money.” I’m left wondering if this is meant to be an immigration bill, or the defense contractor profit protection and employment act of 2010.
With the chances of passing comprehensive immigration reform this year appearing next to zero right now, supporters of the effort can at least take heart in the knowledge that a lot of big defense contractor lobbyists are probably drooling at that thought of all the border militarization money, and will be fighting hard for it. If we ever eventually do end our deployment in Iraq and Afghanistan, those defense contractors are going to need to find a new justification for why Congress should buy billions of their toys. This border militarization immigrant reform bill sounds like it would fit the bill nicely.
Of course, if the Democrats stick to the strategy they used on health care, they will kick their own base in the teeth, tack way to the right, and waste billions of dollars by funneling it to well-connected corporations. We could actually have a bill labeled “immigration reform” this year, but it will just be a plan to stick a hundred billion dollars worth of high-tech military robots every ten feet in the desert, and provide a handful of new H1-B visas to the tech companies.
The real problem here is that this new technology will be used to keep people IN, not out!
Reid’s sons must be in the military contracting business these days, since government has always been part of the family business for Dirty Harry.
Murtha redux
Would they be members of Obama’s Army??
The irony here is that NONE of us on the right ever insulted illegal aliens the way Harry Reid used to!
Harry Reid: illegal aliens “free loaders and scam artists”
OH! THE IRONY!
From John Lollipop..
“Reid, now an impassioned champion of amnesty for 20 million illegal aliens in America, once called illegal aliens “free loaders and scam artists” which he proposed to deal with in his Immigration Stabilization Act in the United States Senate in 1993.”
That proposed legislation was introduced to the floor of the US Senate with the following press release, in part, issued by Reid’s office on August 5, 1993. “In response to increased terrorism and abuse of social programs by aliens, (I) today introduced the first and only comprehensive immigration reform bill in Congress. Currently, an alien living illegally in the United States often pays no taxes but receives unemployment, welfare, free medical care, and other federal benefits. Recent terrorist acts, including the World Trade Center bombing, have underscored the need to keep violent criminals out of the country.”
http://towncriernews.blogspot.com/search?q=harry+reid
Reid is now in favor of border control??!! Gee...I wonder if there’s an election soon?
PING
Ping!
If they do not attempt to intercept and prosecute the targets why do they bother.
Because the perception of enforcement is all they think they need to hoodwink the folks who don’t live here.
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