Immigration and Texas' Budget Crisis: The Elephant in the Room

FrontPageMagazine.com ^ | December 30, 2002 | Chris Allen

[deport]

Well, sure, if all you consider is sq. ft. but....

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What else is there? Sq ft (or acreage) plus improvements then the type property, commercial, residential, industrial, farm, wetlands, unimproved, etc. Sounds like you are appreciative of having the fortune of living where ever it is you do

[B4Ranch]

I'm sure Arturo works hard to please your perspective

He lived just across the border in Brownsville, went to college in Houston and couldn't care less what I think of him. He just doesn't like supporting parasites.

[Lockbox]

Send the bill to the Feds, they ‘control’ the boarder. Time for the Feds to pay for this mess

The Feds is you.

The Feds is you and me, right now it's only me taken care of the bill.

[lewislynn]

The Feds is you and me, right now it's only me taken care of the bill.

Then can I have my money back?

[junta]

Nice try with the race card slick.

[Lockbox]

Then can I have my money back?

Right after I get mine.

[neutrino]

nor is it our obligation to save or feed the world

Bravo! Exactly!

[FITZ]

With your crew of English speakers or Anglos

Not just them ---have you ever seen ANY of the immigrants' kids willing to do this work? You won't, they're less likely to take these jobs than Americans' kids, a life on welfare and government handouts has them expecting free tuitions and the rest.

[FITZ]

Notice the article never uses the word "Hispanic"; instead, "immigrant" is code for Hispanic.

That's pretty racist of you because where I live there's plenty of Hispanics who aren't immigrants and technically never were immigrants since they were here when this region became the US ---hint ---few of them want open borders either ---Silvestre Reyes was actually elected to Congress from an overwhelmingly Hispanic region after he became popular from his Operation Blockade and Operation Hold-the-Line. It's really only people financially benefitting from what is cheap labor to themselves because the costs of the labor are passed on the taxpayers who believe in open borders.

[FITZ]

The National Research Council found that in California, which has endured a similar flood of Mexican immigration as Texas, each native household is paying about $1,178 a year in state and local taxes to cover the gap between the services used by immigrant households and their tax receipts. Although Texas was not included in this study, there is no reason to think the reality is any different here.

I know it's a serious problem in Texas ---possibly worse because along the border, the property taxes are much higher than $1,178 a year on an average home ---the wages are low but the property taxes match NY's. I wonder how much total tax the average taxpayer in Texas at least in a border county pays compared with the average in California. I read that to pay just this year's budget deficit in California, each resident would have to pay $1000, I wonder how much of the Texas $12 billion deficit translates to each TAXPAYING resident since fewer and fewer residents pay much taxes.

[Mears]

Thanks for speaking up for renters!I'm renting for the first time in my life and at $1600.00 rent paid per month I assume some of that goes for property taxes paid by my landlord.

[Liberty Valance]

Right on RainDog. I agree with your
excellent post.

Liberty

[MissAmericanPie]

I live and interact with illegals daily, send them packing until there is a fool proof way to keep them from voting, getting welfare, WIC, and sending their kids to school without charge, then demand they be taught in Spanish.

This is our country, not a flop house, it is not up for grabs. Sure we need menial labor to a point. But not to the point where American carpenters are put out of the picture due to the wage being too low, because let me tell ya, cheap labor has not translated to cheaper housing prices, just more profit for the builder.

Have you noticed the air lines having a problem replacing screeners and workers with real Americans? I haven't. This b o l o g n a that Mexicans do jobs Americans won't do is a crock. For the most part they take up jobs that Americans need, and need at a living wage.

There is more to America, and being an American than economics and companies charging the same price as if they had used American labor. Not to mention I am sure I am not the only American tired of having the FBI ask us to pick up their mess if we want to save our rears from another 9-11 attack.

The nerve of saying to the public, "Yeah we were tailing these guys right across the border then we lost them, can you, John Q Public fix the mess we made?" The protection of our borders should be number one on the agenda, all other efforts are for show and a waste of time and billions of dollars. Home Land Security is not even close to being able to accomplish security and never will be. You don't let the enemy in the gate then cross your fingers for luck.

Until Americans make it clear that we will not accept the idea that the loss of a few thousand American lives is acceptable as long as free trade isn't interfered with then we will not be doing our jobs as citizens will we. Until we make it clear that this is our home, not a corporation, not Disney Land, then we will continue to be over run until we are no longer an America worth living in.

[judgeandjury]

With respect to immigrants, immigrants pay rent, purchase gods, pay sales tax, pay gasoline tax, provide labor and services and on an on, and while no one has real stats on the gray/black economy, immigrants are more than likely a net PLUS for the Texas economy.

Are you guessing at that? Well then, I'm guessing that immigrants are more than likely a net MINUS for the Texas economy.

[judgeandjury]

It also pleases me to note that the $13 billion Mexicans sent home was made the American way-- they earned it.

That's if you don't count the money they send home to Mexico that they receive from welfare, from the food stamps that they sell for cash, and from the money that they save by living 10 to an apartment, a violation of most city's zoning laws. And do you think that maybe at least a few Mexicans may engage in criminal activity such as selling drugs to bring in some money?

[judgeandjury]

McDonald's does not pay nearly as well as grapefruit harvesting does (which is why immigrants come), so where are the English speaking or Anglo grapefruit pickers?

If you paid a decent wage and it was year-round work, you should have no problem finding American workers to do that type of work. So, would you care to tell us how much you pay your workers, and is it year-round work?

[Marine Inspector]

Thanks for the links. I had some different info that I will go back and look at.

[Joe Hadenuf]

Don't mess with Texas....LOL!

[RainDog]

Are you guessing at that? Well then, I'm guessing that immigrants are more than likely a net MINUS for the Texas economy.

No one has objective stats on the cost/benefit of immigrants, particularly illegal immigrants. So yes, I am guessing.

But my guess is based upon a core belief/trust in capitalism. You see I love the wonderful phenomenon of politically dispassionate markets.

It is real simple: if the market/economy (which is the ultimate cost/benefit analyzer) does not want immigrants, it would not attract immigrants. But the market/economy does attracts immigrants, because the market/economy needs immigrants.

Maybe you are a communist or something, I dunno why you can't understand this, but if you insist on banishing people from our land, please begin with the homeless, disabled, retarded, retired, unemployed, democrats:)-- not hard working Hispanic immigrants.

[Ohioan]

What a sad betrayal of the heroic sacrifice of the brave men who died at the Alamo, to secure Texas for those who share its traditional culture! The cowards who refuse to face an issue that goes to the very survival of that culture, deserve only the contempt of all decent men and women. I am not a Texan, but I appreciate the tragedy befalling fellow Americans, who happen to be.

May the New Year bring courage and principle to those who this year have shown little or none--not only in Texas, but all over America.

For my fellow Conservatives, who have fought the good fight, I wish all a very Happy New Year!

William Flax Return Of The Gods Web Site