Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., is getting tarred as a lefty on immigration, with Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., last week even calling Brownback “an extreme opponent of getting tough on illegal immigration.” But as part of the bipartisan effort in the Senate Judiciary Committee to craft a sensible immigration reform bill, in contrast to the Tancredo-backed House version, Brownback is dealing with reality. “No bill before the committee proposes blanket amnesty. . . . Border security is our main priority. We are working to merge the best of several proposals, and hopefully we can all agree that we must protect our borders, enforce the law, provide legal means for people to work in the United States, and fix a broken system,” he said. That may not play well with the right-wingers who’d rather pretend undocumented immigrants aren’t already here and contributing to the economy, but it finds Brownback on the right side of this crucial issue.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
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38 Comments
The problem with this whole thing is, they are working with a irrefutable truth and working backward to make it a useable reality. The irrefutable truth is that it is illegal immigration, the key word is illegal.The country benefits from it, there are so many people in this country who’s family start out as illegal immigrants. That now they have a power base in the United States, business is fighting to keep it the way it is. To the point that large companies are putting pressure on Bush to at the very least keep the status quo or even allow it openly.
Boarder security is being pushed to the side in favor of cheap labor for big business, mean while allowing a easy access to this country for anyone wishing to do her harm. I can not help but feel that both will win at the expense of the common people. At one point they excuse was true, the illegal immigrants were doing the jobs that no one in this country wanted to do. But that is no longer the case for several reasons. First is that the job market has shifted and those jobs are now put into play for the average American. Second is that the average illegal immigrant has changed, they are better educated and have more skills to offer. A case in point being that often the crews brought in by Wal-mart to do such things as lighting and building maintenance are by and large crews of immigrants. The foreman maybe the only one able to speak English, if even he is able to. As the demand for cheap labor expanded pass the farm field to the other employment. The skill level of the illegal immigrant improved to adjust to the new demand.
But at the end of the day, it is still illegal for them to be here and that is an irrefutable truth. On a grander scale this is nothing more then the local beat cop receiving a payoff for looking the other way when a crime is being committed.
writerdog,Well put, as usual. The bottom line is our borders secure, and the answer is a resounding no.
The Republicans want it both ways: fight some labeled enemy in a foreign country, and let in whoever wishes to enter this country, be it friend or foe. Yep, they sure know what they’re doing.
Good post writerdog, I don’t understand what it is that people don’t understand about the word ILLEGAL! So here is the definition of it so everyone will know. Illegal: Contrary to the Law or official rules. Wrong! Against the Law! If the law is allowed to keep on being broke, then that opens the door for all other laws to be broke, then all you have is lawless people doing whatever they want, is that really good for america! I Think Not.
Here here writerdog
Illegal is illegal. I can find no reason for Brownback or any American for that matter to be at all soft or confused as to this issue. That is unless they have an agenda.
How hard does this have to be? We have so ignored this issue that illegals are now marching enmasse to protest their right to CONTINUE doing an illegal thing! Get the buses and trucks out to these marches and haul the marchers back south,that’s a start.
It is the exploitive employers at the real root of this problem. Take an active role. Ask that contract worker for his green card. If he doesn’t have one, turn his employer in.
It is clear that poloiticians (on both sides) are not going to address this issue. We will have to do it for them.
Why not just anex Mexico and make it the 51st state? Seems the opportunties could be endless. It could be the #1 US resort and tourist state, I know I’d take all my vacations there.
Some of the newspaper quotes about this issue just slay me. Like the man quoted as saying, “we have a fundamental right to seek ways to improve our lives.”
Cracks me up…his own country maintains a caste system, so he figures it is his ‘right’ to come here illegally. The “logic” of his argument escapes me.
Why is it our responsibility to employ people who cannot make a living in their own country? Why do we cater to illegals to the point of demanding more bi lingual police officers? Why are we providing free education and health care to people here illegally?
By comparison…in Mexico, you cannot own land if you are not a LEGAL RESIDENT. In Mexico, your children cannot attend schools, unless you are a LEGAL RESIDENT. In Mexico, you cannot participate in government funded health care unless you are a LEGAL RESIDENT.
What part of this entire equation are we missing?
So because Mexico is bad, we should be just as bad, Raptor?
Two wrongs make a right?
If the government were serious about stopping immigration, they would crack down on EMPLOYERS.
We arrest the immigrant, send ‘em back, and they “pay all their money to wade back again” like Woody Guthrie says in his old song “Deportee.”
Arrest, fine and imprison the EMPLOYERS and you’ve dried up demand at the source.
But that would involve using government to regulate business, which is anathema to BushCo.
Yeah raptor I gotta agree.Mexico is also pretty vigilant about its southern border.
Mexico seems to actually have some sense of protecting its borders and traditions (screwed up as they may be)
That’s the only thing they have that I find we have any need of.
Mexico vigilane about its southern border? Then how do you explain the number of Central Americans transiting Mexico on their way the the US?
Brownback a leftie?
I wonder who is generating more “ewwwww’s” at that thought.
The left or brownback?
Damoon
Anex MexicoTOO LATEThey are a way ahead of us(U.S.). They are in the process of doing that to the U.S. right now.Our yellow bellied politions go belly up when a large croud forms and the mexicans have gatherd a bunch of em.
Brownback is just a zionist world order errand boy and an open border zealot, damned traitors all!
Sen. Brownback voted against the Byrd Amendment (S. Amdt. 516) to H.R. 1268, the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act for Defense, the Global War on Terror, and Tsunami Relief of 2005. The Byrd Amendment provides $390 million to hire 650 more border patrol agents, 250 new immigration investigators, and 168 new immigration enforcement agents and deportation officers. The Byrd amendment also provides funds for 2,000 additional detention beds as well as funding to train the new personnel. Passage of the Byrd Amendment sent a strong signal from the Senate in favor of increased Border Patrol and Interior Enforcement. The Byrd Amendment passed by a vote of 65 to 34.
Cosponsoring bill to create an amnesty for illegal agricultural workers in 2005-2006Sen. Brownback is a cosponsor of S. 359, an amnesty for agricultural workers. Of the 1.2 million illegal aliens currently working in agriculture, an estimated 860,000 plus their spouses and children could qualify for this amnesty, so the total could reach three million or more. The potential recipients of the amnesty would be required to prove 100 days of agricultural employment in the 18-month period that ended Aug. 31, 2004. Then, prior to receiving amnesty, workers would have to show 360 days of additional farm work over the next six years.
Cosponsored bill to reward illegal aliens with in-state tuition and amnesty in 2003-2004Sen. Brownback cosponsored S. 1545, the DREAM Act of 2003. S. 1545 would have granted in-state tuition and amnesty to illegal aliens under the age of 21 who had been physically present in the country for five years and are in 7th grade or above. Such a reward for illegal immigration serves as an incentive for more illegal immigration.
Cosponsored legislation in 2002 that would assist illegal immigration by compromising immigration lawsSen. Brownback cosponsored S. 2444, the Kennedy INS restructuring bill. This legislation contained both structural and policy problems that would encourage illegal immigration and potentially increase legal immigration. The most far reaching provision proposed in S. 2444 was the change in the definition of immigration law. S. 2444 would have redefined immigration law to include not only the Immigration and Nationality Act but also Executive Orders and international agreements. In so doing, the bill would have opened up massive possibilities for increased legal and illegal immigration. For example, the President could have agreed to amnesty all illegal aliens in a trade agreement or in an Executive Order. The President also could have created new categories of legal immigrants, increase refugee numbers, triple H-1B visas, etc. In addition, S. 2444 would have faciliated asylum fraud and add thousands of illegal aliens to the population each year by greatly reducing the detention of asylum applicants while their cases are pending, allowing them to disappear into the public. While the numeric impact of the Kennedy restructuring bill is almost impossible to determine, the policy changes outlined in S. 2444 would certainly have increased illegal immigration and very likely increased legal immigration, thus adding to the 8-9 million illegal migrants already residing in the U.S. as well as increasing legal immigration levels.http://profiles.numbersusa.com/improfile.php3?DistSend=KS&VIPID=317
Viva La Raza Blanco!!—–
Put them in the army for 3 years. If they receive an Honorable discharge, they become a legal citizen.It pisses me off to watch them demostrate holding a f####### mexican flag.I really just soon send them all back and start over. this time with gunfire!
Just machine gun them to death, simple! There is no place for the filthy vermin in the armed forces.
Viva La Raza Blanco!!
Ian,You seem rather bloodthirsty today. Might I suggest a rare steak or other iron fortified meat tonight for dinner?:)
WE DON”T NEED NO STINKIN ILLEGALS
Just heard from a friend in southern California…a demonstration there had people yelling things like “Down with America”, among other things.
Fine. They don’t like it, go back across the river.
Hey Rom – I thought your name was Bill Blyth? According to your emails it is.
Or is it multiple personalities that are peeking out?
Julie, looks like you caught your creep. Turn him in to the cops. Threatening or terroristic email may be a felony.
Good job Brownback, you filthy traitor! It would be good if he and other traitors had their skulls cracked open by angry baseball bat wielding patriots!
LOS ANGELES — The Senate Judiciary Committee approved election-year immigration legislation Monday that clears the way for millions of undocumented workers to seek U.S. citizenship without having to first leave the country.
After days of street demonstrations that stretched from California to the gounds of the U.S. Capitol, the committee also voted to strip out proposed criminal penalties for residents found to be in this country illegally.
The panel’s vote cleared the way for the full Senate to begin debate Tuesday on the emotional immigration issue.
“All Americans wanted fairness and they got it this evening,” said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, the Massachusetts Democrat who played a pivotal role in drafting the legislation, approved 12-6.
Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., voted for the bill but signaled that some of the provisions could well be changed by the full Senate.
In general, the bill is designed to strengtehn border patrol, create new opportunities for so-called guest workers and determine the legal future of the estimated 11 million immigrants living in the United States illegally.
At several critical popints, committee Democrats were united while Republicans splintered. In general, GOP Sens. Lindsay Graham of South Carolina, Sam Brownback of Kansas and Mike DeWine of Ohio, who is seeking re-election this fall, sided with Democrats.
That gave Democrats a majority that allowed them to shape the bill to their liking.http://www.nbc4.tv/news/8289535/detail.html
Viva La Raza Blanco!!
The MF traitor Brownback just don’t quit!
“This is an S-type (sounds like a Jaguar) Visa for those who are willing to provide evidence that their home country is developing or currently has weapons of mass destruction. Under current law, the information must lead to the prosecution of someone in order for the applicant to qualify.
An amendment introduced by Senator Brownback (R-KS) would not only increase the number available but also change the qualifications. The Senate voted in favor of granting the Visa to applicants even if the information provided leads to nothing.
Yep, just make a claim of terrorism against the government of your native land and you are in!
On to the BIG issue: Guest Worker Plans/Amnesty
The afternoon debate has been devoted almost exclusively to guest worker language and Members are scrambling to get their issues heard before the committee-imposed deadline of midnight tonight. Committee Chairman Arlen Specter has already said that the committee will put out an immigration reform bill by tomorrow morning even if they have to work all night to finish.
So far not a single committee member has opposed a guest worker plan–not one.
Everyone seems to be operating under a forgone conclusion:
The debate is not whether we should have a guest worker plan but rather, what type of plan will work best.
Anything the Senate produces will have to go back to the House for approval but still, this is madness! A guest worker/amnesty plan does not seem to be a possiblity anymore…it appears to be a certainty.”http://blog.vdare.com/
Viva La Raza Blanco!!
XXX,Already done darlin’
It’s amazing that the protests of illegal immigrants are given more press time and more Congress time than the legal citizens of this country. So Congress is listening to them, huh? Do you think if we could all learn fluent Spanish, they’d listen to us?
Seig oder Mexicaner!Seig heil…Seig heil…Seig heil.
*militarize the borders – good*deport 10-12million illegals currently in U.S. – good
Problem: Many of these illegal immigrants have American born children. If we evict entire families, wouldn’t we also be evicting those children who committed no crime but were unfortunate enough to be born to illegal immigrants?
Julie….way to go! I love it when a creep gets left swinging in the breeze.
Jules, does that mean you’ve shared this latest tidbit with them? :-) Good.
People like this guy remind of the armed robber who got out on bail, and promptly robbed the same motel. . .and the same clerk (true story, here in Doodah).
Hmmm. CrusaderX put flike into attack mode.
To us regulars, “flike” and “attack mode” aren’t usually words that go together.
No further comment needed.
That was on a different thread, apparently. My bad.
But it did happen.
I disagree with the president and his group of “yes” men saying that the Mexicans do jobs Americans won’t do.It is a lot closer to the truth to say they will work for a wage that is less than what Americans will work for.It would be easier to welcome them into this counrty if they would leave their flag and language at the border. A lot of them seem to think we need to learn spanish.
Mexicans do jobs on the cheap for wages that Americans cannot accept unless we want to live 15 people to a room like the illegals do.
I have never agreed with Michael Savage. He says as a liberal I am afflicted with a mental disease.
Today I agree with savage. He says we should answer these parades of Mexican flags through our streets. He says tomorrow we should hang Mexican flags upside down or publicly burn them.
In the morning, I will go looking for a Mexican flag.
burn Mexico.
I think it was CF who said:
“I loves me some immigration”.
I agree. Nothing like a good wedge issue developing in an election year. The business r’s are turning on the church r’s regarding humanitarian aid to immigrants vs. punising the businesses that hire illegals.
And it was Durbin, a DEMOCRAT who was defending churches and trying to get an exemption from prosecution for those groups, especially churches, that are providing food, water and shelter to immigrants.
But the big business r’s (read jack’s boys) are fighting punishment for businesses hiring the illegals. We all know the reasons why. They want the “guest worker” program to increase their profits on the backs of u.s. workers seeking living wages.
But the rabid right want them all rounded up and sent somewhere else. No matter how much they contribute to the economy. The rabid right want the churches punished for even giving food and water to humans. And they may or may not want the employers punished..
What is the incentive for illegals to come here? Jobs and quality of life. If you want to remove the incentives, start with the people who provide the illegals with jobs. Jobs lead to better quality of life.
Will deporting workers and punishing the businesses that hire them make the price of goods and services go up? Maybe.
I wonder how some of the radical right will square up their love of walmart (because they keep prices low for poor folks) with their hatred of immigrants (booting them out will make prices go up for poor folks…and everyone else.)
And wont it be fun to watch the conservatives turn on the catholics? I mean, the pope’s followers have been the religious right’s best friend on abortion and gay marriage. And now, they are the biggest providers of immigrant aid? heheheh.
I love to watch the right eat its own. And since most hispanic immigrants, both legal and illegal, tend to be catholic, with appropriate donations to the collection plate, wont deporting the immigrants seriously hurt the catholic church’s attendance and finances?
Wonder how the catholics will fund the abortion fight? By closing more churches for lack of funds and priests? Maybe they can save enough on not giving humanitarian aid to make up the difference.
I am not taking a position here, I just love to watch the big business republicans be at odds with the working republicans who defected from the dems. I love watching the rabid right trying to penalize the churches they have previously loved so much and used so well.
Like CF said, I loves me some immigration. Let the republican self destruction begin!!!!!
One more thing…. :)
I heard someone talking last night about how the children of many illegals are actually citizens, whether you believe they should be or not.
That means when they turn 18, they can vote. AND THEY DO VOTE! And (here is an amazing grasp of the obvious) not all hispanics are illegal. Many have been here for generations. And hispanics are the fasted growing minority in the u.s. AND THEY VOTE!!! Why do you think both political parties have been courting the hispanic vote?
So, the newcaster last night said karl rove and george bush have spent much of their political careers courting the latino vote. Especially the young, religious latino vote. The young hispanic CATHOLIC vote.
Young latinos have voted republican overwhelmingly in the last two presidential elections. They have been a dependable part of the r’s base. karl and george did a good job of bringing young latinos into the r tent.
So…hehehe…what’s gonna happen now, when LEGAL immigrants and their extended families start to vote against the party that wants to deport their friends and family?
Can the r’s say defection? Can the rabid right say “we lost the catholic vote”? Can repubs say “the hispanic vote has gone to the dems”? I wonder if they will acknowledge all this when the proverbial chickens come home to roost on fear, xenophobia and racism. How did that fear work on the ports deal?
Can you say “we lost the house and senate”?
heheheh.
Ok, one more one thing… :)
For once, the dem’s strategy of doing nothing might work in their favor. They can just stand on the sidelines, hold the coats and take the bets, while the r’s self destruct in a “cock fight” of the legal kind. Called elections.
Still chuckling at all this.
Viva la gordian knots!
Just posting here to see if nathan follows :)
I pulled this from the comment section of another national blog, so I dont know who wrote it, but my ears pricked up when I thought about it.
“Did you notice who the four Rep’s were on the Senate Judiciary Committee voting for the immigration bill yesterday? Spector, DeWine, Graham (SC), and Sam Brownback of Kansas.
Now why would Sam Brownback vote for the bill and oppose his fellow Rep’s on the committee? I have been saying that the man wants to run for president and that if and when Cheney resigns Sam Brownback will become the next vp. Thus, he’s supporting Bush in this legislation to secure the vp job first on his trip to the White House. I may be way out in left field on this (but, I’m already there anyway on most of my thoughts) but keep on eye on Brownback.”
Holy guacamole!
Now there is a SCAREY thought I hadnt had yet.—–
Driving on Lincoln today, crossing the river, I happened to see a family of Mexicans (maybe Hondurans, Salvadorans, etc. not real sure, they were all speaking Spanish) As I passed them, they thru all the fast food bags they were carrying into the river.
Mom and kids all laughed as they thru the bags into the river. Yep..let’s teach em to mess up this country at a young age…