I've got a better immigration overhaul plan: repeal NAFTA.

[readmoreoften]

Obama backs senators' immigration overhaul outline

"The outline calls for illegal immigrants to admit they broke the law, pay a fine and back taxes, and perform community service if they want to get on a pathway to legal status. They would also be required to pass background checks and be proficient in English."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_immigration

What kind of fine? What kind of "back taxes"? How are they going to become proficient in English without English education? Why not look at the source of illegal immigration in this country: (1) NAFTA and (2) Food industries busing in loads of impoverished people so they can pay low wages in the US.

[scentopine]

1. Yes - I will second that motion -nt

[The Northerner]

2. Shhhh!!! Addressing those issues would be too obvious

Of course, I'm sure the fine will be a joke (probably a few hundred dollars) and the English-proficiency tests will be financed at the expense of taxpayers.

[readmoreoften]

3. A few hundred dollars is a lot to a worker who lost their job to NAFTA and was bused North..

Why not overturn NAFTA and fine the companies who prey on the impoverished?

[sandnsea]

4. There was illegal immigration long before NAFTA

There are plenty of free adult language programs and if they can afford to pay a coyote to get here, they can afford to pay a fine to become a citizen, if that's what they want.

I don't personally support this lengthy and expensive process for legalization, but if you're going to oppose it, oppose it based on some facts.

[HeresyLives]

5. Why yes, wipe out millions of jobs in your export field.

That would be amazingly clever.

[readmoreoften]

11. Right, NAFTA is a real boon the American working class.

Not to mention the Mexican working class and farmers. :eyes:

[leftstreet]

6. K&R

[Mojambo]

7. Hell yes. The DLC'ers round these parts won't be too happy bout it though. n/t

[WinkyDink]

8. "Pay back taxes"? Doesn't he mean "employers will pay unpaid Social Security deductions"?

[MellowDem]

9. The problem is that the current laws are not enforced...

Those immigrants would have come with or without NAFTA, considering they came illegally. NAFTA is just a false whipping boy for many liberals. Tariffs and trade restrictions hurt the US economy and cause more job losses. If, for example, an auto union and company in the US gets the government to create a tariff on autos, guess what, it hurts every other American who isn't employed by big auto, all at the expense of one company and one union. We saw what having tariffs did for the US auto industry. They became stagnant, protected by the government and utterly uncompetitive. Their product was crap. And for a while, Americans didn't really have much of another choice.

[PinkFloyd]

10. HELL YES!!!