“No more excuses”
You know by now that illegal immigration is one of my hot-button topics. First of all, it threatens what I consider to be one of the great pillars that this nation was founded upon: The concept of large-scale legal immigration and assimilation. But it doesn’t end there. The crowded, unsanitary conditions most of them live in once they get here make them much more susceptible to spreading all sorts of sickness and disease – placing an incredible burden on our healthcare system – and adding a real threat to our own health in the process.
A year ago, among all the hubbub surrounding the nationwide “immigration crisis,” I gave you three surefire ways to curb the issue. I still believe they’re the best steps we could take to solve the problem. And, since I’m on the topic, I think they bear repeating. So here’s a brief recap of my three solutions:
- A BORDER FENCE – Politicians say it’ll cost too much, but even at its most expensive (an estimated $8 billion, tops), it would be cheaper than the negative lifetime economic impact of just 1.5% of the illegals already in this country.
- RESCIND BENEFITS – Simply by virtue of their presence in this country, illegal immigrants are entitled to emergency health care, police and fire protection, and every right to privacy, liberty, and due process of law that all American citizens are entitled to. Many states grant them driver’s licenses, and many have mortgages and credit cards. Beyond this, their children, even if born one minute after illegally crossing the border, enjoy full U.S. citizenship, along with all the perks.
- EMPLOYMENT PROHIBITIONS – Making it a felony for anyone in America to hire an illegal immigrant would go a long way toward discouraging those bent on hopping the border to make a living. If the money river dries up, the “fish” will swim back from whence they came. It’s this last point that I want to expound on today.
Here’s why
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has just come up with a new set of rules that gives employers who hire illegals an ultimatum: fire them or face a hefty fine.
In the past, whenever a person’s social security number on their W2 didn’t match up with the government’s database, the employers would get a “no-match” letter informing them of the issue. And that’s about as far as it went.
Russ Knocke, the Homeland Security department spokesman, said that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement “is going to be tough and aggressive in the enforcement of the lawNo more excuses.”
Now, employers who receive such a letter will be forced to fire the questionable workers within two months if the discrepancy is isn’t “cleared up” (in other words, if the problem isn’t found to be a typo, a computer error, or due to a name change). The penalty: $250 to $10,000 in fines PER ILLEGAL WORKER.
It goes without saying that this could have a drastic impact on the economy. Craig Regelbrugge is a spokesman for the American Nursery and Landscape Association and is the co-chair of the Agriculture coalition for Immigration Reform. He said, “There’s a lot of fear and anxiety about what this rule is going to mean, particularly in the agricultural sector.”
Of course there is. When’s the last time you saw a field full of young Americans doing backbreaking work in scorching temperatures making minimum wage or less?
Slapping a hefty fine on these employers is at least a step in the right direction (though jail time would be a punishment more fitting to the crime). Is it actually going to make a difference? The jury is still out on that one. If the DHS actually enforces it, then yes. But that’s a big IF, if you ask me.
