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Immigration: |
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| INTRODUCTION:
An unprecedented number of immigrants are being allowed into the U.S. today.
As a group, immigrants tend to vote overwhelmingly in favor of race-based programs
such as quotas, preferences and contracting set-asides. Immigrants also tend to vote
overwhelmingly Democratic! Is our immigration policy simply a cynical vote-buying
scheme by liberal Democrats? Overall, is this cynical policy in our nation's
economic interests? [ General & Editorial ] [ California's Prop. 187 ] Illegal Immigrants to Receive Full
Protection of U.S. EEOC (10/26/99)
Ida Castro prefers to call them "victims of national origin discrimination", but
the fact is that they are criminals under U.S. Immigration Law. They don't pay
taxes, they don't vote, they are here illegally, and they take jobs from U.S. citizens and
from legal immigrants. Furthermore, the EEOC will not, as a matter of
policy, turn over these illegal immigrants to U.S. Immigration authorities. (Several
news links) Immigration Is Fueling Poverty
Rate (07/06/99) "The GAO report found that newly naturalized citizens use public assistance programs in much greater numbers than the native born. ... In California, for instance, which is home to the greatest number of immigrants, 23.7% of newly naturalized citizens are receiving Medicaid benefits, compared with 8.2% of Californians as a whole. Nationally, the price tag for providing public assistance just to those who acquired U.S. citizenship during this period was $735 million. "This information alone should be enough to lead our government to question our immigration policy. But the GAO report raises another red flag that ought to be sounding alarm bells in Congress: The number of people who became citizens in the fiscal year 1996 was triple the previous peak in the naturalization rate. It also coincided with changes in federal welfare policy, which made noncitizens ineligible for many welfare programs. Thus, it is fair to surmise that the stampede to become American citizens was not a sudden outpouring of patriotism but rather motivated by immigrants' fear that they would lose their government subsidies. But is this a motivation that is really in the long-term interests of the nation? "Rising poverty attributable to our immigration policy and the apparent surge in naturalizations to retain eligibility for public assistance programs is a scenario that the late Barbara Jordan cautioned against in her report to Congress as chair of the U.S. Commission on Immigration Reform. Congresswoman Jordan, a Democrat from Texas, warned that our failure to control illegal immigration and the lack of skills-based admission criteria for most immigrants would inevitably lead to a new underclass in our society. She also stressed that becoming an American ought to be an expression of commitment on the part of immigrants to this country, not simply an affiliation of convenience.
"It is simply irrational to maintain an immigration policy that is contributing
mightily to the growth of poverty in our country and increasing the burdens on our social
welfare programs, and doing so during a period of prosperity and nearly full
employment." (LA Times 07/06/99 by Dan Stein) Proposition 187: Background and News California's Prop. 187 sought to deny illegal immigrants most taxpayer-funded public services. Under former Republican Governor Pete Wilson's tenure, California voters overwhelmingly approved Prop. 187 in 1994 by 59% to 41%. A federal judge tossed out the key provisions. (The former governor, Republican) Pete Wilson appealed to the U.S. 9th Circuit, assuming the case ultimately would be decided by the Supreme Court. The appeal was, of course, filed in Wilson's official capacity as Governor. When Democrat Gray Davis became Governor he inherited Wilson's 9th Circuit appeal -- in his official capacity as Governor. The 9th Circuit wanted to know whether Davis wanted to proceed with Wilson's pro-187 court appeal, which still had not been resolved when Davis assumed office. A strange situation for the Latino-loyalist, pro-minority Democratic governor to find himself in! Especially since Latinos and immigrant groups had strongly supported Davis in the election. Proposition 187 Recent News: Davis Allows Appeal to Expire; 187 is Dead. A
Messy Way to Settle Proposition 187 Dispute (07/30/99)
"Some of the landmark measure's provisions denying state benefits, such as
nonemergency health care, welfare and higher education, to undocumented immigrants will be
supplanted by federal measures, he said." (San Francisco Chronicle, Opinion,
Page A24, 07/30/99) Prop. 187 mediation riles
voters (07/30/99) "The settlement that voids most of California's landmark anti-illegal-immigration initiative may bring a close to an era of ``divisive politics,'' but it may have a significant impact on voter confidence in the initiative process. "Even as supporters of Proposition 187 were looking for ways to legally attack the court-sanctioned mediation that scuttled the 1994 initiative, many voters were voicing disgust with the politically motivated mediation process. ``Don't ask me to vote anymore,'' an angry couple, Colleen and Jeff Nobil, wrote in an e-mail. ``It is a waste of my time to hurry from work, wait in line, place my vote and then have it ignored. This system has created apathy.''
"That is exactly the reaction former Gov. Pete Wilson, who spearheaded Proposition
187, said he expected when his successor, Democrat Gray Davis, moved the case behind
closed doors. ``The process has implications even beyond the importance of Prop. 187,''
said Wilson, who filed the appeal when a federal judge ruled most of the initiative
unconstitutional. ``Whatever side you're on in an issue, it seems to me you ought to be
afforded your day in court.''" (San Jose Mercury News 07/30/99 by Hallye Jordan and
Howard Mintz) Davis Won't Appeal Prop. 187 Ruling, Ending Court Battles "Davis has agreed not to appeal an earlier federal court ruling that held much of the initiative to be unconstitutional. The agreement, which is expected to be filed today with the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, almost certainly will prevent the case from going to the U.S. Supreme Court, said lawyers on both sides of the case.
"Proposition 187, approved by nearly 60% of California voters, became a national
symbol of anger about illegal immigration. Court battles, however, blocked most of
its provisions from being enforced. The deal seems sure to ignite additional
controversy, since it permanently bars the enactment of the ballot measure's core
provisions--those preventing illegal immigrants from attending public schools and
receiving social services and subsidized health care, according to the lawyers." Davis to drop Prop. 187 appeal
(dead link)
"The decision, which Davis is expected to announce today, reverses his earlier stance
that as governor he was obligated to appeal a court ruling declaring unconstitutional the
controversial 1994 voter-approved initiative. Davis had opposed the measure and also had
promised during his campaign to end wedge-issue politics. Some of the state's most
prominent Latino politicians, including Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante, had urged Davis to drop
the appeal months ago and criticized him bitterly when he decided to ask the federal
appeals court to mediate a settlement with the proposition's opponents." Anti-Immigrant
Law Left With Little to Enforce
"The announcement will be made at separate press conferences this morning in Los
Angeles by the Democratic governor and lawyers representing opponents of the ballot
measure." Deal struck to end
litigation over immigrant aid
"Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. Proposition 187 was endorsed by 60
percent of California voters in 1994, but most of its provisions have gone unenforced due
to court challenges. Davis opposed the measure but had to decide whether to defend it in
court after becoming governor. He said previously he had no intention of enforcing that
part of the proposition denying education to undocumented schoolchildren." END Immigration |
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