Illegal Immigrants

I’ve been thinking a bit today about the immigration rallies that "brought America to it’s knees" yesterday. Well, about 1 million people marched on the subject and the world continued to rotate on it’s axis and the United States was still in business at the end of the day. But anyway.

Here is some of what was behind the "victory" yesterday.

— The House of Representatives passed a bill in December, mainly
with Republican votes, focusing on tightening the border with Mexico
and making felons of illegal immigrants and punishing those who employ
or help them. The House bill also would build a 698-mile wall along
parts of the 2,000-mile Mexican border.

— The Senate is at an
impasse on a plan to overhaul immigration laws that would create a
temporary worker program, as proposed by President George W. Bush, and
open the way for more than 7 million illegal immigrants to become U.S.
citizens. Critics denounce the measure as amnesty that would lead to
even more illegal immigration.

— Bush’s proposal for a temporary
worker program has put him at odds with many in his own Republican
Party. Bush insists it is a legal way to fill the jobs that Americans
are unwilling to do, a position supported by business. Labor groups are
wary of a guest worker program that does not provide a path to
permanent residence saying it would create an underclass of workers. [Rueters]

I just support what congress and the president are trying to do. We should be encouraging legal immigration reform. We should close our borders to undocumented workers. Companies who hire undocumented immigrants should lose their ability to do business in the United States. We should stop punishing people who are trying to legally enter our country because of those who come without invitation.

We’ve all heard the arguments in favor of amnesty and things like that. But what if that steps on the foundations of our country? Equal opportunity and justice for all?