Senate Begins Immigration Reform Debate

[_cinepro]

So what happens when millions more people become eligible to legally work in entry level, low-skill jobs?

[_Brackite]

So what happens when millions more people become eligible to legally work in entry level, low-skill jobs?

According to the Congressional Budget Office analysis of the immigration reform bill, the unemployment rate will slightly rise a bit and the average wages will drop a bit.

CBO: Senate Immigration bill would help economy

Not all the forecast was as favorable, though. CBO said average wages would decline through 2025 as a result of the bill, and that unemployment would go up slightly.

One critic quickly seized on the impact on pay. "It's going to raise unemployment and push down wages," Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., said of the bill. He added: "The impact will be harshest for today's low-income Americans. Meanwhile, the 21 million Americans who can't find full-time work will have an ever harder time getting a job and supporting their families."

[_ajax18]

I didn't think anything could make the immigration situation worse, but this so called "reform" might actually do just that if you're an American taxpayer. It amazes me that even today the majority of Americans want the border enforced and yet for over thirty years the government has simply refused to enforce it.

[_Brackite]

Senate immigration deal includes tougher border security

Washington (CNN) -- A border agent every 1,000 feet, every hour of every day, supported by 700 miles of fencing along the Mexican frontier.

No green cards for the 11 million immigrants living illegally in America until those steps and others to enhance border controls are taken. And none of it increases the federal deficit or debt.

A bipartisan group of senators unveiled a compromise on Thursday intended to ensure Senate passage of a major immigration reform bill with enough Republican support to persuade the GOP-controlled House to also take up the measure that is a priority of President Barack Obama.

The bipartisan amendment would require 20,000 more border agents, completing 700 miles of fence along the boundary with Mexico, and deploying $3.2 billion in technology upgrades similar to equipment used by U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The proposal, negotiated by a group of senators from both parties known as the "Gang of Eight," also insists on stronger worker verification and border entry-exit controls.

[_krose]

Yeah, spending a lot more money and expanding government. What happened to the republican obsession with cutting government spending?

[_Brackite]

Yeah, spending a lot more money and expanding government. What happened to the republican obsession with cutting government spending?

It is worth the money being spent if it significantly cuts down the number of illegal immigration crossings.

Rubio Welcomes Republican Amendment To Create “Surge In Border Enforcement”

[_ajax18]

What good are more laws when the government won't enforce existing laws. As it stands now, Janet Napolitano is paying/coercing salaried border patrol agents to turn their heads and look the other way. We already have laws. We just have a government that won't enforce them.

[_EAllusion]

Yeah, spending a lot more money and expanding government. What happened to the republican obsession with cutting government spending?

It is worth the money being spent if it significantly cuts down the number of illegal immigration crossings.

Rubio Welcomes Republican Amendment To Create “Surge In Border Enforcement”

Skip to around the 11 minute mark.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJgDqLgJIcU

The fencing is virtually useless. It's a symbolic gesture meant to placate sentiment against immigration. A very expensive symbol.

[_krose]

1. The United States already spends more money on immigration enforcement than all other federal law enforcement combined.

2. Despite the fantasy world of anti-immigrant people (see above) who imagine hordes of sombrero-wearing invaders surging across the southern border, net immigration from Mexico is currently at zero, and a record number of immigrants have been deported under Obama.

And the reaction to all this is to double the border guards, build more ugly fencing, and add a bunch more drones flying along it.


But on the bright side, at least it's government spending, which should give a bit of a boost to the economy. Of course none of our crumbling bridges or highways will be rebuilt, but if this is the only kind of stimulus spending we can get passed, then I guess we have to take what we can get.

[_Brackite]

From FoxNews.com:

Senate immigration bill clears hurdle, vote set for Thursday afternoon

Published June 27, 2013 / FoxNews.com


The Senate immigration overhaul cleared its final procedural hurdle on Thursday, winning the support of 68 senators as the chamber hurtled toward a final vote on the contentious legislation.

The Senate voted 68-32 to end debate on the bill, teeing up a vote on final passage later in the afternoon. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has called for a 4 p.m. ET vote.

The legislation faces an uncertain fate in the House, where majority Republicans are drafting their own bills and have voiced opposition to the Senate version.

But the vote to cut off debate, which required a minimum of 60 senators to succeed, demonstrated that supporters easily have the votes to approve it in the Senate.

Republican opponents of the bill voiced frustration as the chamber sailed to finalize work on the legislation. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, on Wednesday said he felt "used and abused," as he tried to slow down the process and call for more amendments to be considered.

All Democrats, in addition to 14 Republicans, voted for the legislation on Thursday. All "no" votes came from the Republican side of the aisle.

The legislation would be the most sweeping overhaul of America's immigration system since the 1980s. It would legalize millions of presently illegal immigrants, while expanding legal immigration and increasing border security.

"We're on the edge of passing one of the most significant pieces of legislation that this body has passed in a very long time," Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on the Senate floor Wednesday. "The vast majority of members in this body realize that the immigration system is broken and needs fixing."

But many in the GOP-controlled House oppose the pathway to citizenship at the center of the Senate bill. And many prefer a piecemeal approach rather than a sweeping bill like the one the Senate is producing.

Republicans in both chambers have complained that a late-developing compromise measure that increased spending on border security still put "amnesty" ahead of security.

At its core, the legislation in the Senate includes numerous steps to prevent future illegal immigration, while at the same time it offers a chance at citizenship to the 11 million immigrants now living in the country unlawfully.

It provides for 20,000 new Border Patrol agents, requires the completion of 700 miles of fencing and requires an array of high-tech devices to be deployed to secure the border with Mexico.

Businesses would be required to check on the legal status of prospective employees. Other provisions would expand the number of visas for highly skilled workers relied upon by the technology industry. A separate program would be established for lower-skilled workers, and farm workers would be admitted under a temporary program.

The basic legislation was drafted by four Democrats and four Republicans who met privately for months to produce a rare bipartisan compromise in a polarized Senate. They fended off unwanted changes in the Senate Judiciary Committee and then were involved in negotiations with Republican Sens. John Hoeven of North Dakota and Bob Corker of Tennessee on a package of tougher border security provisions that swelled support among Republicans.

Outnumbered critics insist the bill falls short of the promises made for it.

...

Rep. Paul Ryan seeks a 'workable, legal immigration system'

I very much like Republican Paul Ryan. He is a Great Congressman!!!