Immigration Issues:

 1.Securing the Border

 2.Employing Illegal Immigrants

3.   3. Settled Illegal Immigrants

4.  4. Children of Illegal Immigrant

5.   5. Illegal Right to Social Programs?

6.   6. Illegals in School & Community Colleges

7.   7. What Washington Should Do

8.   8. What States Can Do

9.  9. What Cities Can Do

10. 10.What MAM Members Can Do

General thoughts and comments from MAM members on each issue as listed above:

1.      1.SECURING THE BORDER:  Yes, the borders need to be secured and the laws enforced.  What must we do to get this done?

2.      2.EMPLOYING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS:  It is our understanding that some businesses actually advertise at or near the border of Mexico for illegal immigrant workers.  If this is actually going on and no one is doing anything about it – well! – this would be an example of the MADNESS that makes us MAMs crazy!

In a small business operating legally in this country, if the employee withholding is off by even a few cents or is made late, the penalties, the flurry of letters from the IRS, is unbelievable!  And yet, according to an article in the Jan. 2008 issue of Reader’s Digest (see rd.com) “about $59 billion dollars is lost annually due to underreporting and underpayment of employment taxes.  The article claims that there are about 8 million undocumented workers in this country due to our broken immigration system, who are not paying taxes and who have no withholding.

Instead of running after honest businessmen making minor errors it seems that the government should answer some of these ads by the border, and FINE these businesses!  However, according to the RD article, David Walker of the Government Accountability Office would have us believe that the IRS is “outgunned” by the high priced lawyers employed by these businesses to defend them against such action.  FLOTSAM!  The RD article also says that the government wastes nearly $1 trillion per year.  They should “waste” some of our money to stop businesses from providing the jobs that make illegal immigration so attractive.

3.     3. SETTLED ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS:  General Amnesty for these people is the madness that prompted a public outcry.  (Thank Goodness)  This would make a mockery of our legal system and is unfair to the many legal immigrants who have taken the time and trouble to go through legal channels.  It is also a terrific way for terrorists and those who would prey on our good will to enter this country and eat its heart out.

This is not to say that we want to round them all up, jam them into a bus and send them home.  Many illegal immigrants appreciate what they have here, are hard workers and would do what they have to if the laws were enforced.  We should give those already in the country illegally a choice:  either begin the legal process or go back to your own country.

Not easy you say?  Of course it’s not.  It should not be a maze, though.  If we need to revamp the immigration laws, streamline them, make them easier to understand and to deal with, okay, let’s do it.  We want to find out if they want to be citizens.

Consider this: even for something simple, like a speeding ticket, those charged are asked to do something to show their remorse.  Quite often this is a class, or a certain number of hours of community service work with a nonprofit group of their choice.  In return, their charge may be reduced or they may obtain some other leniency from the court.  Why not do something like this with those already settled here illegally?  They could put their hours in with the government’s immigration office, to offset the need for increased manpower to enforce the immigration laws.  Or they could do something else.  Comments?

4.      4.CHILDREN OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS:  We haven’t heard much debate about this but we are interested in hearing your comments.  Currently, we think it is US policy to declare anyone born in this country a US citizen.  True?  Not?  If it is true, should it be this way?  Many countries do not do this, and if we do, we must decide if we should continue with this policy.  Do we want Osama Bin Laden’s kid to have citizenship in our country just because one of his wives gets in and delivers?

5.      5/ ILLEGAL RIGHT TO SOCIAL PROGRAMS?  We definitely do not think that illegal immigrants should be receiving welfare, disability payments, free health care, educational scholarships or anything else.  They are breaking the law, do not pay taxes and are entitled to NOTHING.  However, obviously there are illegals receiving all of this.  It seems that the people who allowed this to happen should be reprimanded (and maybe fined to help pay for the bus).  And, so as not to be real jerks about all this, the people receiving the benefits should be told that they have got X amount of time before their benefits will end and that they need to begin the process to get legal.  If this sounds harsh, let us hear your comments, please!

6.     6. ILLEGALS IN SCHOOL & COMMUNITY COLLEGES:  As Austin Allran stated in the Winter 2008 issue of Conservative Citizen, “By law, employers cannot hire an illegal immigrant, which makes one wonder why a community college education would be useful.”  Once again, we do not feel these people are entitled to anything in our education system unless they are willing to go through legal channels.  The exception is children through high school age.  They have no control over what their parents do, but once they are of adult age and wish to enter the community college system or a university, they should be forced to go through legal channels just like everyone else. 

7.      7. WHAT WASHINGTON SHOULD DO:  We want to hear your comments.

8.      8. WHAT STATES CAN DO:  North Carolina Governor Mike Easley was quoted in the 2008 Winter edition of Conservative Citizen as saying, “I don’t want any illegal immigrants in North Carolina, and the only way we can stop that is for Washington control the borders … Washington has not acted.”  Easley is passing the buck on this issue.  There are plenty of illegal immigrants employed in North Carolina illegally.  They are being hired by independent contractors and by companies who choose to look the other way about immigration laws.  The state of North Carolina could choose to enforce the current immigration laws while they are waiting for Washington to do something about the border.  If nothing else, they could do it through the NC Department of Revenue.  By law employers must also deduct state withholding, which of course requires a Tax ID number, which illegal immigrants do not have.  Other suggestions?

9.      9. WHAT CITIES CAN DO:  Some of the things that we have heard cities doing to curb or reduce the illegal population include requiring landlords to ask for proof of citizenship before renting a dwelling, and increasing fines on businesses that hire illegal immigrants.  What should our cities do?

10.  10. WHAT MAM MEMBERS CAN DO:  Of course, the first thing all members should do is send the MAM website to five new people if you have already sent it to everyone in your address book.  Secondly, give us your ideas.  We could, of course, e-mail, write or phone various politicians who may be able to do something about all this, but ….

But let’s get creative and get people talking.  We could … attach something to our cars to make a statement, have a rally, send all e-mails to one politician, real mail to another, phone calls to another; contact someone semi-famous who will speak for us; call all the radio stations and ask to have a song played to get a specific result, get a state rep to challenge cities, a mayor to challenge the state; enlist the help of a big business that wants to set an example; let all our dogs run loose at an appointed hour (JK!!!!!!) or something that only YOU have got in your brain.  Tell us what it is – we want to be heard because we want to STOP THE MADNESS.  Don’t get MAD, get something done!  Join MAM today.