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New U.S.-Mexico Border Protection initiative has no plans for further border wall expansion

LatinaLista — Today the Obama administration released their idea of a comprehensive U.S.-Mexico border security package. All that can be said at this point is that if this is their idea of comprehensive, then when it comes time for the next “comprehensive” response, a.k.a. immigration reform (CIR), then we all have something to look forward to.
The U.S.-MEXICO BORDER SECURITY POLICY: A COMPREHENSIVE RESPONSE & COMMITMENT is much more in-depth than what the original Merida Initiative outlined. The U.S. response is not just about throwing money at Mexico and telling them to solve this problem but for the first time, addresses the role U.S. demand for drugs plays in this ongoing battle.
It is extremely refreshing to see a security policy come out of Washington that understands the realities of this volatile and deadly situation and is applying ideas that don’t just positively address the issues but takes the necessary responsibility and blame for the increase in cartel violence by setting up a coordinated effort among all departments of federal law enforcement on both sides of the border.
Yet, this doesn’t mean that everyone likes it.


Texas Governor Rick Perry is disappointed that President Obama isn’t going to militarize the border by sending National Guard troops, as he made the case for them in a special letter sent to the President on his behalf.
On the other hand, Mayor Salinas of Laredo, Texas, a border town that has seen its fair share of violence across the international bridge, thinks the Obama plan is on target for not going the militarization route, which would seem like a reactive versus a proactive response:

“Laredo is a very safe city, with violent crime rates well below the national average. Still, to be proactive in responding to the challenges our neighbors and friends in Mexico are facing is only prudent,” said Salinas.
As a career public safety professional, I am very happy to see the President’s plan focuses on cutting off the money and guns that flow to the cartels from the United States into Mexico. To me, this effort reflects a law enforcement response, not just political posturing.”
Salinas continued by saying: “We need more boots on the ground and I welcome the announcement of the increased number of DEA, ATF, Customs and Border Patrol agents that the plan calls for. It is only through sharing intelligence and a coordinated effort of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies that can we continue to protect our citizens,”
“The best long term investment the federal government can make for sustained border security is to help fund additional local police officers and support for public safety equipment such as interoperable radios and rescue craft.

However, in a morning White House press briefing Department of Homeland Secretary Janet Napolitano made it known that she plans to see Gov. Perry on Thursday of this week to see just exactly what he had in mind for those troops.
To even review the highlights of the U.S.-Mexico border security policy would make this a far too lengthy post, so I will focus on highlight that wasn’t even mentioned throughout the whole press release detailing the border security policy — the border wall.
And it seems for good reason.
The following is an exchange between a media representative and Sec. Napolitano at this morning’s White House release of the border security plan:

Q I have a question here. Mexico has always complained that part of the reason they have this huge drug-trafficking problem is because of U.S. consumption of drugs here. So I was wondering if your plan encompasses some sort of plan to fight against consumption here.
And on the other hand, restrictionist groups in the U.S. have said that this is all the more reason why the border wall needs to be completed. Can you tell us what’s going on with the completion of the wall along the border?
SECRETARY NAPOLITANO: With respect to demand, yes, that is part and parcel and needs to be. This is a supply issue and it’s a demand issue. In the stimulus package, there was approximately $70 million for drug courts, which have been very effective in reducing recidivism among drug offenders. I look forward to working with the new head of the National Drug Control Office to see what else can be done to increase our demand-reduction programs. But that obviously has to be a part.
In terms of the wall itself, we are going to complete the sections that had already been begun and for which there already were appropriations. To the extent we request any other sections it will part and parcel of a system that includes technology and manpower.
But if you’ve ever worked on these cartel cases, as I have as prosecutor, you know that a wall is not the best way to spend our dollars to prevent these drugs from coming into the United States and to be able to apprehend and prosecute the smugglers themselves.

The administration’s public stand against further expansion of the wall shows an affirmation to using reason and analysis when confronting this very real problem. As someone told me over the weekend, who lives along the Texas-Mexico border, the wall accomplishes nothing at keeping the country secure from cartel violence because too many cartel members already live on this side of the border.
The key is to stop the flow of money, drugs and arms that financially and psychologically empowers these groups and which have been operating quite smoothly with the wall already in place. As far as the wall diverting illegal immigration into the U.S., the stats show the impact is minimal at best.
It’s time to spend money wisely and stop financing a failed ideology.

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Comment(53)

  • Sandra
    March 24, 2009 at 7:19 pm

    Baloney! The wall is a huge deterrant against illegal entry and it helps the BP do its job better. It is being built on the most feasible places on the border. Ask any BP agent and they will tell you what a huge help a physical barrier is to them.
    It was never intended to stop illegal immigration in its tracks but to help alleviate the problem and assist the BP agents.
    Anyone opposed to it has either an ethnocentric agenda or looking to keep the cheap illegal labor flow coming. They just use the cost of it as their excuse to object to it. We have spent much more than this on other defense mechanisms over the years. When it comes to the safety of our citizens no expense is too much.

  • Marisa Treviño
    March 24, 2009 at 7:28 pm

    OK, Sandra. Please provide the statistics that show that the border wall is a “huge deterrent.” I would find those stats but you would probably dispute my findings. Let’s see what you come up with. It’s time to back up your opinions with some facts.

  • Panchito
    March 24, 2009 at 8:46 pm

    It is great to finally have a President that has a vision that clearly identifies the problem and develops feasible solutions that tackle the shared responsibility we share in the illegal drug business and associated evils that come with it. To blame all our drug problems on Mexico is like having Panchito blame McDonald’s for being overweight. Everyone knows how stupid this reasoning is but half our country does not have the courage to admit it.

  • Dave Bennion
    March 24, 2009 at 10:37 pm

    Oh crap, looks like I’ve been called out again on my anti-border wall, Anglo-Gaelic-Scandinavian ethnocentrism.
    Have you noticed this is a multi-ethnic movement? Which ethnicity do you suppose I am promoting over the others? I always get confused when this happens.

  • Grandma
    March 24, 2009 at 10:51 pm

  • Sandra
    March 25, 2009 at 8:11 am

    Marisa, a better question would be, why would our government spend billions of dollars on the fence if it didn’t deter illegal entry and help the Border Patrol? It is only common sense that walls/fences are a deterrant. Why do people put fences around their own properties for protection then?
    In San Diego alone where there was about a 17 mile sector built awhile back it cut back illegal entry by well over 50%. I would be glad to find stats for you on this but you would proabably call them biased. Just use commone sense for God’s sake!

  • Marisa Treviño
    March 25, 2009 at 9:36 am

    Sandra, I’m also asking that you use common sense and so go ahead and present those stats. We’ll all debate whether or not your source is biased. Thanks!

  • Sandra
    March 25, 2009 at 9:41 am

    As I said you only have to use common sense that any physical barrier is a detterant to unwanted trespassers anywhere. That is why homeowners and businesses put fences around their properties. This physcial barrier also assists the BP immensely. That is also common sense. Again, I ask if it doesn’t help or work, then why did our government spend billions on it?

  • Irma
    March 25, 2009 at 9:43 am

    Obama inherited the drug cartel problem from the Bush administration. While
    W and all his friends lined their pockets
    with Iraq related taxpayer money-
    the Mexican cartels grew in personnel and
    expanded their US distribution routes.
    All this happening just a sneeze from
    Crawford, Texas. They never noticed all those guns somehow making their way back to Mexico….
    Bush destabilized the Middle East with the
    Iraq fiasco and at the same time let the
    drug cartels implant themselves into
    major US cities Boston. LA, Chicago
    and coming soon to your favorite town too.
    Obama is wise to try to help the Mexican government contain this disaster that
    W simply OVERLOOKED.

  • Karen
    March 25, 2009 at 12:06 pm

    Re: “why would our government spend billions of dollars on the fence if it didn’t deter illegal entry and help the Border Patrol?”
    To give a government contract to some campaign contributor.

  • Marisa Treviño
    March 25, 2009 at 2:57 pm

    Sandra, you’re still offering me only your opinion and conjecture. The stats exist as to the effectiveness of this wall. So, like I said, please provide them and we’ll go from there.

  • MaryElizabeth
    March 25, 2009 at 3:53 pm

    Sandra, It is really silly that you are comparing putting a white picket fence around your home to a border security fence…and if you want to compare it…Let’s Go!! let’s have a little fun with a silly comparison!!/ When one put’s a fence around a swimming pool as a way to keep kids out of the pool…What happens? It highlights the swimming pool making it more exciteing to jump the fence and go swimming in the middle of the night when no one is looking./or when someone puts a garden fence up to keep the deer from eating their plants…they deer go around the fence and eat the neighbors plants./ (Sandra…Did you grow up in a shoe box).lol-And why would our goverment spend our tax dollars to put the fence up??…Well, we all know why and I’m surprised you haven’t figured it out…they do it to satify your imagination of thinking the Border is now secure…and Ummmm also, these are government contracts sucking up our taxpayers dollars. Although I would rather them put up a useless fence (a far more dignified way of making a living), rather than detain raped pregnant females in our private industry prisons (useing our government contracted lobbyed taxdollars) then throw them out in the streets when they are ready to give birth.

  • Sandra
    March 25, 2009 at 5:35 pm

    Utter BS that the fence doesn’t deter illegal entry and assist the BP. I notice no one will comment on how it helps the border patrol. Why don’t you ask them what they think of the fence? Also if the fence doesn’t work then why are you pro-illegal, open border advocates all up in arms about it?
    Here is some more on how well the fence worked in San Diego.
    http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5323928

  • Sandra
    March 25, 2009 at 5:53 pm

    By the way ME. I wasn’t comparing a white picket fence to the border fence. Most homes and private properties have cement block walls on their property lines for protection. No, they won’t stop intruders 100% but they are a deterrant. The border fence is combined with surveilance technology also.

  • Jason Hunter
    March 25, 2009 at 10:04 pm

    Panchito -“To blame all our drug problems on Mexico is like having Panchito blame McDonald’s for being overweight.”
    The comparison is not apt, as MacDonald’s is selling a legal product and their employees aren’t the type of people who would cut off people heads.
    The reason Mexico can find such people to do such dirty work is that their government is corrupt and the people are oppressed by poverty, much of their own making. If Mexico were a successful country there would be fewer of their nationals employed in the drug trade. The Mexican people are making choices, bad choices to engage in immoral activity. U.S. citizens aren’t forcing Mexicans against their will. This is another case of Hispanics blaming everyone but themselves for their problems.
    Hillary is a pimp for Mexico and her message will be viewed negatively by the American people, especially since Mexico does nothing to help the U.S. by remedying their economic problems and mitigating illegal immigration. Hillary will only evoke a negative backlash from the non-Hispanic community, as millions already view the Obama administration as coddling illegal immigrants and appeasing the Mexican government.
    Hostility towards illegal immigrants has been inexorably increasing for years now. Just check out the comments on articles in the NY Times, The Tucson Citizen and the LA Times, they’re all negative. The predominance of opposition in accompanying comments to web based news sources are a bellwether of the feelings of the general public. Mr. Obama will find this out when Congress finally attempts CIR. Although Congress has a democrat majority, even the democrats will not buck the will of their constituency to support the president’s aberrant notions of granting amnesty to our invaders from south of our border. CIR will undoubtedly fail to come to a vote in the Senate when Harry Reid is shocked by how little support that it has. Harry thought he had it in the bag the last time, but he was shocked when the Capitol phones rang off the hook. No new and realistic arguments have been advocated by your side since then. Our tanked economy is the nail in the coffin for CIR, the pathetic arguments that we need the excess illegal aliens to get out of the coming depression notwithstanding.

  • Karen
    March 26, 2009 at 8:02 pm

    Jason Hunter:
    Hillary spoke the truth. America is the #1 market for illegal drugs. Furthermore, weapons from out country are arming these drug lords. And it doesn’t matter if people don’t like what she said. Her job is not to tell delusional people what they want to hear.

  • MaryElizabeth
    March 26, 2009 at 11:38 pm

    The majority of the general public is not against the undocumented worker. In the primarys both democrat and republicans voted in pro-comprehensive immigration reform candidates. If America really opposed it that much they would have not elected them. When you talk about the phone ringing off the hook you are talking about your group of anti’s that rally up against the issue and truthfully you are alot smaller than you appear to be. When Bush tried to pass reform it almost passed through the Senate. It needed about 6 more votes. Some Senators went against it because the feared to go up for re-election but as the numbers show (and that was around 15 dems) why would they pass the bill for a Republican that was not populiar?? on the other hand I expect some of them to go against the bill but Obama will definitly pull some over…Obama picked up 44 additional electorial votes in the election and they were Hispanics. The issue is something that Americans are going to want a resolution to this time. Americans want reform on all levels. Your ideals are getting old and Americans want a reasonable solution. Oh…and the Comment about Hillary Clinton being a Pimp to Mexico is obnoxious! Panchito is right when he says to blame all our drug problems on Mexico is like blaming Pachito for being overweight. If Americans didn’t consume drugs the cartel’s wouldn’t have the cash flow. I give Hillary and President Calderon for trying to come up with a solution. Who wants our children to continue to go to school with drugs in their atmosphere.

  • Sandra
    March 27, 2009 at 5:33 pm

    ME, as I said before the majority of Americans are opposed to illetal immigration and want our borders secured.
    As far as the election goes, a candidate not winning had nothing to do with illegal immigration. It was all about the war, the economy and a failed Bush presidency. Bush brought the Republican party down, not their stance on illegal immigration. McCain was for an amnesty so that blows your theory right out of the water.
    Hispanics and other minorities mostly vote Democrat anyway. Nothing new or revealing there either. The fact that Obama is half black surely influenced some minority vote but he couldn’t have won without the white vote anyway.

  • MaryElizabeth
    March 28, 2009 at 12:11 am

    No it does not blow my theory down. Mccain won the primary. If Republicans were so hung up on the immigration issue they would have never voted Mccain in on the Primary…since it was Mccains bill (Mccain/Kennedy) On the other hand Kennedy indorsed Obama so again that tells you something about the Democrats also. Immigration bill. Sandra, you are forgeting that as unpopuliar as George W. Bush was the reform Bill almost passed. It only failed by 6 votes in the senate. I thing you have to get realistic on the issue. Look at the numbers in the house and senate now. Most democrats want reform on immigration. You are judgeing the majority on your own personal opinion and you are not looking at the demographics across the United States and how people want reform on all levels.

  • Panchito
    March 28, 2009 at 8:34 pm

    Jason Hunter,
    The Mexican Cartels existence is directly linked to the “insatiable” demand on the U.S. side.
    Why throw stones if you live in a glass house?
    Very simply, if the demand goes away – then there wouldn’t be any reason for the drug cartels existence. The other option is to legalize drugs. The tax revenue generated from legalization of drugs could be used for prevention education and treatment. There will also be great savings, as you would not have to incarcerate so many drug users as we currently do. My point about being overweight and blaming McDonald’s for it is that we cannot solve our problems by blaming someone else for them. We have to take responsibility for our own sins and find real solutions for them.

  • Horace
    March 29, 2009 at 5:37 pm

    I suspect that the Democrats will not have a lock on the Hispanic vote for long. Considering the Catholic Church hates Obama’s stand on abortion and stem cell research, his popularity will start to plummet, and Hispanics who do not support illegal immigration, and they are many, will flock to the Republican party.

  • Sandra
    March 29, 2009 at 5:42 pm

    Panchito, why don’t you take your last sentence and apply it to illegal aliens?
    Yes, we should all take ressponsibility for our own sins. Guess that doesn’t apply to illegals in your book though? You put your foot in your mouth on that one!

  • Sandra
    March 29, 2009 at 8:50 pm

    Here is the latest on American opinion of illegal immigration. A March 2009 Rasmussen poll showed
    the majority of Americans do favor stricter enforcement of the nation’s immigration laws.
    67% of Americans would favor local police conducting surprise raids where immigrants congregate daily to find work. Only 24% disagree with the practice.
    68% of Americans favor stricter sanctions against companies that hire undocumented workers. Only 22% oppose stricter sanctions.
    79% of voters think the United States should beef up its military presence on the Mexican border.
    73% of voters think police should automatically check a person’s immigration status during traffic violations.

  • Panchito
    March 30, 2009 at 9:13 pm

    Sandra,
    you said “Panchito, why don’t you take your last sentence and apply it to illegal aliens? Guess that doesn’t apply to illegals in your book though? You put your foot in your mouth on that one!”
    Sandra, the fact is that I do not support illegal crossing of our borders and I have never said that I do. You (and your buddies) ASSume I do because my name is “Panchito”.
    My beef is with the extreme right wing Republicans like you who claim they are only against illegal immigrants but portray all Hispanics like they just crossed the border yesterday, stereotype us all, and scapegoat us for all the problems that we are facing in the country.
    I’m a father and my biggest fear is that my son is going to run into somebody who will try to hurt him simply because of the color of his skin. But, I don’t expect you to understand this or even care. For me and for many U.S. Hispanics this fight is not about politics – it is personal.

  • MaryElizabeth
    March 30, 2009 at 11:54 pm

    Sandra, Those polls will change as the stock market goes up and our economy gets better. Right now the focus is on Border Security but remember we have a great president and as he takes on each problem our country is facing things will get better and better. He has not addressed the issue yet. Obama has a vision and when the time comes America will listen to his voice. Those numbers will change when the job market improves. Some experts suggest that we might see things start to turn around as early as this summer. I certainly hope for all of us things get better. I really do not think Americans are against the immigrant and that Ramusen poll can be off sometimes depending on how they take their sample. I think Americans are focused on the loss of jobs right now…and as bad as it is now 67% is actually better then you would think it would be.

  • Irma
    March 31, 2009 at 2:45 pm

    Sandra,
    Americans are fickle. Look , they vote with their pocket books – otherwise John
    McCain would be the president.
    It is a fact that illegal alien keep the price of food down , at the grocery store and in restaurants. The bargain prices that Americans love and DEMAND are possible only because of underpaid illegal immigrant labor.
    No, Americans dont REALLY want the illegal aliens to be rounded up and sent back. Dont believe everything you read.

  • MaryElizabeth
    March 31, 2009 at 7:07 pm

    I was discussing the Ramusen poll with a few friends and they felt the poll was conservative and could be partisan at times. They said Ramusen has a way with words when they take their sample and might not be actually getting true accurate public opinion and you have to wonder where they took there sample from. Being they are conservative they might not be polling fairly on this issue??

  • Horace
    April 1, 2009 at 5:46 am

    Irma: “It is a fact that illegal alien keep the price of food down , at the grocery store and in restaurants. The bargain prices that Americans love and DEMAND are possible only because of underpaid illegal immigrant labor.”
    Good idea, Irma, we need to keep a large illegal, abused and underpaid underclass in the country so that you can save 5 cents a pound on avocados. I’m glad that you’ve revealed your true motives for defeating our border protection initiatives. People like you are disgusting.

  • Sandra
    April 1, 2009 at 8:02 am

    Panchito, that is utter BS propaganda about the Republican party. I don’t assume your stance on illegal immigration by your name, your posts show what your views are on it. Lee Ortiz in here is against illegal immigration, so a name has nothing to do with it. Saying you are opposed to illegal immigration while on the other hand pushing for legalization of those who are in our country illegally is hypocritical. If Hispanics are so concerned about their safety and public opinion of them then why don’t they join the rest of America by showing their disdain for those of their ethnic group violating our immigration laws? I won’t hold my breath on that one.

  • Sandra
    April 1, 2009 at 8:11 am

    ME and Irma, Rasmussen is one of the most unbiased, reputable polls there is. The unfavorable opinions of illegal immigration haven’t changed much since the economy went into the tank.
    The reason that John McCain lost is because Bush brought the party down with his asinine war among other dumb things. Both McCain and Obama expressed a supposed need for CIR. So how do you figure that McCain lost on anything to do with illegal immigration? Illegal alien labor does not bring down the cost of goods for the most part the employers just pocket the profit. I would rather pay double for a tomato anyway then to have my country invaded by the millions who suck up all kinds of tax dollars that nullify any savings on a tomato anyway. Not to mention the uncontrolled population growth and the increase in our crime statistics.
    If Americans don’t want the illegals sent home then why did CIR not pass a couple of years ago. Americans burnt up the phone lines in protest.

  • Horace
    April 1, 2009 at 7:57 pm

    Of course only polls of Latinos in primarily Latino communities would be acceptable, after all, that’s where ethnocentric Latino bobbleheads gain their consensus of opinions. And of course when vice president biden says that now isn’t time for an amnesty it’s not because the public mood isn’t sympathetic with illegal immigrants but because the moon isn’t in the correct phase and Jupiter isn’t aligned with Mars. See smoken Joe’s at http://www.cis.org/Feere/BidenOnImmigration

  • Panchito
    April 1, 2009 at 10:09 pm

    Sandra,
    Don’t give yourself too much credit. You don’t speak for America. I’m not pro-illegal immigrants but I do not hate them either. And, I certainly will not turn my opposition against illegals into a sport- like you do. Only bullies and losers behave the way you do. I have never liked either one of them.

  • MaryElizabeth
    April 2, 2009 at 1:31 am

    Sandra, I do agree with you on the tomatoe. I would rather pay double for the tomatoe than have employers work people at cheap labor costs. I do agree that Bush did alot of stupid things and that includes the war. Its just the CIR part that I dont agree with you on. You see I dont believe it is the immigrants that are here that are hurting us. First of all we do need to close the Border…because when reform does pass we need to let people come in the right way through a open legal immigration system. (Providing we have an excess of jobs). Immigrants come only when the jobs are available. Google the Chinese, the Irish Protestants and then the Irish Catholics, Italians, etc., etc, and if you look they only came when there was prosperity. The reason why I am for CIR is because there are 12 million here and my reasons are of humane and financial. First of all we have our prioritys and we are spending money in Iraq, Afgan, Mexico…on wars and Border Security. Then we have job creation and the stimulus pkg and we are bailing out Banks and the Car Industry. Then there is health care to reform. You see Sandra, we can only print so much money so the logical thing to do is CIR and enforce labor laws like crazy. As long as those 12 million are still in the shadows those employers still have their cheap labor force available and that is the last thing we need because employers will get around the system. If you look back in history employers exploited many groups starting with the Chinese and rail way back in the 1800s. We need that CIR and then we need to slam employers if they break the law once the Border is secure. As far as Mccain goes..my point is he one the republican Primary and the Reform bill was a Mccain/Kennedy bill. If Americans were against CIR they wouldnt have voted for Mccain in the Primary. As far a Rasmussen it was off alot in the general election. I followed the polls daily. You have to watch Rasmussen. It is important when takeing a sample poll to keep the questions basic. I would like to see various polls by different pollsters and then I would trust them within an average and a 5 point margin.

  • Sandra
    April 2, 2009 at 9:51 am

    Pachito, no I don’t speak for America and I never said that I did. The polls speak for them/us and the fact that CIR was not passed awhile back.
    I don’t hate anyone. I have a distaste for illegal acts though. I am turning my opposition to illegal immigration into a sport? WTH does that mean? Who the hell am I bullying? Expressing my opinion just as you do is bullying? Guess that makes you bully also then? The expected insults and ASSuming by an illegal alien sympathizer. Thanks for not disappointing as usual.

  • Sandra
    April 2, 2009 at 10:07 am

    ME, you can believe what you want to believe about millions of illegal aliens in our country and how that affects us. I base my negative opinion on it with many verifiable statistics and just plain common sense. My opinion is also based on humanitarism for my fellow Americans and as you call it “financial”. You see them as a financial benefit. I see them as a financial deterrament. I could give you many stats to back that up but you would call them biased and would refuse to believe them because you are blinded by your sympathy for illegal foreigners rather than your allegiance to your fellow Americans and country and won’t accept the raw truth.
    Again, there wasn’t much choice in this election. Both candidates were pro-CIR. As I said, McCain lost because Bush brought the Republican party down with 8 years of his asinine policies. Most Americans wanted the war ended, the economy, healthcare reform were the top issues. Obama represented change to many Americans from Bush and the Republican party. Immigration took a back seat to these issues at that time but has never really left the minds of Americans. Either way with both candidates being pro-CIR, there was no choice anyway.

  • MaryElizabeth
    April 3, 2009 at 1:02 am

    Sandra, I do not think that CIR is on the minds of most Americans. You continue to dodge my point about republicans and the primary. Mitt Romney talked against CIR. If is was such an issue there would be no way the republicans would have put Mccain in. As you see CHANGE in our country is going well. The stock market is going up and in the morning today they talked about the recession ending. Do not talk to me about fellow Americans because most of them do have compassion and they are on the same page of optimism and HOPE. Most of them do not refer to people using the gross terms that you do. The truth is the stock market is going up and with that so will Obamas popularity and with that you will see a public that trusts his decisions. Next we will have a decent health care system…A secured Border, CIR..a great job market with employers that have no access to a cheap labor force. For the first time in history they will have to follow rules…pay minumum wage and treat all people humanly.

  • Sandra
    April 3, 2009 at 8:52 pm

    ME, I am not dodging anything. McCain was a war hero and immigration had to take a backseat to our economy and the war. Many Republicans thought that McCain was the best candidate to deal with both of those issues.
    What I said, is that YOU lack compassion for your fellow Americans and how this illegal invasion is affecting them. You are more concerned about the well being of foreigners illegally in our country. I don’t use gross terms to describe anyone. Illegal alien is the proper governmental term that is used in immigration law. Don’t like it then b@itch to them but don’t tell me I can’t use an official governmental term because it hurts your tender ears.
    I hope that Obama is a successful president but being only two months in office you are overeaching with all these supposed wonderful things happening already. The stock market has still been up and down since he took office and he has gotten us trillions more in debt.
    Unless Obama supports e-verify in the workplace, the employers will continue to get away with violating our labor laws. Last I heard Obama isn’t that favorable towards it. I find it ironic that you are all puffed up about the employers having to follow the rules under Obama but you never seemed to care if the illegals didn’t follow the rules. They are both guilty! E-verify will stop the snubbing of our laws by both. Lets hope that Obama supports punishing all the guilty parties and preventing them from snubbing U.S. laws ever again.

  • Horace
    April 5, 2009 at 8:12 pm

    ME said: “Sandra, I do not think that CIR is on the minds of most Americans.”
    Actually, much of the world hasn’t been on American’s minds, and they’ve come to regret their lack of political awareness. They ignored Congress’ failure to control our borders and now they find themselves with 12 million invaders amongst them, many who will be competing for the same jobs as unemployment continues to rise over time. Because Americans aren’t quite rioting in the streets over CIR doesn’t mean that CIR is a good thing, or that there is no need to inform them of the negative effects of enacting it. American’s ignorance of the facts is what ethnocentrists depend upon to sneak their agenda through Congress. And revelations of the facts are what cause ethnocentrists to malign their opponents in order to discredit them. Their only problem is that their opponents will not be cowed, no matter how much the ethnocentrists abuse them.
    “As you see CHANGE in our country is going well. The stock market is going up and in the morning today they talked about the recession ending.”
    This is a premature statement, as unemployment continues to rise, and the worst is yet to come. You really don’t understand how bad things are going to get, ME. And Obama is yet to accomplish anything. Health care is still just a dream, alternate means of energy production are nowhere near supplanting fossil fuels, and the stock market is hardly stable, reacting like a roller coaster from day to day. The stock market reacts positively to some things you don’t like, such as GM disposing of excess workers on their way to competing with the rest of the world. Just because a recession ends doesn’t mean that unemployment will reduce, it just means that we’ve achieved a level of economic stability.

  • MaryElizabeth
    April 6, 2009 at 12:42 am

    Sandra, People are never guilty for survival and looking for a better life. I am concerned with the big picture and that is American workers, Undocumented workers, and children. What you do not understand is that we are a big melting pot that has been subjected to a broken immigration system for almost 20 years now. When you take a number like 30 million undocumented and then you weave this into a melting pot it is obvious what happens. People form relationships and they have children. These people are Americans and Undocumented. When you say you feel compassion for your fellow Americans then why do you feel that it is ok to separate them from their undocumented loved ones and separate their familys. You do not care for Americans at all…because if you did you would want CIR to pass and then reform the legal immigration system from there. It is employers that broke the labor laws so badly that they created the magnet that got us all into this mess. It is the employers that should pay never the workers. I love Obama…he is the peoples President. He knows that when you go after the worker and inforce E-verify the employers have ways to get around that system if they still have access to the undocumented. It is impossible to deport all these people and it is inhumane. To continue the same path we are on is giving the employer the license to continue to undercut American societys wages and to keep an underground workforce at our expense. Without a reformed legal immigration system we will have an additional flood of workers arrive when the economy picks up and they will also become a part of the underground with Border Security and CIR.

  • Sandra
    April 6, 2009 at 11:12 am

    If seeking a better life is attained through breaking laws…yes it is wrong!!! It is even more wrong when their seeking a better life brings down the quality of life for others.
    The melting pot hasn’t a damned thing to do with illegal immigration! It is about citizens and legal residents from all etnic groups coming together into one unique culture and society.
    Geez ME, you come with some of the most bizarre statements I have ever heard of. So I should support the illegal behavior of some citizen’s relatives and make the rest of my fellow Americans suffer for it? Most Americans do not have relatives who are resorting to this kind of behavior. There is also that little thing called respect for our country’s laws. Guess I should forget about that too?
    Lets see it is both the employers and the illegals breaking our laws but only the employers should be held accountable? Does it get anymore bizarre than this, ME?
    We don’t have to deport millions of illegal aliens. Most will self-deport when there are no jobs and benefits for them here. Duh!
    Rewarding immigration law violaters is not the answer. Your claims that CIR passed with amnesty will stop the flow has already been proven not to work with the 1986 amnesty. The answer is to make e-verify mandatory and take away any non-emergency benefits from illegals including making their born on our soil kids, instant citizens along with securing our border once and for all by any means necessary.

  • MaryElizabeth
    April 7, 2009 at 9:20 pm

    Most Americans do not have relatives suffering from a broken immigration system. Well…lets see Sandra, Unless you live in some kind of backwards inbread rural town that only consists of your family and you, a tightly woven group that go way back together…my guess is that you do not realise around 5% of the US population is undocumented…now lets see…add up their spouses, chidren, relatives, and friends and you will see we are currently going through a crisis here in our country. Now Sandra, get ready for this…5% plus all their spouses, children, relatives, and friends aren’t about to give up their piece of America. Also the more time goes by the stronger they get and the smaller you get. Everytime you post more of your rhetoric about how immigrants hurt America the majority perceive you as a NUT! because we are a melting pot of many ethnic backgrounds and we do not think the way you do. But I suppose you want the melting pot to leave the US so that you can live on Waltons mountain and live happily ever after.

  • Sandra
    April 8, 2009 at 6:51 pm

    Foreigners are suffering from our broken inmmigration system? Our immigration system isn’t broke. How is it broke other than our government’s lack of enforcement? Because we don’t allow everyone in the world to come here or a certain ethnic group that wants THEIR relatives to come here in spite of the fact that we cannot accomodate them all, that makes our immigration system broke?
    I have never said that “immigrants” hurt our nation but illegal aliens do, not to mention that they absolutely have no right to be here. You and yours are going to be in for a rude awakening when the MAJORITY of Americans rise up and demand that our government do the right thing according to our laws and the best interests of this country. You and yours are the minority in this country with your far left liberal or ethnocentric agendas.
    Again ME, what the hell has the melting pot to do with illegal immigration? Answer that one! I don’t object to different ethnicities living in this country as long as they are here LEGALLY and didn’t enter ILLEGALLY. You are just another nasty race card puller on your fellow law abiding Americans. Absolutely disgusting that you care so little for us and this country.

  • Dick
    April 8, 2009 at 9:44 pm

    “..my guess is that you do not realise around 5% of the US population is undocumented…now lets see…add up their spouses, chidren, relatives, and friends and you will see we are currently going through a crisis here in our country. Now Sandra, get ready for this…5% plus all their spouses, children, relatives, and friends aren’t about to give up their piece of America.”
    Me, my guess is that you weigh 300-lbs, are ugly as sin. It may not be true but it has all the basis in fact of your guess as to the population of illegal immigrants in this country.

  • Dick
    April 8, 2009 at 9:50 pm

    The wall is expressive of the contempt that our country has for Mexico in its disregard for our border. If trespassers enter my home, its no shame on me if I add another lock. Hispanics have to realize that not everyone is in love with Mexico or its people.

  • Sandra
    April 9, 2009 at 3:57 pm

    Dick, it isn’t even about whether we are in love with Mexico and it’s people or not. It is about our immigration laws. We would be just as adamant about building a wall on our northern borders if millions and millions of Canadians were flooding our borders illegally.

  • MaryElizabeth
    April 10, 2009 at 12:27 am

    Speak for yourself Sandra and stop making up your numbers about what the MAJORITY of America thinks. The MAJORITY of American is not Sandra and her family up on Waltons mountain that refuse’s to see what America is made up of. What does the melting pot have to do with it? My fellow Americans have children with the undocumented. They are friends with the undocumented. They are married to the undocumented. They date the undocumented. Why? because they are human and it is normal for normal humans to like each other. This is the melting pot of America! Get it?! I don’t know who your friends are?? but they need a reality check when it comes to America. You throw me some conservative Ramausen poll up there and you thing this is the Gospel…and I have to ask you who did they call when they conducted the poll. Walton’s mountain? I know you think that America is suppose to look like the Andy Griffith show to you…but you are forgeting that the “rule of law” was not suppose to break the “rule of civil rights” in America…now I am going to have to tell you something that is going to surprise the “heck” out of you and I like that word “heck” because it’s an Andy Griffith kindof a kind word. The Andy Griffith show endorsed and supports Barack Obama and his policy’s. lol…Now let’s see what happen’s this time Sandra. Americans have gone soft on the Immigration Issue. Why?? Because we like Andy Griffith and we believe in family values!

  • Sandra
    April 10, 2009 at 6:47 pm

    ME, I haven’t made up any numbers! In fact I have posted poll results to back up the fact that the majority of Americans are anti-illegal immigration and want our immigration laws enforced.
    So your friends date or marry illegal aliens, what the hell as I asked does that have to do with the melting pot? The melting pot is Americans of all ethnicities coming together under one culture and one society. It has nothing to do with illegal aliens for God’s sake, it is about Americans.
    You can stop your smarta**ed cracks about white people with your Walton and Andy Griffith remarks also. I could make some stereotyping remarks about Latinos also but that would be childish and insulting like you are being.
    I am not looking for an all white America if that is what you are insinuating. We are majority white though with a minority of other races/ethinicities that are citizens also. I have no problem with them either as long as they are here legally. So go stuff your race card and false accusations of me up where the sun doesn’t shine! Grow up!

  • MaryElizabeth
    April 13, 2009 at 9:48 pm

    When an American marrys the undocumented and has a child…this is a part of our melting pot. Whether you like it or not it is America. You have a selfish point of view that comes from your own believe that you have “White Entitlement” to this country. Sandra…You have serious issues!! and you do not own America based on your point of view.

  • MaryElizabeth
    April 13, 2009 at 10:02 pm

    Oh and by the way. You do not have problems with the other races…but you have to continue to talk about being white and that we are a white dominated society. Your problems with the undocumented have nothing to do with their status. You like the fact that you can continue to harp on your “White Entitlement” and your ownership to America. You say that you are retired..you obviously had most of your life already. How do you take joy in spliting up American familys that have one parent undocumented. You are talking about one US born parent and their child US born. How can you sleep at night knowing that your soul purpose in life is to separate familys. Do you have any family values? You take your idea of your “White Entitlement” and stick that in your old tobacco pipe and smoke it in your rocking chair.

  • Sandra
    April 14, 2009 at 11:09 am

    Utter Bs and race card pulling, ME! Typical of you illegal alien advocates. Flame the opposition with false labels and insults.
    How dare you tell me how I think when I have already stated otherwise! Since when can you get into people’s heads and claim what they feel and think? I haven’t a damned thing against minorities in this country legally. Got that now…race card puller?
    Stating that we have a white majority in this country is not racism nor bragging. It just is what it is…the facts! No different than me stating that Latino countries are majority Hispancs. You are being just plain childish and stupid here.
    The melting pot doesn’t include illegal aliens so stuff that one also. If one chooses to marry one and have a child with them they have created a problem for THEMSELVES.
    I have no sense of entitlement in this country because I am of the white majority either. My fellow citizens whether they be Black, Hispanic or of any other racial makeup are equal to me and rightly so. So stuff that one also.
    Does it mean I have no family values for “citizen” lawbreakers who separate THEMSELVES from their families by being incarcerated for their crimes? It is the same damned thing for illegal aliens. They have broken our immigration laws. What makes them more special than a citizen who has broken any of our other laws? These illegal aliens can take their citizen born children back to their homelands and Mexico has dual citizenship anyway. When they reach 18 they can choose what country they want to live in. So stuff that one also.
    There are millions of Americans out there that want our immigration laws enforced and not just white people either and they don’t want yet another failed amnesty. How hell do you equate that with having no family values? What about the citizens of other countries who want the same for their countries? Are they all unfeeling jerks with no family values also according to you? Put the blame where the blame belongs and that is on those who break the immigration laws of any country. You can stuff that one to along with your hateful remarks, false accusations, insults and false labeling of law abiding Americans.

  • MaryElizabeth
    April 15, 2009 at 3:41 pm

    Sandra, The melting pot does include the undocumented in it. You do not deny the fact that 12 to 14 million + plus 4 million of their US born children are here + our fellow Americans that are spouses, parents, relatives and friends of them are here. You may not like it Sandra…but their status has nothing to do that they are alive and well and living in America which makes them a part of the melting pot.

  • MaryElizabeth
    April 15, 2009 at 3:45 pm

    Also, the majority of America is no longer white. The majority of America is a melting pot of ethnic groups mixed that have children, religious belivers and non-believers. You need to get with the program and realize America is not the same that you experienced 50 years ago.

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