Our nation desperately needs immigration reform, but Senate Bill 744 will not correct the issue. We need to streamline the immigration process so people who can contribute to society and not be a burden on the taxpayer can come here in an orderly, legal process. We need to increase quotas for migrant farm workers so farmers can have the necessary workers to pick their crops, but not the 50-percent increase SB 744 does.
Farmers also need to be responsible for health care costs of the migrant workers and their families. Taxpayers should not be burdened with these costs.
We are a nation of laws. Granting amnesty to those who have broken our immigration laws sets a bad precedent and discriminates against legal immigrants who follow our immigration laws. If we grant amnesty, this is a slap in the face to those who have followed our laws.
In 1986, we were promised that, if we supported amnesty for those in this country illegally, our borders would be secured. We trusted our elected officials to secure our borders and supported amnesty. Our government broke its promise; our borders still are not secured 27 years later.
Many of our elected officials, including Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, are not being honest with Americans about the immigration bill. There are many waivers in the bill that undo provisions in other sections. I have listed a small portion of these waivers below. For a complete list, please go to: http://bit.ly/13Kf9G0.
SB 744 would:
* Grant amnesty to farm workers illegally in our country after only five years, and waive the 10-year waiting period.
* Void state and local E-Verify laws. The federal E-Verify would not be required for all employers until four years after the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issues regulations implementing the mandatory program, which could take a few years.
* Require that DHS waive the public charge law that prohibits that agency from admitting illegal immigrants likely to receive public assistance.
* Provide that when an illegal immigrant applies for legal permanent resident status — at this point, qualifying for federal assistance programs — the applicant need only demonstrate income or resources equal to 125 percent of the federal poverty level.
* Allow DHS to waive multiple misdemeanor convictions when granting amnesty, so an illegal immigrant with three or more misdemeanors still may be eligible for legal status.
SB 744 also does not prohibit illegal immigrants from receiving public assistance from state or local governments. Our nation cannot afford to add this many new people to our assistance programs.
We need to enforce the immigration laws we have now and secure our borders before we pass new laws.
Debbie Dooley is Georgia coordinator for the Tea Party Patriots.
