I am married to a legal immigrant.
I know lots of legal immigrants.
I work with lots of legal immigrants.
I know and work with lots of legal immigrants who are now citizens.

People do what is easiest and best for them. Hence, illegals sneak in, and once in, they are getting the money and benefits, so why change anything.

Becoming a legal immigrant and citizen is REALLY NOT THAT HARD...if you have any plausible reason to have come here and be here.

In the case of "Dreamers": I think they have made themselves their own worst enemies. Almost any reasonable person, no matter how conservative, would be willing to put them at the bottom of the deportation list, and congress should probably change the laws to allow some special consideration to those who have truly been here their whole lives. But by being loudmouth whiners who align themselves with the loony Left, my attitude is "F U.,.go home."

quote:

I have two sisters in law ( from Chile and the Philippines), they both came here and became naturalized citizens.

This is not the issue. Absolutely no one here has a problem with legal immigration and becoming a naturalized citizen.

quote:

Originally posted by jhe888:
I am sure that many Mexicans and Central Americans would love to be legal residents and citizens. But they can't get visas to get in and work here. It isn't that they don't want to be legal, we won't let them in in the first place.

So they sneak in. And once here illegally, it is about impossible to get legal status.

Whether our immigration policies are too restrictive is the essential debate.

For the most part, this is a good explanation.

Illegals sneak in because just like all lawbreakers, they do not want to do things the correct, more difficult way. They cut in line, in front of millions who are patiently waiting for the process to vet them access. The illegals just want to earn money quickly, not thinking of the long term, like those legally immigrating from Russia, Korea, Jamaica,Mexico, etc.

Our immigration policies have to be restrictive, and IMO, tightened up even more. The whole world wants to get into the U.S. and we simply can't accommodate them, no matter what some leftist commie says. An oldie but goodie helps simplify this.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPjzfGChGlE

Their advocates like to tell you illegals are healthy for the economy, but I believe the opposite. I believe they are a net drag on society. Who pays for their kids going to school? Who pays for ER visits for non-emergency medical care? An indirect cost is car insurance. I pay less than a third for it than I did in Phoenix. Yes, there are other factors, but a big one was the illegals getting into accidents and not having licenses or insurance. And there is the criminal element that comes with any large group of people.

I don't believe there's much if any legitimate debate regarding our immigration rules being too difficult. That's what some folks would like to debate, but isn't the real question at all. The real problem is the border and how ineffectively we deal with those who snuck in or overstayed a legit Visa. Millions upon millions have legally emigrated just fine. THE primary and perhaps only problem and debate is how to handle the cheaters who are here and how to stop more of them from coming.

Yet no one seems to deal with the actual issue itself.

Whenever they drag out the "cheap labor" and "our economy depends on them" arguments, I point out that Yes, The pre-civil war South's economy also depended upon cheap labor. Sometimes the cost of labor goes up when you don't break the law.

Saving money, or because the legal way is "too difficult" is the MOTIVE for just about every crime!

And nobody mentions how much of a drain they are on the economy when they send millions of dollars out of the country back to their "home" countries rather than those monies being spent here in the US...

Why should there be immigration at all? Why should we not expect people to bloom where they are planted, wherever that may be?

Why should we not use our resources to create opportunities for all, everywhere?

when I worked for the I.N.S. in the 90's I interviewed thousands of apprehended Illegals and none of them wanted citizenship unless it meant financial benefits, healthcare, etc... Once we mentioned paying taxes, or fighting for the nation they all laughed. Many mentioned they would just go back home to Mexico before they would fight for America.

quote:

Originally posted by JALLEN:
Why should there be immigration at all? Why should we not expect people to bloom where they are planted, wherever that may be?

Because we didn't either, and now - roughly 200 years later - as a result of exactly the opposite of what you advocate - we made the greatest country the world had ever seen, but we weren't planted here either, we came and took it over - one by one - with little regard to who was here already, and now - some want to arbitrarily just decide to stop doing that? We got ours, right? If the world worked the way you suggest I'd have grown up in the Scottish Highlands and you somewhere similar, probably no French wives, none of it. No, immigration is definitely the right thing, but like most things - just not to the point of self destruction, and not in some foolishly blind manner with no regard to the costs, like now.

Overview of the 14th Amendment
http://www.14thamendment.us/bi.../misinterpreted.html

Mark Levin Explains Why The 14th Amendment Doesn’t Give Anchor Babies American Citizenship

I see only one question in the OP: "Why don't they want to become legal citizens?"

I am sure illegals would take the option to become legal citizens.

But that's not what the drama is about. The drama is about illegals coming here and cutting ahead, cutting out the long line of immigrants who have been approved already to immigrate and are waiting their turn to be processed. Some people have been waiting for 30 years, that's how long the line is for some people.

Again, the drama is about illegal immigration. Good people don't want illegal immigration.

And giving a pathway to citizenship for illegals already here isn't going to solve the illegal immigration problem and it encourage more illegal immigration in the future. Furthermore, it is a disservice to those people who have been waiting their turn going through the legal process.