/PRNewswire/ -- Progressives for Immigration Reform has released a new policy brief: "The Economic Impacts of Mass Immigration into the United States and the Proper Progressive Response." The publication was authored by Philip Cafaro, an Associate Professor of Philosophy at Colorado State University with a long history of progressive political activism. This study examines the impact that uncontrolled immigration has on America's poor and argues that Democrats need to address their plight rather than swelling their ranks by importing less-skilled, low-wage foreign labor. The article reveals that current immigration policies widen income inequalities and concentrate immigration's harms upon those Americans least able to afford them.
Among the article's key findings:
-- Increased immigration has swamped American labor markets with
less-skilled, less-educated workers, driving down wages for
working-class Americans.
-- Government data show that when adjusted for inflation, average wages
in some industries with high numbers of foreign workers are 45% lower
than in 1980.
-- Among the biggest economic losers of current high levels of
immigration are poor Americans, ethnic minorities, and older
immigrants. There is no evidence of a labor shortage at the lower end
of the labor market.
-- Current immigration policies further economic inequality in the United
States.
"In today's economic environment when many Americans are suffering from unemployment, job displacement and stagnant or declining wages, liberals should strive to set immigration at levels that work FOR America's poorest citizens, rather than against them," says Professor Cafaro. "Although the United States is a wealthy nation that can and should do its best to help the world's poor, basic fairness requires that we address the needs of America's poor before increasing the economic and wage competition they already face."
-----
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Showing posts with label immigration reform. Show all posts
Showing posts with label immigration reform. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Health Care Provisions Still Soft on Illegal Aliens
/PRNewswire/ -- Assurances that the two health-care reform bills would not benefit illegal aliens are not accurate. A new report from the Center for Immigration Studies examines in detail the immigration-related provisions of both the House-passed HR 3962 and the bill now being debated in the Senate, HR 3590. The report concludes that the bills, in their current form, would indeed give illegal aliens access to taxpayer-funded health care well beyond emergency medical treatment.
The report, "Immigration-Related Provisions of Senate and House Health Reform Bills," is authored by CIS Fellow James R. Edwards, Jr. It is online at http://cis.org/immigration-related-health-provisions.
Key findings include:
-- HR 3962 ensures illegal alien access to the exchange and public
option. HR 3590 states illegal immigrants are excluded from these.
-- Both bills ostensibly bar illegal aliens from receiving the premium
subsidy, and both bills use some form of eligibility verification for
the subsidy.
-- Both bills expand Medicaid eligibility. Both bills lack verification
requirements based on citizenship or immigrant status. Both contain
serious loopholes to enroll illegal aliens easily into Medicaid. HR
3962 automatically covers anchor babies.
-- The eligibility verification process in each bill falls woefully short
of protecting taxpayer liability to cover or subsidize people living
unlawfully in the United States. Both the House and Senate bills'
verification processes will encourage large-scale fraud and abuse.
-- The Senate bill exempts illegal aliens from the mandate that everyone
have health insurance or else face a tax penalty. This perverse
exemption treats illegal aliens better than the bill treats American
citizens.
The Center for Immigration Studies is an independent research institution that examines the impact of immigration on the United States.
-----
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The report, "Immigration-Related Provisions of Senate and House Health Reform Bills," is authored by CIS Fellow James R. Edwards, Jr. It is online at http://cis.org/immigration-related-health-provisions.
Key findings include:
-- HR 3962 ensures illegal alien access to the exchange and public
option. HR 3590 states illegal immigrants are excluded from these.
-- Both bills ostensibly bar illegal aliens from receiving the premium
subsidy, and both bills use some form of eligibility verification for
the subsidy.
-- Both bills expand Medicaid eligibility. Both bills lack verification
requirements based on citizenship or immigrant status. Both contain
serious loopholes to enroll illegal aliens easily into Medicaid. HR
3962 automatically covers anchor babies.
-- The eligibility verification process in each bill falls woefully short
of protecting taxpayer liability to cover or subsidize people living
unlawfully in the United States. Both the House and Senate bills'
verification processes will encourage large-scale fraud and abuse.
-- The Senate bill exempts illegal aliens from the mandate that everyone
have health insurance or else face a tax penalty. This perverse
exemption treats illegal aliens better than the bill treats American
citizens.
The Center for Immigration Studies is an independent research institution that examines the impact of immigration on the United States.
-----
www.politicalpotluck.com
Political News You Can Use
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
White House Meeting on Immigration 'Reform' Likely to Leave Out Interests of the American Public, Cautions FAIR
/PRNewswire/ -- Tomorrow's long anticipated and oft-delayed White House meeting on immigration will likely produce a blueprint for a massive illegal alien amnesty in exchange for hollow promises of future enforcement, warns the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR). The plan being promoted by President Obama and Democratic congressional leaders is essentially the same one that the American people rejected in 2006 and 2007.
The American people have little reason to believe that any commitments to protect their interests would be honored. Since taking office, the Obama administration has all but abandoned enforcement of U.S. immigration laws. Worksite enforcement has been dramatically curtailed, implementation of E-Verify requirements have been scuttled, cooperation with state and local law enforcement has been scaled back, while the Department of Justice has made it easier for illegal aliens to remain in the country. Ironically, tougher enforcement efforts implemented during the final 18 months of the Bush administration had, for the first time, begun to reverse the flow of illegal immigration.
"The only thing comprehensive about so-called comprehensive immigration reform would be the amnesty for people who have violated our laws," observed Dan Stein, president of FAIR. "While millions of illegal aliens would be rewarded, struggling American workers and overburdened taxpayers would pay a heavy price were Congress and the administration to repeat the mistakes of the 1986 amnesty."
Some of the questions likely not to be addressed at tomorrow's White House summit include:
-- What impact would a massive amnesty have on already soaring
unemployment?
-- How would a repeat of the massive fraud that took place in 1986 be
prevented?
-- How would adequate background checks be carried out on the estimated
12 to 15 million illegal aliens who would be eligible?
-- How many additional relatives, now living outside the U.S., would be
eligible for amnesty?
-- How would future illegal immigration be averted when the
administration refuses to implement existing systems to prevent
employment of illegal aliens?
-- How would state and local governments - some already teetering on
bankruptcy - pay for services required by newly legalized aliens and
their families?
"The American people have some very clear ideas about the priorities President Obama and Congress need to address - and a massive illegal alien amnesty isn't one of them," said Stein. "The public wants our immigration system fixed, but they expect their interests, not the interests of the people who broke our laws, to be paramount. Unfortunately, the public interest will at best be an afterthought as the president and congressional leaders pursue a politically driven, narrow interest immigration agenda," concluded Stein.
-----
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The American people have little reason to believe that any commitments to protect their interests would be honored. Since taking office, the Obama administration has all but abandoned enforcement of U.S. immigration laws. Worksite enforcement has been dramatically curtailed, implementation of E-Verify requirements have been scuttled, cooperation with state and local law enforcement has been scaled back, while the Department of Justice has made it easier for illegal aliens to remain in the country. Ironically, tougher enforcement efforts implemented during the final 18 months of the Bush administration had, for the first time, begun to reverse the flow of illegal immigration.
"The only thing comprehensive about so-called comprehensive immigration reform would be the amnesty for people who have violated our laws," observed Dan Stein, president of FAIR. "While millions of illegal aliens would be rewarded, struggling American workers and overburdened taxpayers would pay a heavy price were Congress and the administration to repeat the mistakes of the 1986 amnesty."
Some of the questions likely not to be addressed at tomorrow's White House summit include:
-- What impact would a massive amnesty have on already soaring
unemployment?
-- How would a repeat of the massive fraud that took place in 1986 be
prevented?
-- How would adequate background checks be carried out on the estimated
12 to 15 million illegal aliens who would be eligible?
-- How many additional relatives, now living outside the U.S., would be
eligible for amnesty?
-- How would future illegal immigration be averted when the
administration refuses to implement existing systems to prevent
employment of illegal aliens?
-- How would state and local governments - some already teetering on
bankruptcy - pay for services required by newly legalized aliens and
their families?
"The American people have some very clear ideas about the priorities President Obama and Congress need to address - and a massive illegal alien amnesty isn't one of them," said Stein. "The public wants our immigration system fixed, but they expect their interests, not the interests of the people who broke our laws, to be paramount. Unfortunately, the public interest will at best be an afterthought as the president and congressional leaders pursue a politically driven, narrow interest immigration agenda," concluded Stein.
-----
www.politicalpotluck.com
Political News You Can Use
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
In Obama's Town Hall Agenda, What's Missing?
/PRNewswire/ -- President Obama's Town Hall on immigration reform -- canceled a second time last week and awaiting a new date -- includes no proponent of the most viable real-world option: The Red Card Solution. Helen Krieble, small business owner and author of the Solution, is working to change that.
Wednesday, June 23, Krieble hosts a bipartisan morning briefing at the Library of Congress to explain The Red Card Solution to congressional staffers. That afternoon, she'll debut a new Red Card Solution documentary at the National Press Club Building and lead a panel of experts in national economics, politics, security, and media.
"Labor and business are starting to come together to support a non-immigrant worker program that can help achieve border security and supply the country's economic needs," said Krieble, whose equestrian farm in Colorado suffers like thousands of small businesses unable to find sufficient temporary workers. "The Red Card Solution is not about citizenship, it's about work. It's about workers and employers and the ability to come together legally," she said.
Currently millions of undocumented foreign workers cost U.S. citizens billions of dollars annually in border patrol, uncollected taxes, and education, health care, and corrections expenses. To expand on The Red Card Solution's taxpayer benefits:
-- Taxes are collected on wages paid to legal, temporary workers.
(Currently, in most cases, no taxes are collected.)
-- Temporary workers paying taxes will cover their fair share of social
services currently provided at taxpayers' expense.
-- Money and resources currently pouring into border security will be
better used as border patrol agents focus less and less on the fewer
illegal workers and more on criminals and terrorists.
-- The costs of the private-sector program are entirely funded by user
fees, not tax dollars.
One of the solution's strongest features is that its funding source is private enterprise.
"The Red Card Solution is underwritten when employers pay to list jobs with the private employment services opening offices in foreign countries," Krieble said. "That means business, not taxpayers, will foot the bill. Free markets are freed do what they do best: link employers who need a service with workers who can provide it."
Historically Viable
The Bracero Program after World War II opened Mexican workers to temporary, legal entry into the United States for farm jobs. The program was limited in scope and, some say, failed to protect the workers from abuse. But in one important area -- security -- the plan made a clear impact:
"In the Bracero Program era, apprehensions of illegal aliens coming into the United States from Mexico dropped to almost nothing, from more than a million a year to only 35,000. After the program was abolished, the number returned to a million-plus," Krieble said. "Then as now, the question is: why risk work here illegally if you can do it legally?"
Not about Amnesty
The Red Card Solution matches workers and employees through private agencies outside U.S. borders:
-- The U.S. government authorizes private employment agencies to grant
temporary non-immigrant work permits. Foreign workers apply in their
own countries for the permits.
-- Job applicants are matched to current, unfilled U.S. jobs; temporary,
non-immigrant workers fill a specific job for a specific time and may
return home when the job ends.
-- Permits are in "smart card" biometric data, enabling border
authorities to see that temporary workers enter legally for pre-agreed
employment and return when the work ends.
-- All permit holders must pass criminal background checks in their
home-country databases and in U.S. databases.
"The Red Card is not about amnesty," Krieble said. "Illegal workers already in the U.S. may go outside U.S. borders to apply and return legally for available U.S. work."
-----
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Wednesday, June 23, Krieble hosts a bipartisan morning briefing at the Library of Congress to explain The Red Card Solution to congressional staffers. That afternoon, she'll debut a new Red Card Solution documentary at the National Press Club Building and lead a panel of experts in national economics, politics, security, and media.
"Labor and business are starting to come together to support a non-immigrant worker program that can help achieve border security and supply the country's economic needs," said Krieble, whose equestrian farm in Colorado suffers like thousands of small businesses unable to find sufficient temporary workers. "The Red Card Solution is not about citizenship, it's about work. It's about workers and employers and the ability to come together legally," she said.
Currently millions of undocumented foreign workers cost U.S. citizens billions of dollars annually in border patrol, uncollected taxes, and education, health care, and corrections expenses. To expand on The Red Card Solution's taxpayer benefits:
-- Taxes are collected on wages paid to legal, temporary workers.
(Currently, in most cases, no taxes are collected.)
-- Temporary workers paying taxes will cover their fair share of social
services currently provided at taxpayers' expense.
-- Money and resources currently pouring into border security will be
better used as border patrol agents focus less and less on the fewer
illegal workers and more on criminals and terrorists.
-- The costs of the private-sector program are entirely funded by user
fees, not tax dollars.
One of the solution's strongest features is that its funding source is private enterprise.
"The Red Card Solution is underwritten when employers pay to list jobs with the private employment services opening offices in foreign countries," Krieble said. "That means business, not taxpayers, will foot the bill. Free markets are freed do what they do best: link employers who need a service with workers who can provide it."
Historically Viable
The Bracero Program after World War II opened Mexican workers to temporary, legal entry into the United States for farm jobs. The program was limited in scope and, some say, failed to protect the workers from abuse. But in one important area -- security -- the plan made a clear impact:
"In the Bracero Program era, apprehensions of illegal aliens coming into the United States from Mexico dropped to almost nothing, from more than a million a year to only 35,000. After the program was abolished, the number returned to a million-plus," Krieble said. "Then as now, the question is: why risk work here illegally if you can do it legally?"
Not about Amnesty
The Red Card Solution matches workers and employees through private agencies outside U.S. borders:
-- The U.S. government authorizes private employment agencies to grant
temporary non-immigrant work permits. Foreign workers apply in their
own countries for the permits.
-- Job applicants are matched to current, unfilled U.S. jobs; temporary,
non-immigrant workers fill a specific job for a specific time and may
return home when the job ends.
-- Permits are in "smart card" biometric data, enabling border
authorities to see that temporary workers enter legally for pre-agreed
employment and return when the work ends.
-- All permit holders must pass criminal background checks in their
home-country databases and in U.S. databases.
"The Red Card is not about amnesty," Krieble said. "Illegal workers already in the U.S. may go outside U.S. borders to apply and return legally for available U.S. work."
-----
www.politicalpotuck.com
Political News You Can Use
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