Immigration Reform A Very Cloudy Issue [View all]

[The_Voice_of_Reason]

A Mother of two deported to Mexico this past week has the issue even more front and center than it was with the Muslim Ban that went down in flames. The problem is, her case is not as simple as it appears, perhaps forces us to take a closer look at how we as a nation can find compromise on this important issue...where to we draw that line between sympathy and the law? This mother who came to America illegally at 14 wanted a life here...problem is, in building that life, she stole/bought a fake ID, was using a stolen Social Security number. For any of us who have ever been a victim of Identity Theft, this is not a laughing matter, is not something easily dismissed.

Further (I think) complicating her case...she was undocumented, using a fake/stolen ID, and had been working in the United as an undocumented immigrant for over a year...under our current law, that last one is actually a felony in and of itself.

There are other issues that bother me. Undocumented immigrants claim they pay taxes, and in some, perhaps many that is a true statement. Yet as Paul Harvey used to say, and now for the rest of the story... many undocumented immigrants do not pay the BIG TAX, the one we all think of when we think about taxes, and that is Federal Tax. If you are working under the table, paying sales taxes and the like, but skipping out on your Federal Taxes, that is a serious matter, and the suggestions I have heard for getting right with the law as relates to this I find inadequate.

The jobs issue. Undocumented workers/immigrants do take jobs from Americans, and the lie that they only take jobs Americans will not take is simply not true...they have in many industries lowered the wage base, and are now firmly embedded into the Nursery, and Construction industries as examples...not exactly jobs Americans would turn their backs on.

My only point here, is that the issue is very complicated. I embrace finding a solution that finds a way to give those deserving a pathway to citizenship. The question is, how to do it, and should a part of the formula include a means of making whole those Americans who have been hurt badly with this influx of immigrants from foreign lands. Furthermore, is it time as a part of immigration reform including severe penalties, including jail time for those who hire undocumented immigrants, using E-Verify as the cornerstone of such a change where the employers are held accountable for their crimes.

I am as confused as the rest of us, but do feel the way to finding compromise and a solution is to talk openly and honestly, and hear everyone's side of the story, rather than cherry pick details that fit our own narrative.