Fred Thompson Nails It On Illegal Immigration

Ken McCracken • October 23, 2007

Mark Halperin at Time has a run-down of Fred Thompson’s illegal immigration platform. As someone who has long promoted the “tall fence with a wide gate” approach to illegal immigration, I think it’s nearly perfect.
Here are the highlights:

No Amnesty
Enforce Existing Federal Laws … including:

End Sanctuary Cities
Deny discretionary Federal education grants
Deny discretionary Federal education grants as appropriate to public universities that violate federal law by offering in-state tuition rates to illegal aliens without also offering identical benefits to United States citizens, regardless of whether or not they live in the state

Increased Border Security: Doubling Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents handling interior enforcement, increasing the Border Patrol to at least 25,000 agents, and increasing detention space to incarcerate illegal aliens we arrest rather than letting them go with a promise to show up later for legal proceedings against them.
Attrition through Enforcement
Maximize Legal Immigration Program Efficiency
Modernize Immigration Law/Policy
English as Official Language
Preference for American Military Service

You can find more specifics about Fred’s platform on this issue at the link above. Personally, I think it’s the perfect balance between recognizing the realities of the illegal immigration issue while simultaneously not rewarding those who have come here illegally.
In the past those in favor of amnesty for illegal immigrants have argued that there are too many illegals in this country to deport. Fred’s “attrition through enforcement” policy addresses that. If you first secure the border and then deport the illegals already here as law enforcement agents come across them you can dwindle the number of illegals in this country down. Obviously we can’t round them up all at once, but we can certainly reduce their numbers over time with appropriate policies that do not reward them for coming here illegally.
Fred’s plans to make legal immigration into this country easier would also ease tension at the border. After all, I think we can all recognize that an influx of people who want to come here and be successful is a positive thing for this country. If we can let more of those people in (with appropriate levels of screening) we can remove some of the impetus for illegally immigrating.
To be perfectly honest, this platform from Fred is what the GOP should have been advancing all along. Were it not for other problems with corruption and overspending, one could almost say that had the GOP been advancing this platform before the election they might still be in the majority in Congress.

Tags: Domestic Issues, Politics

http://www.kenmccracken.blogspot.com/ Ken McCracken

Impressive.

If Bush believed in half of this, the Republicans would still control Congress.
Matt

If Bush believed in half of this, the Republicans would still control Congress.

What's your logic behind that?
Tuna

STIFF TREATMENT OF EMPLOYERS WHO HIRE ILLEGALS SHOULD BE INCLUDED,IF IT'S NOT ALREADY–BUT THIS IS GOOD STUFF FRED CAME UP WITH.

AMONG THE REPUBLICAN'S WHO ARE TELLING US IT'S NOT POSSIBLE TO ENFORCE EXISTING LAW IS ARLEN SPECTER, WHO ONCE INVOKED ANCIENT SCOTTISH LAW TO PREVENT BILL CLINTON FROM GETTING TOSSED. DON'T YOU LOVE IRONY?
http://www.kenmccracken.blogspot.com/ Ken McCracken

It's simple: if Bush and the rest of the Republican leadership had actually listened to the desires of their constituency and not pressed for shamnesty, they would have turned out and voted last November.
Matt

It's simple: if Bush and the rest of the Republican leadership had actually listened to the desires of their constituency and not pressed for shamnesty, they would have turned out and voted last November.

I must disagree as this was not the issue they lost on.
http://SayAnythingBlog.com The_Whistler_ofnd

I must disagree as this was not the issue they lost on.

What issue did they lose on? I think it was on more than just this one, BUT, this one is one that people get emotionally involved in.

So if you had to pick out one issue this would be my choice.
Matt

What issue did they lose on?

I think it is pretty clear that it was Iraq with a little bit of corruption thrown in.
http://sayanythingblog.com robport

I think it is pretty clear that it was Iraq with a little bit of corruption thrown in.

I think that's the convenient answer for both Democrats and Republicans. Democrats because they oppose the war, and Republicans because saying "it was Iraq" is easier than admitting that they were acting like a bunch of corrupt, over-spending, pro-illegal immigration morons.
http://SayAnythingBlog.com The_Whistler_ofnd

I'll agree about the corruption and that. And yes that very well could have been.

I don't think Republican voters changed for the war, especially since it was not Bush running again.

I think the spending issue was a huge one. Why vote for a pretend Democrat when you can vote for the real thing?

Even nonsense issues like Foley and the Maccacca thing hurt the party for no reason but the hype.
http://SayAnythingBlog.com The_Whistler_ofnd

I suppose you guys figured out that Fred has me writing his position papers.
docdave

Whistler, you are tooooo modest….

Back to the thread, I think that Fred has nailed it. Expect the other Repub candidates to parrot his points.
http://SayAnythingBlog.com The_Whistler_ofnd

Whistler, you are tooooo modest….

I also do some of Ron Paul's……
docdave

I also do some of Ron Paul's……

Whoops, there goes your credibility. I'll have to take back my former statement.
http://SayAnythingBlog.com The_Whistler_ofnd

Yeah, I wrote Paul's "Amnesty for Illegal Aliens from the outer Asteroids" position.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/Anna/ Anna

I really wish you two would stop mentioning R.P. Every time you do we get a flock of his followers in here spouting off their grand abilities of copying and pasting.
http://SayAnythingBlog.com The_Whistler_ofnd

Funny you should bring that up annA. I also taught those guys how to copy and paste.

Next I'm going to work with them on walking and chewing gum AT THE SAME TIME.
http://www.wethepeopleforum.com/forum/forums.asp golfmann

I think it is pretty clear that it was Iraq with a little bit of corruption thrown in.

Nonsense!
If it was Iraq the Dems would have cut off funding by now and the troops would be coming home between the bomb blasts. They simply COULDN'T because the American people want victory.

It was the spending and the illegal immigration. We know MSM smears quite well and the corruption things only appealed to people like you.

Now the getting out of Iraq ginned up the usually stay at home Dem base (even the ones who vote more than once I might add), but had absolutely nothing to do with the Republicans and the Dem majority's impotent record on the subject has shown quite conclusively.
http://SayAnythingBlog.com The_Whistler_ofnd

The Dems are in a tough place in Iraq.

Cut off funding and lose the middle or support the GWOT and lose the base.
http://ewebsmith.com/ ews48

It depends on what Fred means by "Modernize Immigration Law/Policy". This sounds like a loop hole. The current batch of "Amnesty" proponents have been screaming that current immigration laws are broken when the truth is that they are just not enforced. Maybe this is an opening for another end around.
http://sayanythingblog.com robport

Did you bother to click/read the article I linked? There's a lot more specifics on Fred's stance there.
http://ewebsmith.com/ ews48

This Fred quote makes his stand clear – "There's not a lot of new legislation that needs to be passed," the candidate said. "We need to enforce the laws that are on the books. There are laws against illegal immigration, there are laws to secure the border, there are laws against sanctuary cities, there are laws against publicly funding illegals, and that law is being disregarded."

Go Fred.
WS

Until now I didn't know who I was going to vote for, now I do. Fred you are the first candidate to come out with a strong stance. I am voting for the candidate strongest against illegal immigration. I'm voting for Fred and all of America should. Illegal immigration is America's greatest future threat to our life as we know it. After all, we are first world, and they are third world. What do you think is going to happen???
WS

Illegal immigration is like a malignancy, a cancer that spreads through the body and eventually kills it.
Jeugenen

AMNESTY CONSIDERATIONS

It is very economically advantageous to use cheap Mexican seasonal agricultural guest workers; it is very socially and economically disadvantageous to let them stay after the crop is harvested. When seasonal guest workers do return to Mexico at end of the growing season, they return with money and experience, to contribute to the development of Mexico; and each year, when a new group of seasonal guest workers comes, they are eager to work for the same low non-citizen wages. And, when they return to Mexico at end of the growing season, they do not drive down the wages of American workers, by competing for jobs in landscaping, construction, sanitation, and housekeeping; and they do not use American governmental social services.

When seasonal guest workers come from all of the countries of Latin America, on a strict quota system, then every country benefits, not Mexico exclusively; and when they are well treated, the experience is mutually positive.

Mexico is land rich in natural resources; what makes it so socially and economically retarded are its Mexican People; and wherever they immigrate they bring their deplorable civilization with them. It is so inferior than none of them want to return to it.

The Mexican dream of regaining political control over Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California is America's worst nightmare. Starting at all of the border towns, and spreading northward throughout America, like cancers, are thousands of deplorable Mexican neighborhoods. With each deportation America looks, smells, and sounds less like socially and economically deplorable Mexico. America is presently occupied by 12 -15 million Mexicans.

With the deportation of all the illegal immigrants, students will again be able to get good paying summer jobs, to learn responsibility and earn their way through college; blue-collar wages will rise; border towns will not be slums; Spanish will not be a second language; crime will go down; hospitals and prisons will not be overcrowded.

When all of the illegal aliens are deported, the Leftist Democrats and Neo-Conservative Republicans will lose millions of political supporters, and the vast amounts of money that they receive from the Mexican Lobby; and, those American businesses that exploit cheap Mexican labor will lose their illegal competitive advantages.

No advanced civilization in the World can coexist side by side with a retarded civilization, without a great wall or fence, strict guest labor laws, and armed border guards.

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Fred Thompson Nails It On Illegal Immigration

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