Excerpts:
Under the legislation, companies that hired illegal immigrants could have had their business licenses suspended, or revoked after three instances....
Supporters accuse Hispanic activists of playing the race card and say lobbyists such as Livengood were more interested in preserving access to a low-wage work force that allows employers to reap fatter profits....
"This is a real tragedy," said Ray Mejia, a retired, Mexican-born Army Reserve officer who spoke out in favor of the illegal immigration bill.
"What took place in the last couple of days has been about the service industry, which seems to have gotten in with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce."
Mejia, whose appearance earlier this year at a Statehouse news conference while wearing his uniform drew a reprimand from his superiors, said local Hispanic leaders have missed the point about setting the example for immigrants.
"When I came here as a student, I washed dishes, I bused tables, I pumped gas," he said. "But I never had to look over my shoulder to see if anyone was looking for me. Because I did it the legal way."
Taylor, who kept supporters updated with his Hoosiers for Secure Borders Web site, directed his anger at Hispanic leaders and the business lobby.
"I think the concerted effort by those who labeled the issue as racial was probably the predominant factor," Taylor said. "Running a close second is the inherent self-interest of certain business interests and their lobbyists and the effect they have on our state legislature."For more information visit: Hoosiers for Secure Borders
UPDATE: I thought readers might be interested to know that there have been 543 comments posted to the Indystar article so far. If you would like to read them or add your own comment, go to the article page, link listed at the beginning of this entry, and click on the "talkback" icon.
5 comments:
A story like that really opens your eyes, doesn't it?
A little curious to me, the way our government chooses to deal with this by targeting business...
Our government has chosen to allow millions of illegals to stream across our border.
Then, our government targets businesses for hiring the very illegals they allowed in.
(Gee, its not really 'our' government, is it?)
I hope I'm wrong, but until those in the media start losing their jobs to illegals, or government employee wages are driven down, absolutely nothing will be done about this.
I agree with you, anon, with one distinction. For more than a decade, our government allowed millions to cross our borders, but they did this at the behest of business. It isn't as simple as businesses "waking up" to the invasion of illegals. Businesses have been RECRUITING illegal workers at the border and in Mexico.
Our current mess is the result of the two working hand in hand to the detriment of everyone else.
Thanks for highlighting the problems we're having here in the flyover state of Indiana, Jackie! The quote from Livengood in the article, that a demand that businesses follow the law would "devastate" his industry (hotel and restaurant), is proof that employers are KNOWINGLY breaking the law. Our spineless politicians just gave them the green light to continue it.
I don't disagree, Swoop, but I would just point out this-
- Our government's primary defense against the flood of illegal aliens seems to be letting business resolve the problem...
...isn't it the government's job - not business' - to block illegal immigration?
Enforcing the law... that's why we - as individuals and businesses - pay taxes to our government to begin with...
-
Let's also not forget that leftists count on these illegals to vote democrat... Another element contributing to this 'perfect storm'...
Anon said:
I don't disagree, Swoop, but I would just point out this-
- Our government's primary defense against the flood of illegal aliens seems to be letting business resolve the problem...
...isn't it the government's job - not business' - to block illegal immigration?
Enforcing the law... that's why we - as individuals and businesses - pay taxes to our government to begin with...
Yes, it is up to the government to block illegal immigration. However, employers are charged, by law, to refrain from knowingly hiring illegal aliens, yet they have been doing so in increasing numbers for more than a decade. And all this in spite of the lengthy paperwork required by the government for new hires.
Use of the EVerify system has been around for a number of years but its use has been voluntary, even though it is free for employers. Making use of this program by employers mandatory is hardly putting them in the position of enforcing immigration laws, or asking them to resolve our illegal immigration problem, IMO. Business HAS BEEN and continues to be much of the problem, the magnet that draws them here, and finding a way that makes it harder for them to continue breaking the law is warranted.
Demanding that employers use EVerify is no different (and actually less time-consuming) than demanding they fill out the various forms for new employees, such as the I-9, W4, etc., forms that are meant to document who the employees say they are.
In a post-9/11 world, I think it's more important than ever that a law such as this is passed.
Legislation addressing that reality is what is needed in every state, IMO. Unfortunately, our Hoosier politicians have no spine and little to no balls to speak of.
Democrats get new voters and Republicans get nice donations from business industries and leaders. Both parties are beholden to special interests, ethnocentric groups, and themselves. We aren't a part of this equation unfortunately.
Post a Comment