Senate Amnesty Could Strain Welfare System
June 6, 2007

Newest Data Shows Latin American Immigrants Make Heavy Use of Welfare ( Duhhh)

WASHINGTON (June 6, 2007) — As they debate legalization for illegal immigrants, Senators would do well to keep in mind the most recent data on welfare use by the people in question. According to the Department of Homeland Security, nearly 60% of illegal aliens are from Mexico and 80% of the total are from Latin America as a whole. A Center for Immigration Studies analysis of 2006 Census Bureau data, which includes legal and illegal immigrants, shows use of welfare by households headed by Mexican and Latin American immigrants is more than double that of native households. Among the findings:

51% of all Mexican immigrant households use at least one major welfare program and 28% use more than one program.
– 40% use food assistance, 35% use Medicaid, 6% use cash assistance.

45% of all Latin American immigrant households use at least one welfare program and 24% use more than one program.
– 32% use food assistance, 31% use Medicaid, 6% use cash assistance.

20% of native households use at least one welfare program and 11% multiple programs.
– 11% use food assistance, 15% use Medicaid, 5% use cash assistance.

Among Mexican and Latin American households, welfare use is somewhat higher for households headed by legal, as opposed to illegal, immigrants. Thus legalization will likely increase welfare costs still further.

90% of Mexican and Latin American households have at least one worker. Their heavy welfare use reflects their low education levels and resulting low incomes – and not an unwillingness work.
– 61% of all Mexican immigrants have not graduated high school.
– 48% of all Latin American immigrants have not graduated high school.

There is a common but mistaken belief that welfare programs are only for those who don’t work. Actually, the welfare system is designed to provide low-wage workers, or more often their children, things like food assistance and health care.

It is the presence of their U.S.-born children coupled with their low education levels that explains why so many immigrant households use the welfare system.

Most recently arrived immigrants are barred from using welfare programs and this would likely apply to those legalized by the Senate bill – however this is not true in every state, nor does not apply to all programs. Most important, the bar does not apply to the U.S.-born children of immigrants, who are immediately eligible.

There are an estimated 1.4 million households headed by illegal aliens using at least one major welfare program. If even half these families returned to their home countries, the savings for taxpayers could be substantial.

If we do not wish to make a large share of illegals return to their home countries, then the United States has to accept the welfare costs. There is no other option.

Programs examined in the analysis are food stamps, WIC, school lunch, Medicaid, TANF, SSI, and public/rent-subsidized housing.

If Illegals Stay, So Will Welfare Costs: The heavy use of welfare by immigrants from those parts of the world that send the most illegals is relevant to the question of whether to allow illegal immigrants to stay or, alternatively, to enforce the law and cause them to return home. The figures reported above are drawn directly from the best government data available, and show that allowing illegals to stay creates significant welfare costs. Many of the welfare costs described above are due to the presence of U.S.-born children, who are awarded U.S. citizenship at birth. Thus, the prohibition on new immigrants using some welfare programs makes little difference because their U.S.-citizen children will continue to be eligible. We estimate that nearly 400,000 children are born to illegal aliens each year.

Welfare Use by Working Immigrant Families: Most immigrants from Mexico and Latin America hold jobs. Their heavy use of the welfare system is due to the fact that a very large share have little education and as a result are able to earn only low incomes in the modern American economy, even though they work. The welfare system is geared toward helping low-income workers, especially those with children. Their education levels and the presence of U.S.-born children means welfare use will be extensive.

Tax Payments: Of course, immigrants, including illegal aliens, also pay taxes. However, because of the education level and resulting incomes levels of Mexican and Latin American immigrants, their tax payments are much less than natives on average. The same is true for illegal aliens. In a 2004 study, the Center for Immigration Studies estimated that illegal alien households used about $2,700 more services than they paid in taxes at the federal level only. We also found that households headed by a legal Mexican immigrant created a net fiscal drain at the federal level of roughly $15,000, and for those with only a high school degree the drain was a little over $3,700. However, those with more education were a fiscal benefit. A new Heritage Foundation study estimated the net fiscal drain at all levels of government created by households headed by high school dropout immigrants at about $20,000 a year. A 1997 National Research Council study found the same pattern – less-educated immigrants create a net fiscal drain and educated immigrants create a net fiscal benefit.

Data Source: The data for this analysis come from the Annual Social and Economic Supplement of the Current Population Survey (CPS) collected by the Census Bureau in March of 2006. It includes legal immigrants and most illegal immigrants. Like the Department of Homeland Security, we distinguish legal from illegal immigrants based on the socio-demographic characteristics of those who responded to the survey. By design our estimates of illegal immigration closely match those of DHS.

Results are also broken out for the following states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, and Texas.

Read the rest here

See here from the FBI Website .

FAST FACT: How Georgia Senators voted on amendments to amnesty bill…so far. Click here. THANKS to www.NumbersUSA.com

June 8, 2007
President’s Radio Address
To hear entire radio address today, click here.

In his weekly radio address President Bush said, “Securing the border and upholding family values are not partisan concerns. They are important to all Americans. They must be addressed, and this bill is the best way to do it. I urge Senator Reid to act quickly to bring this bill back to the Senate floor for a vote, and I urge Senators from both parties to support it. The immigration debate has divided too many Americans. By coming together, we can build an immigration system worthy of this great Nation — one that keeps us safe and prosperous, welcomes dreamers and doers from across the globe, and trusts in our country’s genius for making us all Americans — one Nation under God.”

09.06.2007 13:01
PRESE RELEASE FROM THE OPEN BORDERS ILLEGAL ALIEN LOBBY ON AMNESTY BILL

National Latino Leaders to Convene at Immigration Summit, June 11, in Washington, D.C., to Steer Reform Debate

In the shadow of the debate in Congress, national Latino community leaders and others will gather at an immigration summit in Washington, D.C., June 11, 2007, to help jumpstart stalled negotiations in the U.S. Senate and encourage greater sensitivity to the needs of immigrant workers and families.

“The time has come to fundamentally rethink the current approach to immigration reform,“ said Andres Jimenez, director of the University of California’s California Policy Research Center (CPRC), which is co-sponsoring the event with Consejo de Federaciones Mexicanas en Norteamerica (COFEM), the nation’s largest Mexican immigrant organization.

“We must redirect the debate in Congress to reflect the importance of keeping families together, protecting immigrant worker rights, creating a reasonable pathway to citizenship, and encouraging a balanced relationship with Mexico, and the Central American and Caribbean nations,“ Jimenez said.

The “Transnational Migration, Economic& Social Policy Conference“will take place at the University of California Washington Center, located at 1608 Rhode Island Ave., NW, in Washington D.C. Event registration begins at 8 a.m.

The conference will feature presentations by officials from a variety of mainstream and Latino organizations including the U.S. Department of Justice, the National Association of Latino Elected Officials (NALEO), the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), and the National Education Association (NEA).

“Our goal is to provide the Latino community’s perspective on comprehensive immigration reform and a platform for Congressional leaders to understand how the proposal on the table may impact immigrant workers, families and children,“said COFEM Board Chair Francisco Moreno. “As Senate leaders consider a new timeline to restart the immigration debate, COFEM will continue to mobilize the community to ensure a passage of the bill this year.”

Conference panels include “Bi-national Health, Education&Civic Engagement in the Context of Immigration, “Investing in Migrant-Sending Communities in Latin America,“ “Comprehensive Immigration Reform“ and “Advocacy Strategies to Influence Immigration&Related Policies.“

It’s estimated that more than 12 million undocumented immigrants live in the United States today.

About COFEM

COFEM is a nonprofit organization serving the immigrant community since 2004. Its mission embraces a community centered approach to promote the advancement of the Latino community through public policy advocacy, educational and cultural programming, strategic mobilization, community organizing, and bi-national economic development. COFEM serves the immigrant community and hundreds of immigrant-based organizations from across the nation.

Marietta Daily Journal today

Ga. senators blast Democrats for immigrant bill demise

Saturday, June 9, 2007 1:19 AM EDT
E-mail this story to a friend | Printable version

By Marcus E. Howard
Marietta Daily Journal Writer Staff

WASHINGTON – In the wake of a U.S. Senate showdown between proponents and opponents of a comprehensive immigration reform bill, Georgia’s Sens. Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson blasted Democratic leaders for the bill’s collapse.

Chambliss (R-Moultrie) and Isakson (R-east Cobb) criticized Senate Democratic leaders for refusing to allow more time for fellow Republicans, some of whom have been critical of the bill, to offer amendments to the legislation in order to quell conservative opposition of the measure.

“We must be allowed ample time to engage in a thoughtful and full debate so that we continue to improve this legislation,” Chambliss said Friday. “The window on immigration reform is closing and if we are going to have reform, it must be done in the right way – border security first, no amnesty, no new pathway to citizenship.”

On Thursday afternoon, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) sought to end debate on the controversial immigration overhaul legislation by calling the Senate to a cloture vote – the second one that day after the first failed – that would have limited debate and brought the bill to a final up or down vote.

The second time proved not to be a charm as the cloture vote failed with 38 Republicans, including Chambliss and Isakson, 11 Democrats and one independent voting not to close debate. There were 45 senators, including 37 Democrats, 7 Republicans and one independent, who voted to end debate.

Both Georgia senators were part of a small bipartisan group of senators who met privately for three months, hammering out the sweeping measure that proposed granting an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants U.S. citizenship after they paid a fine and met other requirements, as well as mandated tighter U.S.-Mexican border security.

Chambliss and Isakson previously said they would reserve judgment on the final bill until the amendment process was complete.

“Sen. Chambliss and I have been working hard to address the No. 1 domestic issue in the United States, Isakson said.

“However, this bill was not good enough yet for the people of Georgia. We will continue our efforts, because it is absolutely critical to our state and this nation that we secure the borders and restore credibility to our immigration system.”

Though the immigration reform bill had received President Bush’s favor, many Republicans, particularly conservatives, expressed displeasure with it, calling it amnesty for people who had broken the law.

On Friday, U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Marietta) said the bill fell short of offering a just punishment for illegal immigrants who have had a detrimental effect on programs like Social Security and the nation’s education system.

“Sen. Reid’s decision to pull the immigration bill from the Senate floor last night after a failed cloture vote confirms what many of us already knew: there are too many problems with this bill for it to gain broad support,” Gingrey said.

“This legislation was irresponsible policy, and we need to ensure future immigration bills don’t contain the same shortcomings.”

Back home in Georgia, state Sen. Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock), who is chairman of the Georgia Senate Immigration Reform Caucus, claimed victory for opponents of the bill and expressed joy that it was stopped from advancing into law.

“I am pleased to see the United States Senate has decided not to repeat the mistakes of the 1986 amnesty for illegal aliens,” Rogers said. “Sens. Isakson and Chambliss are to be commended for their votes, which helped stop this measure from moving forward.”

Read the rest here.

Foes cheer as immigration bill fails; backers aim to fight on

By ANNA VARELA, SHELIA POOLE
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 06/09/07

The apparent death of an immigration reform bill in Washington has some in metro Atlanta cheering and others praying for a way to revive the effort.

D.A. King, a vocal critic of illegal immigration, was one of many who were quick to call the proposal in the U.S. Senate an amnesty bill that would have rewarded people who broke the law to enter the United States.

“Having worked very, very hard to kill the bill, I am elated,” said King, president of the Marietta-based Dustin Inman Society. He predicted the bill would not come back up this year or next.

On the other side of the issue, Jerry Gonzalez, the executive director of the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials, sent out an e-mail Friday urging people to call, e-mail or fax elected officials to demand that they resume debate on immigration reform.

If the effort is allowed to die, Gonzalez said, Georgia’s farmers, poultry producers and textile industry will struggle with a shortage of workers. “In order for Georgia’s economy to continue going forward, Georgia needs immigration reform,” he said.

As for illegal immigrants themselves, interviews in Cobb County found several who were devastated by the news that the reform bill might be dead.

“Now I feel the same as before — without hope,” said Manuel Barron, a construction worker from Mexico.

The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act, roughly 400 pages of legislation introduced by a bipartisan group of senators, appeared to grind to a halt Thursday night when supporters failed to cut off debate and move forward to a vote on the bill.

The bill would set up a new guest worker program and create a new “Z” visa that would allow illegal immigrants who entered the United States before Jan. 1 to apply for the right to live and work here legally. Applicants would have to clear a criminal background check and pay fines to receive the renewable visa.

The bill also outlined a “touchback” procedure that would allow illegal immigrants to apply for permanent residency in the U.S. if they first returned to their home country.

Wayne Lord, vice president of governmental affairs for Pilgrim’s Pride, a poultry company that employs 10,000 people in Georgia, said he’s optimistic that the bill isn’t dead and that senators will continue to work toward a solution.

“We need this legislation now. The country can’t really postpone these decisions,” Lord said.

Sue Colussy, who oversees a group of immigration lawyers at Catholic Social Services, said “it’s better to have no bill than a bad bill.” She objected to several provisions, including a sharp reduction in the ability of legal residents — including those who become U.S. citizens — to sponsor family members to join them in the United States.

Some church leaders say it is time to pray for reform. Leaders at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, a predominantly black church in DeKalb County, and some social justice groups had already planned a Unity Prayer Service for Immigration at New Birth on Sunday afternoon.

The bill’s failure to advance in the Senate “further justifies the reason to pray,” said Velez, the pastor of the church’s Latino ministry.

Read the rest here.

“…we have to create one market”.

Former Calif Gov Jerry Brown on Mexico and the U.S. and solving the border security and illegal immigration problem …on CNN (Wolfe Blitzer) interview 5 minutes ago. Blitzer never batted an eye at the concept..

Senators Hope to Revive Immigration Bill in Future
Friday , June 08, 2007

WASHINGTON —

A widely-criticized immigration reform bill died on a procedural motion in the Senate on Thursday night, but key negotiators are suggesting that it may live to see another day.

Republican Sens. Arlen Specter, Jon Kyl, Lindsey Graham and Mel Martinez were all upbeat after a vote to end debate failed 45-50, failing to reach the 60-vote threshold to move toward final passage.

Click here to see how your senator voted on ending the immigration debate.

Despite the fact that it was primarily Republicans who voted against the maneuver, all the GOP lawmakers who spoke with FOX News were upbeat that the legislation could be revived soon — even within a matter of weeks, with one negotiator noting that last year’s bill was first pulled from the floor by then-Majority Leader Bill Frist before it was brought back up again and passed.

Graham said he talked extensively with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and is confident the bill will return for senators to take another crack at developing a comprehensive plan to legalize millions of foreigners living unlawfully in the United States.

“I know where the votes are for final passage. … We’re going to get this done,” Graham said, adding that the topic is not going to go away. “All I can say is, if you name a post office, you’re going to be talking about immigration.”

“There are ways we can do this,” Reid said later. “There can be an agreement on the number of amendments. Hopefully we can do that in the next several weeks. We’re very close.”

More here from Fox news

AMERICAN PEOPLE TO OPEN BORDERS LOBBY: NO! TO AMNESTY AGAIN! LA BILL KILLED IN THE SENATE!

Make no mistake, the Senate Amnesty bill is dead because we raised our voices.

Not the end of the war for open borders, but a certain win of a major battle.

The money boys will be back soon.

I am off to try to sleep. I hope all (except Jerry Gonzalez and Sam Zamarripa) share my sense of accomplishment and pride.

THANK YOU EVERYONE! Your children may yet grow up in Ben Franklin’s REPUBLIC.
FOX NEWS:

WASHINGTON — A broad immigration bill to legalize millions of people who are in the U.S. unlawfully suffered a stunning setback in the Senate, costing President Bush perhaps his best opportunity to win a top domestic priority.

The bipartisan compromise championed by the president failed a crucial test when it could not attract even a simple majority for an effort to speed its passage.

Supporters could muster only 45 votes Thursday to limit debate and speed the bill to final passage, 15 short of what was needed on the procedural maneuver. Fifty senators voted against cutting off debate.

Most Republicans voted to block Democrats’ efforts to advance the measure.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat who had made no secret of his distaste for parts of the bill, quickly pulled it from the floor and moved on to other business, leaving its future uncertain. He insisted that the bill was not dead, but a crowded Senate calendar complicates its prospects.

“I, even though disappointed, look forward to passing this bill,” Reid said.

Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell, the minority leader, said Democrats tried to rush the bill.

News story here and Google the story in the morning!