Sotelo's support for Illegal Alien Amnesty

The following report, last published on May 20, 2007, contains priceless archive material. What you are about to read is the fourth re-publication of some of it.  Every King County PCO needs to have read it to be qualified to vote in the KCGOP organization meeting.

 

On January 7, 2004, standing in the East Room of the White House, George Bush announced his plans to legalize millions of foreign criminals.

The reverberations from that announcement have been becoming more intense for three years. In less than a year all four cabinet members standing with the President, that day, would resign. In the 2006 national election Republicans would be voted out of majorities in both houses of Congress - a political advantage that had taken 40 years to obtain.

The day following the announcement, January 8, 2004, the King County Republican Party  administration of Michael Young and Lori Sotelo through their paid executive director, Ross Marzolf, announced their full support of the Amnesty scheme with a multi-bulleted email message of such platitudes and distortions as to bring tears to the eyes of an aluminum siding salesman.

A year later they moved their pro-Bush Amnesty choice into the Republican Party’s State Chairmanship and then filled the National Cmmitteewoman postion with a Washington State Republican national Hispanic Assembly member who insists on being called “Mexican.” In January ’07, another member of the National Hispanic Republican amnesty group became State Party Vice Chair. How do you suppose they were able to score Amnesty Architect Karl Rove for their Lincoln Day Dinner?  

They have, whether openly or by stealth, provided crucial support for Amnesty and “fluid borders” at every point since taking office.

I wrote in vigorous disagreement that January (2004) and have continued to warn Republicans about who Young, and Sotelo really are. But, in order to be re-elected last December (2006), they called me a liar and many believed them. (They pulled off a lot more than that, actually.)

What follows, here, is the text of the argument over Amnesty, as it occurred, right when Bush announced the plan.

Ross
Marzolf

Executive Director
King
County Republican Party

*******
425.990.0404 – office
425.990.0407 – fax
206.399.1785 – cell
845 106th Avenue NE, Suite 110
Bellevue, WA  98004

 

 

 

Fair and Secure Immigration Reform

 

Today’s Presidential Action

 

Ø      Today, President Bush proposed a new temporary worker program to match willing foreign workers with willing U.S. employers when no Americans can be found to fill the jobs.  The program would be open to new foreign workers, and to the undocumented men and women currently employed in the U.S.  This new program would allow workers who currently hold jobs to come out of hiding and participate legally in America‘s economy while not encouraging further illegal behavior.  

 

Ø      President Bush also asked Congress to work with him to achieve significant immigration reform that protects the homeland by controlling the borders; serves America’s economy by matching a willing worker with a willing employer; promotes compassion for unprotected workers; provides incentives for temporary workers to return to their home countries and families; protects the rights of legal immigrants while not unfairly rewarding those who came here unlawfully or hope to do so.  This legislation must also meet the Nation’s economic needs and live up to the promise and values of America.  

 

Background on Today’s Presidential Action

 

 

 

 

 

 

America is a welcoming nation, and the hard work and strength of our immigrants have made our Nation prosperous.  Many immigrants and sons and daughters of immigrants have joined the military to help safeguard the liberty of America.  Illegal immigration, however, creates an underclass of workers, afraid and vulnerable to exploitation.  Current immigration law can also hinder companies from finding willing workers.  The visas now available do not allow employers to fill jobs in many key sectors of our economy.  Workers risk their lives in dangerous and illegal border crossings and are consigned to live their lives in the shadows.  Without harming the economic security of Americans, reform of our Nation’s immigration laws will create a system that is fairer, more consistent, and more compassionate.    

 

 

Ø      Principles of Immigration Reform –  The President’s proposal is based on several basic principles:

 

ü      Protecting the Homeland by Controlling Our Borders:  The program should link to efforts to control our border through agreements with countries whose nationals participate in the program.  It must support ongoing efforts to enhance homeland security.

ü      Serve America‘s Economy by Matching a Willing Worker with a Willing Employer:  When no American worker is available and willing to take a job, the program should provide a labor supply for American employers.  It should do so in a way that is clear, streamlined, and efficient so people can find jobs and employers can find workers in a timely manner. 

ü      Promoting Compassion:  The program should grant currently working undocumented aliens a temporary worker status to prevent exploitation.  Participants would be issued a temporary worker card that will allow them to travel back and forth between their home and the U.S. without fear of being denied re-entry into America.   

ü      Providing Incentives for Return to Home Country:  The program will require the return of temporary workers to their home country after their period of work has concluded.  The legal status granted by this program would last three years, be renewable, and would have an end.  During the temporary work period, it should allow movement across the U.S. borders so the worker can maintain roots in their home country. 

ü      Protecting the Rights of Legal Immigrants:  The program should not connect participation to a green card or citizenship.  However, it should not preclude a participant from obtaining green card status through the existing process.  It should not permit undocumented workers to gain an advantage over those who have followed the rules. 

 

 

 

 

Ø      Temporary Worker Program

 

President Bush does not support amnesty because individuals who violate America‘s laws should not be rewarded for illegal behavior and because amnesty perpetuates illegal immigration.  The President proposes that the Federal Government offer temporary worker status to undocumented men and women now employed in the
United States and to those in foreign countries who have been offered employment here.  The workers under temporary status must pay a one-time fee to register in the program, abide by the rules, and return home after their period of work expires.  There would be an opportunity for renewal.  In the future, only people outside the U.S. may join the temporary worker program, and there will be an orderly system in place to address the needs of workers and companies.

 

ü      American Workers Come First:  Employers must make every reasonable effort to find an American to fill a job before extending job offers to foreign workers. 

ü      Workplace Enforcement of Immigration Laws:  Enforcement against companies that break the law and hire illegal workers will increase. 

ü      Economic Incentives to Return Home:    The U.S. will work with other countries to allow aliens working in the U.S. to receive credit in their nations’ retirement systems and will
support the creation of tax-preferred savings accounts they can collect when they return to their native countries. 

ü      Fair and Meaningful Citizenship Process:  Some temporary workers will want to remain in
America and pursue citizenship.  They should not receive an unfair advantage over those who have followed the law, and they will need to be placed in line for citizenship behind those who are already in line.  Those who choose the path of citizenship will have an obligation to learn the facts and ideals that have shaped
America‘s history.   

ü      Reasonable Annual Increase of Legal Immigrants:  A reasonable increase in the annual limit of legal immigrants will benefit those who follow the lawful path to citizenship. 

 

Ø      Benefits to
America of the Temporary Worker Program

 

ü      A more prosperous economy – for
America.  The program would allow workers to find jobs and employers to find workers, quickly and simply. 

ü      A more secure homeland – to improve the efficiency and management of all people who cross our borders.  It is in the interest of the Nation, and each community, to identify foreign visitors and immigrants and make clear the nature of their intentions.  

ü      A more compassionate system – to protect all workers in
America with labor laws, the right to change jobs, fair wages, and a healthy work environment. 

 

Ø      Homeland Security and Border Enforcement

 

ü      Border
Patrol has increased from a strength of 9,788 on September 11, 2001 to 10,835 on December 1, 2003.  Between ports of entry on the northern border, the size of the Border
Patrol has tripled to more than 1,000 agents.  In addition, the Border
Patrol is continuing installation of monitoring devices along the borders to detect illegal activity.

ü      The Bush Administration’s Operation Tarmac was launched to investigate businesses and workers in the secure areas of domestic airports and ensure immigration law compliance.  Since 9/11, DHS has audited 3,640 businesses, examined 259,037 employee records, arrested 1,030 unauthorized workers, and participated in the criminal indictment of 774 individuals.

ü      President Bush announced the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), an internet-based system that is improving
America‘s ability to track and monitor foreign students and exchange visitors.  Over 870,000 students are registered in SEVIS.  Of 285 completed field investigations, 71 aliens were arrested.

ü      This week, the US-VISIT program began to digitally collect biometric identifiers to record the entry and exit of aliens who travel into the U.S on a visa.  Together with the standard
information, this new program will confirm compliance with visa and immigration policies. 

 

 

 

Fair and Secure Immigration Reform Q & A

 

 

Q:  Is this amnesty?

No, amnesty rewards the undocumented population with an automatic path to citizenship.  President Bush is calling on Congress to develop legislation that will offer temporary worker status to undocumented men and women now employed in the
United States and to those in foreign countries who have been offered employment here.  The legal status would expire after 3 years (with the ability to be renewed). Temporary workers then must return home or apply for a green card under existing law, unlike the blanket amnesty that was enacted in 1986.  It would discourage future illegal entry by providing incentives such as the ability to go home to visit family without concern, and enhanced workplace enforcement against those who violate the immigration laws.  The President is also committed to working with other nations to allow foreign workers to receive credit in their nations’ retirement systems for time worked in the
U.S., and
supports the creation of tax-preferred savings accounts they can collect when they return to their native countries.

 

Q:  Will immigrants who participate in this program be eligible for citizenship?

The President’s proposal would not put temporary workers on the path to a green card, which permits holders to apply for citizenship after 5 years.  However, it would not preclude a participant from obtaining green card status through the existing process as long as they are not given an unfair advantage over people who have followed legal procedures from the start.  Men and women working in
America on a temporary basis will have to get in line behind those who are already waiting.

 

Q:  How will you determine that a job cannot be filled by an American?

The President has continually said that he wants every American who wants a job to have one.  Employers would have to make every reasonable effort to find an American to fill a job before extending job offers to foreign workers.  Currently, there are several visa programs that permit foreign workers to be temporarily employed in the
U.S.  These programs discourage U.S.-based companies from moving operations overseas.

 

Q:  What will happen to employers who have been illegally hiring foreign

       workers?

Enforcement against companies that break the law and hire illegal workers will increase.  The President’s proposal would force these employers to treat all their employees with the same humane and compassionate treatment under the law already afforded American workers. 

 

Q:  If unemployment rises, will this program be suspended?

One of the goals of the temporary worker program is to fill jobs in the
U.S. that are not being filled by American workers.  Employers would have to make every reasonable effort to first fill any job with an American before offering one to a foreign worker, including during an economic downturn. 

 

Q:  Would this proposal create a new enforcement burden?

It is in the interest of the Nation, and each community, to identify foreign visitors and immigrants and make clear the nature of their intentions.  By creating a legal temporary worker program for those who are not currently known to the
U.S. government, we are eliminating another vulnerability, which is particularly apparent during this period of heightened alert.  All participants would be issued a temporary worker card that will allow them to travel back and forth between their home and the
U.S. without fear of being denied re-entry into the country.  

 

 

 

 

Q:  How does the Federal Government maintain credibility in threatening future law

       enforcement?

President Bush has significantly expanded the Border
Patrol, with more than 1,000 new agents on the borders and over $500 million in additional funding over the last two years.  The President is committed to enforcing our nation’s laws and protecting our border, while at the same time solving the crisis of the underclass of laborers – undocumented, unseen and vulnerable to exploitation.

 

Q:  Will the family members of aliens participating in the temporary worker

       program be able to live in the
U.S. with the principal worker?

Yes.  The concept of family unity is consistent with other temporary visa categories already in existence.  The principal worker is required to prove that he or she can
support family members during their stay in the
U.S.  Family members will not be authorized to work unless they join the program themselves.

 

Q:  If this program does not allow the worker to remain permanently in the
United States, what incentive would an undocumented worker have to come forward?

The worker will be able to live and work legally and openly, which brings improved working conditions, the ability to travel to the home country, and the opportunity to negotiate salary and benefits, receive training, and to move to another employer participating in the program. When immigrants are witness to or victimized by crime, they won’t be afraid to call the police, or seek recourse in the legal system.

 

Q:   Will the federal government be able to implement such a large-scale

        immigration program and also enforce the immigration laws?

While the details of the program will be worked out during discussions with Congress, we envision that the temporary worker program will simplify employers’ hiring of foreign workers and contain sufficient protections to protect the American workforce.  We anticipate that the program would include:  a website that would list available jobs and authorized workers; a simple process for employers to establish that they have been unable to find American workers; the requirement that the employer report when foreign workers enter and leave their employ; and strong audit and penalty provisions to ensure that both employers and workers are following the rules.

 

Q:  Why doesn’t the President simply endorse one of the many proposed bills in

       Congress addressing this issue?

The President looks forward to working with Congress to develop legislation that incorporates the best ideas for the American worker and our foreign visitors.  Through these principles, President Bush outlined the best course to the end goal of opportunity, security, safety, compassion, jobs and growth.

Doug Parris’ response:  

Freedom Fighters,

I am very flattered that
Ross Marzolf has seen fit to send out a general letter in
support of the Bush “reform” proposal I severely criticized: the proposal to legalize an unknown multitude of criminal immigrants overnight by simply getting them to register.  But I think we should all regard with dismay the use of doublespeak to justify a program whose only real purpose seems to be political expediency. The words, “doublespeak” and “doublethink”, for those of you who may be unfamiliar with them, come from George Orwell’s book 1984, where he described a vast and powerful tyranny where the mechanisms of control included the continual and unscrupulous manipulation of
information. Of course I am not accusing anyone of tyranny, just the limited, targeted use of one of its techniques.

In the book we find:

“Unquestioning
support for the Party calls for doublethink, the ability to hold opposing ideas and believe both of them.”

The resultant expression of doublethink, doublespeak, resulted in the development of slogans like, “Ignorance is truth.”

The material  Ross has reproduced for us does nothing to change nor explain what is a serious and immoral immigration policy mistake, but rather, attempts to cover it up with platitudes that directly contradict the policy itself.. This approach can only find fertile ground among the ignorant, or those who are already comfortable with doublethink. I am grateful that Ross is simply loyally copying the material and not actually composing it himself.

Let me respond to some of it, more or less in the order it is presented:

 

The release says the reform would “…allow workers who currently hold jobs to come out of hiding and participate legally in America‘s economy while not encouraging further illegal behavior.” If, in fact, it does not “encourage” illegal behavior it is because it amounts to a general amnesty for all that illegal behavior.

 

Imagine the benefits of doublespeak applied to other policy challenges! We could win the war on drugs overnight too! Cool. We would simply have to create a “crack cocaine permit” that would “… allow dealers who currently sell illegal drugs to  come out of hiding and participate in America’s legal pharmaceutical business without encouraging further illegal behavior.” All we need to do is give them a “temporary permit” that bypasses current drug laws (without actually repealing them). Drug dealers and users would have to “renew” the permit if they wanted to take (or sell) drugs again at a later time. But if they wanted to have these drugs recognized by the FDA they would still have to go through the normal channels. [But why would they want to?] This would “prevent them from having an unfair advantage” over legitimate Drug Providers. 

 

 

We are told “Current immigration law can also hinder companies from finding willing workers.”

In actual fact, current payroll and minimum wage laws (juxtaposed against free market economics) do the hindering. Legal companies can’t compete against Illegal companies because of lax enforcement. It is the common criminal interests of the Mexican illegals and the outlaw employers who want to circumvent (rather than change) these laws that the “reform” would potentially benefit. American workers and American taxpayers would foot the bill.

 

 

We are told, “Workers risk their lives in dangerous and illegal border crossings and are consigned to live their lives in the shadows.” Just like other criminals in other forms of crime. We could do away with all this if only we would issue “temporary permits” for ALL types of illegal activity.

 

 

“When no American worker is available and willing to take a job, the program should provide a labor supply for American employers.” To be accurate this should read: “When no American worker is available and willing to take a job at poverty level wages and without benefits the program should provide a labor supply for American employers by making use of the existing base of criminals who are foreign nationals.”

 

 

ü       Promoting Compassion:  When George Bush campaigned as a “Compassionate Conservative” I was offended. The slogan accepted and exploited the liberal media’s propaganda that conservatism is based on selfishness. Isn’t adding the adjective “compassionate” obviously insulting to conservatives? I suggested he could campaign as an “Intelligent Texan” or an “Honest George Bush” with just as much validity. Also, didn’t it mean he was willing to expand social spending, just like Daddy? Now we know, in part, what it means. It means alleviating some of the inconveniences to criminals caused by their lawbreaking. Illegal aliens, as criminals, live in fear! We are told that if they go home they’re worried they won’t be able to safely repeat their crime. This is obviously unfair!

ü       Protecting the Rights of Legal Immigrants: We are told, “It should not permit undocumented workers to gain an advantage over those who have followed the rules [in gaining green card or citizen status]. But since it makes the green card completely superfluous, what difference does that make? Why go through the hassle of a green card when a renewable “temporary” permit is available? Doublethink.

 

We are told: “President Bush does not support amnesty because individuals who violate America‘s laws should not be rewarded for illegal behavior and because amnesty perpetuates illegal immigration.” But, apparently, giving ALL THE SIGNIFICANT BENEFITS OF AMNESTY and simply re-titling it “temporary permit with renewal rights” changes all that.

Doublethink.

How can a person write this stuff and not be embarrassed? Maybe a seasoned professional without a conscience…

 

We are told: “In the future, only people outside the U.S. may join the temporary worker program…” But why is that? If it is good now, why not in the future? Shouldn’t some future illegal alien facing the “unfairness” of being treated like a criminal, living in fear and all the while nobly filling some American Company’s need for cheap labor have the same opportunities that his predecessors had??

Why not?

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