La Enfermedad

**This blog entry was written previously and is being reposted here in an effort to consolidate all articles in one location**

He estado viendo las discusíones sobre la nueva ley de Arizona #1070.  Es necesario aclarar muchas de las malas representacíones al respecto de esta ley.  Pero mas que eso, todo la discusíon evita enfrentar lo que es realmente el problema. El problema de la inmigracíon illegal es simplemente un sintoma de una enfermedad mucho mas grande.  La política económica y el ambiente de negocios en México.  Roma se quema y nadie ve el humo.

Nadie quiere reconocer lo que es mas obvío de la situacíon, la razon por la cual vienen millones de immigrantes a los Estados Unidos es que la economia en Mexico no esta suficientemente estable o fuerte para mantener empleados a todos sus ciudadanos.  Y la razón por la cual las empresas no van a Mexíco es por las reglas y la inseguridad de hacer negocios. Hay ciertos hechos que se tienen que presentar.

El dinero enviado por los trabajadores mexicanos en Estados Unidos a sus familias alcanzó la marca de 12 mil millones de dólares en el 2003.  Los envíos “son nuestra principal fuente de ingresos extranjeros, mucho más que el petróleo, el turismo o las inversiones extranjeras”, dijo (Presidente) Fox a la prensa luego de reunirse con empresarios méxico-estadounidenses. 1   En 2009 la suma de remesas a Mexico era de 21.1 billones de dólares, 15.7% menos que en el año 2008. 2  México obtuvo divisas por turismo de 11.275 billones de dólares en el 2009, menores a los 13.289 billones de dólares del año previo.3 

PEMEX anuncio que perdió 16.6 billones de pesos (1.3 billones de dólares) en el ultimo cuatrimestre del 2009 que resulto en una suma de  48.5 billones de pesos de pérdidas para él año.4 

La politica economica de Mexicoesta a la raíz del problema.  Nos tenemos que preguntar, ¿porque?
¿Porque teniendo tantos recursos naturales Mexico no sale adelante?
¿Como es posible que en esta economia global una empresa petrolera pierde dinero?
¿Que tiene la economia Mexicana que su pueblo no ve oportunidad o forma de salir adelante?
¿Porque se le hace dificil a las empresas extranjeras establescerce en Mexíco?

Hay muchas preguntas pero al fin de cuenta el problema sigue siendo el ambiente de negocios en Mexíco. Por ejemplo, el porcentage de los impuestos que le cobra el gobierno Mexicano a una empresa son 51%5  y el promedio de dias que toma un pleito comercial son 415 dias 5    para resolverse.Las grandes empresas, tal vez, estan dispuestas a soportar semejantes costos. Pero una empresa apenas formandose o una empresa de tamaño mediano, no tiene los recursos o no esta dispuesta a aceptar tan grandes desventajas y buscará otro lado para poner su negocio. 

Cada uno de nosotros quiere salir adelante y proveer para nuestros hijos algo mejor que lo que tuvimos.  En este sentido entiendo porque se vienen los latinos de todas partes.  Pero ningún país puede permitir que se ignoren sus leyes y vengan y vayan inmigrantes cuando y como quiéran.  Es hipocrecía que Mexíco, y en particular, presidente Calderon regañe al estado de Arizona cuando la verdad es que las leyes migratórias de Mexico son sumamente mas estrictas que las de los Estados Unidos o el Estado de Arizona.  Y ademas, el problema no es la ley de los Estados Unidos, mucho menos la ley de Arizona, el problema es Mexíco.
La solucíon no es ni va ser fácil, pero tiene que empesar con el gobierno de Mexico.  Los Estados Unidos pueden poner todas las leyes que quieran, pero eso no cambia las situacíon en Mexíco.  El gobierno Mexicano tiene que tomar responsabilidad de lo que pasa, y de lo sucedido desde hace muchos años.  Pero siempre se le hace mas fácil dejar las cosas como estan; en parte porque no le cuesta nada al gobierno Mexicano, al contrario recibe el pais una gran cantidad de ingresos y el gobierno no tiene que invertir nada. Y al fin el pueblo se haya entre la espada y la pared, o se quedan en Mexico en la pobreza o se van ilegalmente a los Estados Unidos a buscar oportunidad y la posibilidad de una mejor vida para sus hijos.  La desgracia es que su gobierno prefiere culpar a los Americanos en vez de verse al espejo y tomar la responsabilidad por sus politicas que no le permiten el exito a su gente.

No entiendo porque se niega la gente ver que toda la situación es economica, y la entidad responsable es el gobierno de Mexíco.  El exportacíon principal de Mexíco, desgraciadamente, no es petróleo, ni madera, es su gente. Exporta su pueblo a cambio de dinero en la forma de remesas.

Systematic Immigration Reform (STEP III)

**This blog entry was written previously and is being reposted here in an effort to consolidate all articles in one location**
This is the Third and final part in a series outlining a strategy to address illegal immigration.  Please see Step One here and Step II, here.
Now that we have covered both stopping the flow of illegal immigrants and the regularization of those that are here; we can begin to discuss the accommodations for those caught up in the middle, through no fault of their own.  I am specifically talking about illegal immigrants that were children brought illegally to the United States by their parents.  You must separate the individuals into a two categories.

1. Those that are still minors at the time the legislation is passed.
2. Those that have resided in the United States since childhood but are now adults.

Documentation must be presented to determine into which category the individual will be placed.  This can be easily done with report cards from elementary, middle and high school.  If the individual cannot prove that he/she was brought to the United States as a minor he/she will be subject to the previously outlined conditions of the CERIC (Conditional Employment and Residency Identification and Card).
Regardless of Category everyone will be processed per the CERIC requirements to include fingerprints, DNA, and photo identification.  They must meet the conditions for the CERIC, i.e. they have no warrants, no felony convictions and other condition previously stipulated.   If they fail to meet the requirements they will be processed for deportation.
Category 1- Minor Children would be issued a CERIC.  If these individuals graduate high school and have no previous criminal record they will be eligible and may apply for permanent residency at age 21.  If they fail to graduate from high school they will continue under the CERIC until age 23 after which time they may apply for permanent residency. 
Category 2-  If the individuals in this category can show proof of graduation from US education through high school, they will have a two-year CERIC requirement and then will be eligible to apply for permanent residency status through existing procedures.  Those individuals in this category who did not graduate high school will have a five-year CERIC requirement and would subsequently be eligible to apply for permanent residency.
Other special conditions that should be implemented include the following:
Any person that is eligible for a CERIC and can meet the requirements for military service may enter into the United States Armed Services.  Upon honorable completion of a 4-year active duty commitment, those individuals will immediately be eligible to apply for US citizenship.
The last and final step to Immigration reform is to make the hiring of illegal immigrants prohibitively expensive in future years.  This would easily be accomplished by implementing one clear, precise and ironclad law for all businesses: If you knowingly or negligently hire an illegal alien, after the implementation of this program, you shall be fined $500,000 per incident.  This will make it prohibitively expensive to break the law.  No business in their right mind will risk the fine to save $2.00 an hour in labor costs.  This will protect the workers from exploitation and prevent future waves of illegal aliens from crossing the border looking for work.  If they know that there is a close to zero chance of finding a job because no business will hire them, they will cease to look north as a viable option.  Businesses will also benefit; businesses will be on an even playing field and competiveness will increase across many industries in the economy.  Because all the new CERIC card holders will be legal, businesses can no longer undercut the competition by using illegal laborers.  The net result will be a more reliable work force and safer working conditions for all workers.  This will all happen in the marketplace, on its own.  This can only be looked upon as a net positive. 
In order to facilitate the verification of workers, an E-Verify type system would be set up with the information from the CERIC.  Upon entry of the CERIC number the system would show the employer a photo of the owner of that number/card along with a physical description.  The employer could then be assured that the individual was in fact legally eligible to work in the United States. And, absolve him of legal repercussions should fraud be subsequently discovered.  This process must be simple and quick along with being inexpensive.  There are no technological reasons this cannot be done.  The only obstacles to establishing these policies for the employer are and will undoubtedly be political.
The underlying theme to SYSTEMATIC IMMIGRATION REFORM and the CERIC is that it is CONDITIONAL!  The conditions are straightforward, fair and achievable.  This is not and should not be misconstrued to be a “trap” to catch and deport anyone.  It is merely a method by which illegal immigrants can prove what they never tire of telling people: “I am law-abiding and I just came here to work.”  They must abide by the law, period.  If they break the law, by committing a felony crime, commit a third misdemeanor crime, or a 2^nd DUI, they will be processed for deportation.  It is not unreasonable to ask that these immigrants follow our laws as a condition for legal status in the United States; and I believe many of them would be happy to accept these terms and end the constant anxiety of being caught and deported.
I believe that this country is the greatest nation ever devised and established by man.  I wholeheartedly understand the manic rush of people to come to this great country.  They are looking for, what we as Americans sometimes take for granted; the freedom to pursue life, liberty and happiness.  But, while I may empathize with their motivations, I cannot condone their lack of respect for the rule of law.  I firmly believe that a great majority of Americans would be supportive of legislation that would adopt the concepts outlined in this series and would embrace a new wave of LEGAL immigrants, while at the same time forgive and give those who would necessarily be required to register themselves under this program an opportunity to prove that they are, in fact, law abiding and worthy of the chance to become US citizens.  The People of the United States have always been and continue to be the most open, understanding, and charitable people in the world; they only ask that the laws, borders and sovereignty of the United States be respected.
This road map is not a complete solution; obviously, many details would have to be worked out.  But if the general concepts were adopted and the conditions unambiguously established, it would make political, practical and common sense.  Whatever its final version, the key to its success is simplicity; adding another 1000 pages of regulation and bureaucratic red tape to the already dizzyingly complicated immigration statutes would serve no purpose and would only exacerbate the problems we face today.
Finally, I must reiterate that the first and most critical step in this Systematic approach is to SECURE THE BORDER.  Much like the recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, you can send hundreds of skimmers and emplace hundreds of miles of barriers and booms and build all the sand levies you like, but at the end of the day they still had to stop the leak.  Stopping the leak is just the first step.  True recovery would have been impossible until the leak was stopped, and there is still a long recovery process forthcoming.  In the same way, all the laws and regulations for both immigration and enforcement at all levels of government that are enacted won’t solve the problem if you are unwilling to stop the leak.
I challenge any and all politicians to use this roadmap of ideas as a true guide to once and for all solve the illegal immigration problem in the United States.  But it will take intestinal fortitude and daring.  Those that are weak of heart need not apply.  The only way this problem is going to be solved it to tackle it directly and to ignore the petty political bickering and backbiting.  This will take determination and a concerted effort, but it can be cone and it should be done; not only because it will solve or many of the issues associated with illegal immigration, but because it is the right thing to do.

Systematic Immigration Reform (Step II)

**This blog entry was written previously and is being reposted here in an effort to consolidate all articles in one location**

This is the second part in a continuing series outlining a strategy to address illegal immigration.  Please see Step One here. 

After step one is complete.  It is now possible to begin the arduous task of sorting out those individuals that are in the country illegally.  But, before we go any further there must be one absolutely understood aspect of my proposal; NO AMNESTY!! And, citizenship opportunities will be the exception not the rule, but those instances will be discussed later in the series.
The second step must be an effort to register as many illegal aliens in the country as is possible.  This would be accomplished by establishing registration sites where illegal aliens could register.
One of the most common things illegal immigrants express is– the only law they have violated is crossing the border illegally.  Well, this program will give all illegal aliens the opportunity to demonstrate their respect for the laws of this country and to prove that they are willing to abide by those laws in exchange for the opportunity to work and make a living to provide for their family.
The federal government should establish an open window of time; say 12 months, for all illegal aliens to register.  This includes adults and children (illegal immigrant children will be addressed in future steps).  The individual will have to pay a fine and an application fee (the schedule for this can be determined at a later date, the important issue is that they must be registered for the purposes of identification). At the end of the registration process the individual will be presented with a Conditional Employment and Residency Identification Card (CERIC) which will include a tax identification number.  Additionally, a CD/DVD with quick essential English lessons should be distributed, this will encourage assimilation. There may be arguments for requiring that individuals take a simple test for English at some point after issuance of the CERIC, this would only cover the most basic “survival” words and phrases. This is a debate which must be had and resolved.
Any person who fails to register within the appointed time and cannot present the CERIC after the window has closed will be summarily designated for deportation.  Most of those unwilling to register are likely the same people unwilling to abide by the law and should be dealt with accordingly.   At this point illegal aliens will be unable to use the worn out, overused meme that they “are law abiding except for crossing the border,” as an excuse/explanation for their illegal status.  They must either abide by the law as a condition for residency and employment or face deportation.
The Card will allow the individual to work in the United States for three years; at which time the individual must reapply and must be re-screened before renewal of the CERIC is granted.  This re-screening will allow the Federal Government to determine if the individual is abiding by the conditions for the residency permit; if not the individual shall be processed for deportation.  If ANY individual fails to reapply for the CERIC after the initial three years, they have, ipso facto, violated the conditions of the CERIC and shall be detained and processed for deportation.  All holders of the CERIC will be afforded habeas corpus, but upon a felony conviction or a third misdemeanor crime (not to include traffic violations except DUI) the individual should be complete his/her sentence and be subsequently deported.
The Tax ID number will be used to track and collect individual annual federal and state income tax.  There shall be NO opportunity for the individual to apply for collect or otherwise receive any social security benefits from the United States government or state governments to include food stamps, Medicare, Medicaid, Welfare, or housing assistance. In other words, the only benefit they will receive through the temporary worker program is the opportunity to find employment, period. The card will also allow the immigrant to get a bank account, driver’s license, insurance and other civil actions.  There will certainly be those that argue that this is unjust, but illegal immigrants themselves consistently say that all they want is the opportunity to work and make a living. 
The registration process will allow for identification of the person, to include fingerprints, DNA sample and photo identification.  The card should be equipped with either a magnetic strip, bar code, or micro-chip with all identification information embedded for use by law enforcement.   Additionally, the individual will be screened for any outstanding warrants and civil subpoenas, as well as a criminal record check.  Any one found with a felony conviction or more than three misdemeanor convictions shall be denied a work permit and be processed for deportation.  Anyone with an outstanding arrest warrant shall be arrested and extradited to the corresponding jurisdiction for prosecution and subsequent deportation.
All individuals, who desire to become a resident, and subsequently a citizen, must repatriate to their home country and apply for a visa and/or residency through already established processes.
And finally, I would immediately increase the quota for visas from Central and South America and Europe as well, and allow 200-300% more immigrants a year to enter the US.  If Mexico and South American and European countries are going to willingly allow their citizens to seek out economic exile, which has the resulting effect of draining those countries of their best talent in all areas, then we should expedite and facilitate the assimilation and absorption of all these people as soon as practicable.  It is in the interests of the United States to bring in as many engineers, doctors, dentists, IT professionals, nurses, scientists and businessmen as soon as possible into the country which will fuel small business and the overall economy.
The problem is not with immigrants coming into this country and finding a new way of life by complying with immigration laws.  Americans welcome legal immigrants with open arms. I for one would like the process to be easier and quicker. Additionally, I would like the process expanded to more people, and afford them a shot at the American Dream, as it was afforded to my parents and to me; through a process of assimilation into the culture.  What I don’t want is entire segment of the population who has shown blatant disregard for the law to be rewarded.  A population of illegal aliens who will take advantage of the opportunity, liberty, and freedom this country provides while at the same time denigrating the country that provides it.  What I don’t want is a segment of society made up of illegal aliens who will tell you of the lawlessness and disrespect for the rule of law in their country of origin as they shamelessly ignore the laws and create evermore lawlessness in this country.
This concludes step two.  The next step will begin to address the “exceptions” and a “path to citizenship” for certain subsets of individuals.  After all the United States as a country has traditionally been and continues to be the most compassionate and welcoming country in the world.