March 09, 2006
According to the recent Field Poll, as crowed-about by the S.F. Chronical: "Two-thirds of Californians support guest-worker plan". (Related propaganda from the Contra Costa Times: "Illegal immigration gains allies").
Unfortunately, you can get the results you want or at least inaccurate results if you ask the right people the right question, and if you rely on their lack of knowledge of the issue. From their PDF, here's the question that was asked:
Do you favor or oppose reforming immigration laws to create temporary worker programs for illegal immigrants that would legalize their status and allow future immigrants to work in the U.S.?
Here's the follow-up question I would have asked:
(If 'YES') You do realize that there's no such thing as a "temporary" or "guest" worker, right? You do realize that our "guests" would be here to stay: they'd have U.S. citizen children, they'd buy property, they'd start businesses, and they'd become part of their community. Nothing is going to make them go home, especially since those same forces that oppose immigration enforcement now will still be out there and will be even more powerful than before. Now, do you still support "temporary" worker schemes?
I think that would get about a 10% 'YES' vote.
Posted to California at March 9, 2006 11:40 AM
Comments
Anyone who promotes the Guestworker Myth (e.g. John McCain) is a lying politician of the lowest order and should be considered ineligible for public office by anyone with an IQ above room temperature.
Posted by: perroazul del norte at March 9, 2006 01:42 PM
well, if there is one thing i am sure of, it is that the general populace is relatively uninformed and ignorant, even on issues that directly affect their well-being. just look at bush's track record and the fact that he led us into to contrived wars overseas and still got re-elected. granted, the options were not all that appealing, but he got away with it nonetheless. as long as anti-illegal sentiment is framed as being racist and anti-immigrant, it is easy to marginalize the arguments against illegal innvasion, no matter how compelling the raw economic and social data. until people feel the effect of illegal immigration firsthand, such as losing a job to low-wage pressures or sending your child into a rotting education system, people will continue to live in ignorant bliss. sometimes i wish i never even knew what the issues were; my life would be that much less stressful. time to move outta california.
Posted by: calypso catteraugus at March 9, 2006 01:49 PM
Even if you cynically sidestep the question of the mendacious nature of the term "guestworker" the dysfunctional nature of the agency (USCIS) that will be administering any "guestworker"/amnesty program will insure the program will be a disaster. Some will argue that all government agencies are inept and corrupt-but that would not be an argument for yet another badly-run government program.
The only sensible alternative is to encourage self-deportation through vigorous workplace enforcement that includes asset seizure and prison for employers of illegals. Those measures along with mandatory on-line verification of SSAN's would solve a lot of the problem.
Another possibility would be formal implementation of the pure open borders position. This would be "self-service" immigration (a variation on what we have now) with no documents required for work (next to impossible in a developed country with a social safety net) or documents isssued via vending-machine or other simple unverifiable procedure(i.e, create as many identities as you want).
On the sorry state of USCIS:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/nation/20060307-9999-1n7whistle.html
March 7, 2006
WASHINGTON – Many immigration officers handling requests for green cards, citizenship and other immigration benefits do not have access to key law enforcement and national security databases, said a top federal security official who quit over the issue.
The officers' access to the databases, which would allow them to check whether an applicant had a criminal record or was on the terrorism watch list, was cut off because the government has failed to complete required background checks on the immigration adjudicators.
Michael Maxwell stepped down last month as director of the Office of Security at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and sought protection under the federal whistle-blower protection law. He claims that senior agency officials had been retaliating against him for telling Congress about what he described as serious national security vulnerabilities that persisted despite his warnings to those running the agency.
In addition, Maxwell claims the agency lacks the resources to handle some 500 allegations of criminal misconduct against agency employees, including allegations of espionage and acceptance of bribes.
(...)
http://www.washtimes.com/national/20060306-123558-4971r.htm
A draft government report shows the agency that would oversee any future guest-worker program doesn't have a handle on fraud, doesn't do enough to deter it, and won't have a fraud-management system in place until 2011 -- years after its proponents want a program to start.
A copy of the draft, obtained by The Washington Times, says U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has looked at the prevalence of fraud in just a few of the types of visas it now issues and doesn't give adjudicators the time or tools to detect fraud or refer it to authorities for prosecution.
The report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) said that USCIS can't tell the extent of immigration benefit fraud, but "it is a serious problem."
(...)
Of the fraud assessments USCIS has done, GAO found a 30 percent fraud rate among religious worker applications and "the assessment also uncovered one case where law enforcement had identified an applicant as a suspected terrorist."
(...)
Sen. Charles E. Grassley, Iowa Republican and one of those who requested the report, wouldn't talk about specifics until it is released, but he told a Judiciary Committee meeting last week that senators would "be shocked if you learned about the internal fraud and abuse at the Citizenship and Immigration Service."
Mr. Grassley said from what he's seen, it's "unrealistic" to expect USCIS to administer a guest-worker program properly.
"Officials are being bribed. Visas are being given away. Green cards are being sold," he said.
(...)
Posted by: perroazul del norte at March 9, 2006 03:25 PM
I was very skeptical of this poll when I heard the results. Where was this poll taken and who all was asked? There are other polls out there where the majority of people want less immigration in general and don't feel that illegal immigration should be rewarded in any way. And that would include a "guest worker" plan which is totally bogus because you know that they will become permenent workers and not be returning home.
Posted by: DG at March 9, 2006 11:26 PM
