|
|
|
Immigration Reform |
 |
|
For
more than 200 years, America has been a beacon of hope for
immigrants who have come here to enjoy liberty and freedom, and
the opportunity to follow a dream to make a better life for
themselves and their families. We grow stronger as a nation by
welcoming people from every corner of the globe. I believe we can
continue to welcome those who hold the same values and aspire to
the same ideals as those who have come before - but this does not
mean we should have an open border without controls. It's clear
with an illegal population estimated at 12 million, increasing
violence on the border, and national security concerns, we need a
comprehensive policy that addresses border security and the long
term issue of illegal entry into the US.
|
|
"The vast
majority of aliens find work we have traditionally avoided due to
poor pay or difficult working conditions (or both).”
|
|
|
|
Like many issues
we face, there are no easy answers. Total deportation or
blanket amnesty are neither realistic nor fair solutions.
Deportation fails to acknowledge a simple reality: we have no
practical means to locate, process, and deport 12 million
people. We can talk about people breaking our immigration laws
and how it would be unfair to reward this behavior, but
deportation isn't the answer. Blanket amnesty rewards some
aliens who've come here to use our system but not contribute
to it. Those who've broken laws other than immigration or
those who've failed to contribute in a manner like other
citizens should not earn a free pass to permanent residency. I
believe we can craft a plan that balances both extremes. |
|
"Before we
develop a plan, we must acknowledge aliens alone are not the
problem –
we must take an equal share of the responsibility for why they
are here.”
|
The
vast majority of aliens find work we have traditionally avoided
due to poor pay or difficult working conditions (or both). They
pick our fruit and vegetables, cut our meat, maintain our yards,
clean our houses and stores, wash dishes in restaurants, and many
other tasks we’ve given up doing ourselves. We must also
acknowledge immigrants work for American companies in every state
who knowingly hire them without a second thought – using their
illegal status to pay below market wages. This is unfair to those
who come here to work in some of our toughest industries and is
also unfair to US workers who are increasingly displaced by
unscrupulous companies who fear no retribution by hiring
immigrants to boost profits.
Here's what I believe we must do:
|
► |
Implement a plan
to secure our borders, recognizing it won't be perfect, but
improve on what is in place presently;
|
|
► |
All illegal
aliens, who can prove they were in the United States before
a date set by Congress, must register with the Federal Government by a set
date. Those who fail to do so will forfeit any chance to be
included in a program to convert to legal status;
|
|
► |
Confirm the
process for converting from illegal status to permanent
resident so illegal aliens understand the process they must
go through;
|
|
► |
Develop a guest
worker program to provide temporary visas for specific
industries with controls to insure fair wages and working
conditions;
|
|
► |
Create a
biometric based employer verification system to offer
employers a simpler means to comply with the law. Until this
is in place, provide employers a way to confirm legal
working status that maintains confidentiality but is simple
to use;
|
|
► |
Make it a felony
to employ aliens not authorized to work in the US. Unless
there is a real prospect for punishment, unscrupulous
companies will continue to employ illegal workers who can be
paid low wages and who are forced to work in unacceptable
conditions; and
|
|
► |
Set up a
proactive program to retain immigrants who can contribute to
the growth of our economy. The US has, by far, the best
university system, attracting many of the brightest students
from countries around the world. We should make it possible
for more of these individuals to stay here if they can help
us grow businesses that pay well and employ more American
workers.
|
|
|
|
It's time for
fiscally responsible, independent representation for NH
in Congress
|
|
It's
time for Tim !
|
 |
|
|
|
