I deliberately didn’t watch the President’s speech last night. I figured I could read the transcript and save myself the cost of a new TV.
You can read the transcript here. I’m just going to post a few bits and my comments.
Many use forged documents to get jobs, and that makes it difficult for employers to verify that the workers they hire are legal.
Nice one. In one sentence, we pave the way for a national ID card (which, I hate to admit, may be necessary–no matter how odious) and let the employers who hire the illegals off the hook.
Yet we must remember that the vast majority of illegal immigrants are decent people who work hard, support their families, practice their faith, and lead responsible lives.
And those responsible, hard-working, family-oriented, church-going aliens are here illegally. Is it just me, or does it look bad when the first thing you do to get here is commit a crime?
The United States is not going to militarize the southern border.
First intelligent thing I’ve seen in the speech. We could, and we could stop the illegals at the southern border. That just leaves the coasts and Canada. I don’t even want to consider the cost.
So we’ll increase federal funding for state and local authorities assisting the Border Patrol on targeted enforcement missions.
So we’ll throw money at the problem, hoping that if we can make a big enough pile of it the illegals won’t be able to climb over.
Second, to secure our border, we must create a temporary worker program.
OK, I’ll give you this one on one condition: No one is eligible for a temporary worker permit if they are in this country illegally. The permits are only available at embassies and consulates outside of the US.
Third, we need to hold employers to account for the workers they hire. It is against the law to hire someone who is in this country illegally. Yet businesses often cannot verify the legal status of their employees because of the widespread problem of document fraud. Therefore, comprehensive immigration reform must include a better system for verifying documents and work eligibility. A key part of that system should be a new identification card for every legal foreign worker. This card should use biometric technology, such as digital fingerprints, to make it tamper-proof. A tamper-proof card would help us enforce the law, and leave employers with no excuse for violating it. And by making it harder for illegal immigrants to find work in our country, we would discourage people from crossing the border illegally in the first place.
Oh yeah! National ID will be just a step away. Hey, we’ve already built the infrastructure, and it’s for the children War on Drugs War on Terror oh, whatever.
I believe that illegal immigrants who have roots in our country and want to stay should have to pay a meaningful penalty for breaking the law, to pay their taxes, to learn English, and to work in a job for a number of years.
Does this mean pay all the back taxes as well, and do we get an “English is the national language” law? Can we stop paying for bilingual this and bilingual that?
Tonight, I want to speak directly to members of the House and the Senate: An immigration reform bill needs to be comprehensive, because all elements of this problem must be addressed together, or none of them will be solved at all. The House has passed an immigration bill. The Senate should act by the end of this month so we can work out the differences between the two bills, and Congress can pass a comprehensive bill for me to sign into law.
Great, he wants it in a hurry. Even when Congress takes their time they tend to screw it up, and he wants it in 2 1/2 weeks. This will be a freakin’ disaster–I predict it.
You know, Bush is a likeable fellow. That’s one of the big reasons I think he’s been elected to the Presidency twice. But you know, sometime even a likeable fellow is full of it. This is one of those times.