Immigration solution? Enforce the laws!

Immigration solution? Enforce the laws!
Activists say investigation needed to reveal failures

An activist group advocating legal immigration paths into the United States wants an investigation into the nation's failure to enforce what immigration laws it already has.

"We need Congress and the press to do their jobs, by launching investigations to find out why our existing laws are not being enforced," said William Gheen, a spokesman for Americans for Legal Immigration PAC.

"Presidents do not get to decide which laws they will or will not enforce on behalf of their big business friends. That's what kings do, not presidents. If our existing laws go un-enforced, then we no longer live in a functioning Republican for which our flag stands," he said.

Gheen, in an earlier analysis of the issue of illegal aliens, said the issue isn't all that complicated.

"Simply put, America needs to enforce existing laws," he said. "Political and media pundits are constantly expounding upon our need to send the right messages to terrorists. Why is it then that many of those same pundits send the wrong message to illegal aliens?"

Gheen, who is president of ALIPAC and also serves as a legislative assistant in North Carolina, said that there are laws imposing fines on employers who hire illegal aliens.

However, "all fines against employers for hiring illegal aliens had ceased by 2004, under directives from the Bush administration," Gheen said. "Recent high profile raids have excluded charges against employers."

Gheen also said there are laws regarding the apprehension of illegal aliens, and their detention. But, he said, "Border Patrol agents are operating under instructions to only Catch and Release and do not pursue."

"Under these directives, it would not matter if we had half a million U.S. Border Patrol agents deployed," he said. "Bush has opened our borders through regulatory means. The Border Patrol has their hands tied and are not really stopping anyone from crossing illegally into the U.S."

Further, businesses that might make money from the illegal alien population are being tacitly encouraged to do so, with an absence of crackdowns on credit card offers, home loan proposals and other promotions specifically targeting illegals, ALIPAC said.

And after Congress demanded that 700 new miles of fencing be added to the border, the "Bush administration stripped the funding from the plan and built only a few miles of fencing!" ALIPAC said.

"Under these conditions, the deliberations of Congress, the votes of Congress, the elections, and the votes of all Americans have been nullified by executive orders," Gheen said. "These actions by the White House, combined with recent revelations about the [Security and Prosperity Partnership] and North American Community are alarming. Until Congress can restore the Republic and assure that laws that are passed will be enforced, there is no need for future legislation."

Gheen's schedule this week includes meetings with members of Congress in Washington to discuss the organization's request for investigations.

"ALIPAC believes that enforcement of our existing laws would eventually and significantly reduce the number of illegal aliens residing in America," ALIPAC said. "The current illegal immigration crisis in America is being created by the non-enforcement of existing laws.

"Correcting the situation would begin to reverse the flow of illegal aliens with more leaving than entering," the group said.

In Gheen's earlier explanation of his solution, he said while illegal immigration probably never will be stopped completely, it could be reversed easily.

He said the message the U.S. needs to send is that it "is not open, accommodating, or receptive to those [who] disrespect our laws and citizenry by entering as illegal aliens."

"The four things we must do are: (1). Secure our borders. (2.) Crack down on employers that intentionally hire illegal labor. (3.) Remove all benefits such as licenses, in-state tuition, and welfare for illegal aliens. (4.) Empower local police to enforce immigration law," Gheen said.

"Broad consensus exists for these measures, as multiple national and local polls show over 80 plus percent support for each one," he said.

"Mexican nationals caught entering the U.S. should not be dropped off just across the border so they can try again the next night. They should be detained, identified, told that a second crossing attempt is a felony. They should then handed over to the Mexican government to be returned to their homes," he said.

"A congressional inquiry is needed to ascertain why these insane and useless directives are in place and why most of the border sensor technology the taxpayers have paid for is not in place or operational," he said.

As WND has reported, a comprehensive immigration plan proposed in the U.S. Senate recently failed by a significant margin as tens of thousands of U.S. citizens called expressing opposition.

The plan would have set up a legal status for the estimated 12-20 million illegal aliens in the United States and included what the White House described as a large commitment of billions of dollars to secure the border and enforce the nation's existing laws against illegal entry.

Opponents, however, dubbed it an amnesty plan for illegals, and it never was able to shake that moniker.