Some of our elected officials never cease to amaze me.  This year, we have Joseph Almeida supporting a bill urging congress to halt e-verify, Grace Diaz is trying to allow illegal aliens to pay in-state tuition at RIC, URI, and CCRI, while Senator Charles Levesque and Representative David Segal want to restrict inquiries into immigration status when individuals seek protections under the law.  The bill is referred to as the "state rights of immigrants" bill.  Here's Charles Levesque's rationale:

“If in fact you are entitled to relief under state law as anyone else then you have the right to bring your action, regardless of your immigration status,” said Levesque. “That’s fairness, justice, and the American way.”

He added, “In every regard, I’m trying to promote a status quo, until, or if ever, there is a comprehensive federal response” to immigration reform. Levesque said Governor Carcieri and others “have been pushing legislation to make life untenable for those [undocumented immigrants] who are here and who have been here for many, many years. All of a sudden, they want to just make it impossible for them to have any comfort, any ability to survive, rather than deal with it fairly and comprehensively” through federal immigration reform.


     I don't think Charles Levesque and his colleagues get it, but I'll try my best to explain yet again.  Undocumented workers, who are actually illegal aliens, are people who broke the law and should not be in this country.  While honest people were waiting their turn to come into the United States, they are trespassing.  They are law-breakers, pure and simple.  Governor Carcieri and other legislators have been trying to make their lives more difficult, and I applaud them for it.  If Rhode Island is less welcoming to illegal aliens, they will likely move to another state, and we won't have the economic burden they bring.

     Now, I know that supporters of illegal aliens will take issue with that last sentence, but let's think about it clearly.  Illegal aliens are a drain on the state.  Sure, they pay sales tax and some pay income tax, but let's look at what they take.  If a family has 2 children in public schools, their education probably costs the community close to $25,000.  If they receive treatment at an emergency room, it further burdens the system, and human service agencies are stretched further (along with the state and federal grants they may receive).  Since illegal aliens tend to have low-wage jobs, the taxes they pay probably don't come anywhere near off-setting the amount they cost.

     Speaking of jobs, illegal aliens who have jobs are taking them from those who are unemployed.  We often hear the silly line about illegal aliens working at the jobs "Americans don't want," but this is nonsense.  In good times, many of these jobs would be passed over for better positions, but in times like these, you would likely find many legal residents who would be thrilled just to have a job.  If you don't believe it, just check out the dearth of jobs in the newspaper.  By the way, don't you think these jobs would be more appealing to legal residents if illegal aliens weren't depressing the wage scale?  If you don't think that's a problem, you're kidding yourself.

     As you can see, illegal immigration is a serious problem in Rhode Island.  A solution at the federal level would be ideal, but until there is one, we need to protect our economic well-being.  Thankfully, some members of the General Assembly seem to understand the importance of this challenge.  Representative Joe Trillo, who is considering a run for Governor, is proposing an end to worker's compensation benefits for illegal immigrants.  As he states:


“I just think we need to do as much as we can to stop illegal immigrants from coming into our country and certainly from coming into our state,” said Trillo. “It puts a tremendous drain on our human-services budget. The people of our state have been hurt by all the illegal immigrants that have come to the state of Rhode Island …” 


     Several other legislators are also trying to address the illegal immigration issue.  Peter Palumbo has introduced the “The Rhode Island Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act of 2009”, which will address the negative economic impact of illegal immigration.  In addition to this bill, Mark Cote and John Brien have submitted legislation requiring the use of e-Verify for all business with at least 3 employees. 

     As the 2009 legislative session unfolds, we need to follow this legislation closely and keep an eye on the dishonest tactics used  by supporters of illegal aliens, and their tendency to twist the truth.  Have you ever noticed that instead of referring to "illegal immigrants", they refer simply to "immigrants"?  It's their transparent attempt to make the bills seem anti-immigrant, when in fact they are targeting illegal immigrants.  This is a distraction to draw attention from the facts, which are on the side of those opposing legal immigration.  Don't be fooled.

http://www.projo.com/news/content/IMMIGRATION_BILLS_03-01-09_FKDE1HL_v30.1b329c7.html