Imagine if a person came into your home without permission, ate your food, slept on your couch, claimed the house was theirs all along, and then demanded that you make them part of your family. Would you hesitate a moment in throwing that person out?
Yet we have more than 10 million "illegal aliens" who broke our laws by coming here. They take advantage of our welfare programs without paying into them. And now they demand we give them a path to citizenship? It's not hard to see why some Americans might not want to welcome such people with open arms.
The "amnesty" bill currently before Congress is a mistake. By rewarding illegal actions, it only sends the message that the rule of law means nothing, that anybody who wants can come on in with no regard for the laws of the American people. Seeing as those laws are made by the people's elected representatives, it is the equivalent of a slap in the face for all Americans.
Instead of continuing down this path, Congress should take a more responsible approach: Build the fence and secure the border; catch people who overstay their visas; require verification for all employee hires; and make the legal immigration system less onerous. A guest worker program may even be in order.
But citizenship for "illegal aliens?" Rewarding illegal behavior will only ensure more of it, meaning that this problem with recur again and again.
David Welch
Scotia