Reason for Large Illegal Immigration

For John, BLUF:  The Department of Homeland Security has a problem with putting out a coherent story that sells across the fruited plain.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Trust Me, We Would NEVER Do That, Says Mayorkas to Disbelieving Americans

From PJ Media, by Reporter Victoria Taft, 14 October 2024, 9:18 AM.

Here is the lede plus six:

Alejandro Mayorkas, the impeached Department of Homeland Security Secretary, wants you to know that he's vewy, vewy angwy that people would dare say that the reason he, Border Czar Kamala Harris, and President Joe Biden, have opened the borders to a marauding horde of millions of illegal aliens is to import new Democrat voters.

That's just "disinformation," he said on CBS's Face the Nation on Sunday morning, with just a tad too much-feigned disbelief in his voice.

Mayorkas told Margaret Brennan that these kinds of stories combined with the concerns over helping North Carolina hurricane victims vote this election have caused Americans to "lose confidence in the integrity of the election system, and we need people in positions of authority to actually communicate accurate information to the voting public."

Getting "accurate information" would be a refreshing change, wouldn't it?

But this was my favorite line from Mayorkas. Make sure you're not eating or drinking anything while you read on.

"The notion that we in law enforcement have sought to intentionally allow individuals to cross the border illegally for the purpose of voting is preposterous, and everyone should condemn that rhetoric," he solemnly told Brennan. "Everyone, regardless of party affiliation."

That's right. It's not his contemptible behavior that begs explanation, it's our daring to ask the question that's the problem.

So, can we say that the flood of illegal immigrants is due to incompetence on the part of the Bush Administration?  Or, are they tryihng to compensate for all those childless cat ladies?  Maybe it has to do with fertility collapse.

Fertility has collapsed worldwide owing to female empowerment, urbanization, economic insecurity and climate concerns. "Peak humanity" is upon us – and that's before we factor in another pandemic or accelerating climate disasters.

Yes, we need more immigration in the United States.♠  However, we need to do it the right way.  The Senator Schumer supported Immigration Reform Bill is not the right way.  For one thing, it allows for 1.82 milllion illegal immigrants a year before actions kick in, if they are not waived by the Administration.  Really?  Just go with the House Bill they have been suppressing.  Hypocrits all the way down.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠ 

America Turning Inward

For John, BLUF:  In politics one needs to chase after the voters.  This article suggests the Democrats have something to learn by listening to Trump and his supporters.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

The Deep Roots of Trump’s Isolationism

Here is the sub-headline:

Democrats Need Their Own “America First” Agenda

From Foreign Affairs, by Prof Charles Kupchan, 9 September 2024.

Here is the lede plus three:

The mainstream U.S. foreign policy establishment views former President Donald Trump as a dangerous neo-isolationist, completely out of step with American ideals and interests. Internationalists at home and abroad shudder at the prospect of Trump’s potential reelection in November, fearing that he would dismantle the liberal order that the United States and its allies have built and defended since World War II.

Such fears are justified; Trump may indeed seek to do away with at least some core elements of the U.S.-led liberal order. But to portray his “America first” approach as a dark deviation from the American experience is to misunderstand its deep historical and ideological roots, as well as its considerable political appeal. Trump’s statecraft is a response to a changing world and to demand signals from the U.S. electorate, not a capricious effort to take apart the world that the United States made.

None of this is to deny that Trump’s return to office could be disastrous. At home, he may well imperil American democracy. Abroad, Trump’s mere reelection would set the world on edge. U.S. allies would have to face the reality that their security guarantor—the globe’s premier power—has been beset by intractable political dysfunction; they would have no choice but to question Washington’s long-term reliability and make other plans. Meanwhile, autocrats would be emboldened and the cause of democracy everywhere debilitated.

Yet the best way to avoid that highly unattractive outcome is not to recoil at Trump’s “America first” movement or to see it merely as the work of a know-nothing felon. Rather, the way forward requires unpacking that movement, understanding its considerable political appeal, and appropriating its worthy elements. If the Democrats are to defeat Trump and his neo-isolationist agenda, they should cull central elements of his “America first” program and pivot toward a more modest, restrained, and pragmatic brand of U.S. statecraft.

I think this article, although written from "left of center,” offers an alternative look at how we might conduct our foreign policy, perhaps going back to our roots in our early decades.  While it looks askance at President Trump and his ideas, the author teases out what he sees are veins of thought that resonate with the American People. Thus, its positive points may well outweigh its partisanship.

One place I strongly disagree with the author is his characterization of Senator Chuck Schumer's "bi-partison" immigration bill, which he brought forward to supplant the House Bill, which the Senate Majority Leader had buttonholed.  The Schumer Bill did not do the job.  For example, it would allow 1.82 million illegals a year without triggering actions.  As it is, President Biden's Executive Order♠ has an annual limit of only 912,500, which is still a lot of illegals per year.

The Author is Dr. Charles Kupchan, Professor of International Affairs in the School of Foreign Service and Government Department at Georgetown University, and Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. From 2014 to 2017 Kupchan served as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for European Affairs on the National Security Council in the Obama White House. He was also Director for European Affairs on the NSC during the first Clinton administration. Before joining the Clinton NSC, he worked in the U.S. Department of State on the Policy Planning Staff. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Politics at Princeton University..

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  One wonders how Preesident Biden issued that Executive Order after whinging for three years that he couldn't.

Crashing the System

For John, BLUF:  We face continuing problems with illegal immigration, which is not being fixed by small moves from the Biden Administration.  It will soon become overwhelming.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

In a recent post (3 July 2024) (Stop Asking For Uncle Sam to Pay Your Bills) I talked about the costs of illegal immigration to the individual States♠  and how even the Federal Government can not fund this problem.

This is not a good situation.  It is only adding to the inflation problem we are alredy facing.  The TV Network CNBC said, in March of this year, "The U.S. national debt is rising by $1 trillion about every 100 days".  In February of this year Forbes reported that the Congressional Budget Office now says tht the interest on the US Federeal debt now exceeds the Defense Budget.

This growing debt will eat our budget.  Not just Defense, but also things like Social Security and Medicare.  It will damage, and then destroy the US Dollar as the world reserve currency.  As US News and World Report told us in February of this year, "For the U.S., it would likely mean less access to capital, higher borrowing costs and lower stock market values."  That is bad news for all families as they try to live from paycheck to paycheck.  It also means, in the end, less support for those who need Government support.

We need to wake up and realize that we can not do everything.  We need to prioritize and look for cheaper solutions.  We need to start paying down our national debt before it eats the budget.

And, perhaps we should turn off the flow of illegal immigrants, who are costing us a lot of money, and interest payments.

As I thought about this problem I was reminded of a course in American History I took at UMass Lowell Continuing Education.  The authors of the textbook we used were Profesors Richard Cloward and Francis Fox Piven, of Columbia Univerity.

The Cloward–Piven strategy is a political strategy outlined in 1966 by American sociologists and political activists Richard Cloward and Frances Fox Piven.  The strategy aims to utilize "militant anti poverty groups" to facilitate a "political crisis" by overloading the welfare system via an increase in welfare claims, forcing the creation of a system of guaranteed minimum income and "redistributing income through the federal government".

Do you think it is possible that someone on that behind the scenes team running the Biden Administraion has hit on the idea of fundamentally changing our welfare system by crashing it with illegal immigrants?  Fixing such a crash could involve reallocating resources within the Federal Budget or it could involve changing tax types and rates, or both.  As we mix poverty, unemployment, homelessness illegal immigration and medical coverage we could see radical shifts not seen since the 1930s.

This is one of those things which will appear all of a sudden and overwhelm the Administration and Congress.  If someone is prepared with a solution, no matter how foreign to our culture, they will have an edge in presenting that solution and getting it approved.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  According to Brilliant Maps, as of 4 June 2024, only 7 states have 5,000 or fewer illegal immigrants:  Alaska, Maine, Montana, North Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, Wyoming.  Two more had 5,000 to 15,000 illegal immmigrants, New Hampshire, South Dakota.  The rest had more, some up over a million.  Is the Federal Government trying to break the Republican Government of Texas?

Stop Asking For Uncle Sam to Pay Your Bills

For John, BLUF:  We can't have it all and trying to do it will bankrupt the nation.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Pols want data on migrant sponsors

Here is the sub-headline:

Letter demands Gov. Healey conduct review, require reimbursement

From The Lowell Sun, by Boston Herald Reporter Gayla Cawley, 3 July 2024.

Here is the lede plus one:

A group of Massachusetts senators are demanding that the governor review how many migrant families being supported by taxpayers entered the U.S. on the condition of having their expenses covered by a sponsor, and that she make those people pay up.

Eleven state senators, led by Democrat Michael Moore and Republican Minority Leader Bruce Tarr, sent a letter to Gov. Maura Healey and Housing and Livable Communities Secretary Edward Augustus, calling for accountability for those who have made commitments to provide financial support for migrants under the federal Humanitarian Parole Program, “but have not fulfilled that commitment.”

All good stuff, but I want to focus on a paragraph further down in the story;:

“We appreciate the pressure you have placed on the federal government, and we continue to hope that Congress will act,” the June 25 letter states. “However, we ask that you also seek to hold to account those who have legally committed themselves to provide financial support for these migrants.”

While I am relatively confident immigrants are not clamoring to go to Alasks or North Dakota.♠  That said, immigrants do tend to be spread out across the fruited plain, if not by choioce, then by the acts of certain State Governors.

This, in turn, means that there are not large pockets of US tgaxpayers who can pony up the money for Massachusetts or New York City or Chicago to house immigrants.  The only way the Federal Government can hep the individual states to pay for the care and feeding of our millions of illegal immigrants is to print money.  We are financing it with debt.

As Senator Evertt Dirkson (R-IL) is reported to have said:  "A billion here, a billion there, pretty soon, you're talking real money."

This is not a good situation.  It is only aqdding to the inflation problem we are alredy facing.  The TV Network CNBC said, in March o fthis year, "The U.S. national debt is rising by $1 trillion about every 100 days".  In February of this year Forbes reported that the Congressional Budget Office now says tht the interest on the US Federeal debt now exceeds the Defense Budget.

This growing debt will eat our budget.  Not just Defense, but also things like Social Security and Medicare.  It will damage, and then destory the US Dollar as the world reservre currency.  As US News and World Report told us in February of this year, "For the U.S., it would likely mean less access to capital, higher borrowing costs and lower stock market values."  That is bad news for all families as they try to live from paycheck to paycheck.  It also means, in th end, less support for those who need Government support.

We need to wake up and realize that we can not do everything.  We need to prioritize and look for cheaper solutions.  We need to start paying down our natoinal debt before it eats the budget.

And, perhaps we should turn off the flow of illegal immigrants, who are costing us a lot of money, and interest payments.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  An old Air Force expression about Montana is "Why not Minot?  Freezin' is the reason."

The Attack

For John, BLUF:  The possibility of a future terroist attack in these United States, sponsored by a foreign regime.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

The Attack

Author:  Kurt Schlichter
Kindle Version:  353 Pages
Publisher:  Kurt Schlichter
Language:  English
ASIN:  B0CR1N7R8T
Publication Date:  January 8, 2024

Mr Kurt Schlichter has combined current events, such as our open border and terrorist attacks in places like Russia, stirred with his imagination and produced a very believeable story about a terrorist attack on the United States in the not-too-distant future (27-29 August 2024).

I liked the author's approach to the book, writing what are 40 short stories, from interviews with different observers of the various terrorist attacks.  Each one smoothly fits into a believeable collection that gives the reader an overview of what could be in our future.

The book actually takes a positive view of a terrible situation, showing how the resilience of the American People help to keep the situation from being worse than it is.  The book also paints a positive view as to the political response on the part of the Government.

Set at a point several years in the future, the book gives its interviewees time to settle down and absorb the events of August 2024, and to draw informed conclusions,  It is for the reader to also draw informed conclusions and to reach out to elected leaders, and those they appoint, to take actions now so this does not happen in the future.  We all remember the attacks on 9/11.  We would not wish to see a repeat of that event, but with many more casualties and much more damage to our infrastructure.

This book is exciting to read, but should be read most importantly because it raises questions about what could happen to us in the future and which we might be able to prevent by actions today.

Yes, this is a self-published book.

Regards  —  Cliff

Squatter

For John, BLUF:  How long will Citizens endure their homes being seized by illegal immigrants as squatters?  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

NYC squatters are cashing in on legal loopholes and crowded courts to take over homes — and good luck getting them out: experts

From The New York Post, by Reporter Jorge Fitz-Gibbon, 7 April 2024, 3:17 p.m. ET.

Here is the lede plus four:

The Big Apple is seeing a troublesome trend of unwelcome squatters illegally bedding down in private homes and apartments in the five boroughs — and it’s gotten much harder to kick them out.

A backlog of housing court cases and changes in the law in recent years have made it a bigger and longer-lasting headache for landlords to boot unwelcome tenants, legal experts tell The Post.

“This is happening far more now than in the past,” real estate attorney Josh Price said. “Squatters have become far more sophisticated than before. They set up elaborate schemes, fake documents and investigate the homes before breaking in.”

Two changes in city law in 2019 now dictate that landlords can’t just boot a squatter without a “special proceeding,” and have to file a lawsuit to get them out.

Manhattan real estate lawyer Alan Goldberg said he’s seen a 10-to-20% bump in squatter cases over the past two years, attributing it to the migrant crisis, post-pandemic homelessness — and media coverage.

How long can this go on before we have a large number of homeless American Citizens, because their homes have been taken over by illegal immigrants squatting in their home.

Blogger Sarah Hoyt says:

The left has forgotten what happens when people lose faith in the courts and law. I’m very afraid a great lesson is coming.

. Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

President Cranky is Wrong

For John, BLUF:  President Joseph Biden, a forgetful, cranky old man, is failing to lead the nation to fix the border wall and also help friends currently engaged in war.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Biden urges House to take up Ukraine and Israel aid package:  "Pass this bill immediately"

From CBS News, by Reporter Kaia Hubbard, Updated on 13 February 2024, 2:52 PM EST.

Here is the lede plus one:

Washington — President Biden urged House Republicans to "immediately" take up a $95 billion foreign aid bill that includes assistance to Ukraine and Israel after the Senate passed the measure early Tuesday, saying that "there's no question" that it would pass if brought to the House floor.

"I call on the speaker to let the full House speak its mind and not allow a minority of the most extreme voices in the House to block this bill even from being voted on," the president said in remarks at the White House, which came hours after the Senate's 70-29 vote to approve the measure.  "This is a critical act for the House to move."

Later in his talk the President said:

"History is watching.  Failure to support Ukraine at this critical moment will never be forgotten."

As is his wont, the President repreated himself with regard to that sentence, for emphasis.

I fully support our efforts to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia.  I believe the United States must support the Budapest Memorandum.  I am even willing to talk about restoring nuclear weapons to Ukraine, in light of Russia's violation of the Budapest Memorandum.

President Biden, in his talk, seems to be ignoring two considerations.

1. A large portion of the American Public thinks illegal immigration should be our first priority.  A prioity ahead of Ukraine.  The Republican (thin) majority in the House of Reprsentatives thinks it should use its political power to fix the US Southern Border.  In this belief it believes it is reflecting the will of the American People.
2. Given the way the US Government works, a party that commands only one House of Congress may use that power to force a President of another party to move in their direction, thus forcing a compromise.  The President is deeming this normal, contitutional, interaction as unpatriotic,  It is not and he is wrong.
3. As an aside, today, on his WRKO Afternoon Program, Reporter Howie Carr suggested that a bill such as the Ukraine funding bill should originate in the House of Representatives, per the Constitution.

The President is not only wrong on this issue, he is also being irascible.  And, he is further failing to keep his campaign promise to bring us all together.

Fix the border and then aid, Ukraine, Israil, Taiwan, and other allies and friends in trouble.

Regards  —  Cliff

Reading the Room

For John, BLUF:  If you didn't think this Bill was DOA, you didn't realize President Biden wants his cake and to eat it too.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Here’s Why the Senate Border Security Bill Was ‘Dead on Arrival’

Here is the sub-headline:

Illegal immigrants by the millions are entering the United States, as Congress is unable to fix loopholes, and President Joe Biden refuses to do so.

From The Epoch Times, by Investigative Reporter Mark Tapscott, 8 February 2024, Updated 9 February 2024.

Here is the lede plus four:

On Feb. 6, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) said that a border security bill created by a bipartisan group of senators was “dead on arrival.”

When Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) announced on Feb. 4 that he and two colleagues had agreed on a comprehensive border security bill, he lauded it as a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to stop the flood of illegal immigrants entering the United States that began in 2021 at the beginning of President Joe Biden’s term.

Mr. Lankford said he thought that he, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.)—after four months of arduous closed-door negotiations—had done something that recalled the great compromises that once defined the Senate, pleasing conservatives and liberals alike.

But two days later, Mr. Johnson said the bill was even “worse than expected.”

Going by their comments, it was as if the Sooner State’s senior senator and Mr. Johnson were reading two entirely different bills.

The US Southern Border is like a seive, and has been since January 2020.  In Fiscal Year 2023♠ we had 2.8 million illegal immigrants.  In December of 2023 it was 302,392 illegal immigrants (or 3,628704 over a year, not counting the "got aways").

The reform bill has issues.  Here is a list, from Senator Mike Lee of Utah.  Taking an example, the proposed bill would provide emergency action if we logged 5,000 illegal immigrants for seven days in a row.  One person short of 5,000 would provide 1,824,635 illegal immigrants a year.  That is almost 2 million that we don't have a plan to house, education, and assimilate.  We can tell there is pain by listening to the Mayors and Citizens of major Cities in the Northern part of the nation.

Regarding the building of a wall, this proposed bill would put that building off until 2028.  Why?  We need a wall now, not in four years.

President Biden and the Democrats on Capitol Hill do not want to fix the illegal immigrant problem.  They want a cloak to hide their goal of free and open immigration for all.  It is a sad commentary that they think this cloak will hide their abandonment of our national borders.

Some, like our Senior Senator from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Elizabeth Warren, claim opposition to the Bill is just President Trump playing politics.  She must not be reading the polls.  The American Voters are not happy with the nation's immigration policies.  President Trump is just doing a better job of reading the room.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  A Fiscal Year runs from 1 October to 30 September.

Don Surber on Illegal Immigration Reform

For John, BLUF:  This is a different person's take on illegal immigration and the Biden Administration sham effort at reform.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Turning the border against Trump

Here is the sub-headline:

Democrats and RINOs desperately try to wipe the open borders off their shoes

From Don Surber Substack, by Reporter Don Surber, 30 January 2024.

Here is the lede plus six:

If President Trump wins in November, he can thank Texas Governor Greg Abbott for the win.  No one has done more to change public opinion about Biden’s Open Borders policy than Abbott.  He shipped the invaders to sanctuary cities and lo and behold, black voters suddenly rose against Democrats who bent over backward for the illegal aliens.

In November, the Wall Street Journal reported, “By championing legal and illegal immigrants and largely ignoring border security, the Democrat Party has alienated key voting groups—including Hispanics.”

Hispanics?  It us worse than that because the invasion of illegal aliens puts the black vote in jeopardy for Democrats.  Black voters provide one out of four Democrat votes.

The New York Times chimed in, “Black voters are more disconnected from the Democrat Party than they have been in decades, frustrated with what many see as inaction on their political priorities and unhappy with President Biden, a candidate they helped lift to the White House just three years ago.

“New polls by The New York Times and Siena College found that 22% of black voters in six of the most important battleground states said they would support former President Donald J. Trump in next year’s election, and 71% would back Mr. Biden.

“The drift in support is striking, given that Mr. Trump won just 8% of black voters nationally in 2020 and 6% in 2016, according to the Pew Research Center.  A Republican presidential candidate has not won more than 12% of the black vote in nearly half a century.”

The black vote is only part of the problem. Most Americans oppose Biden’s refusal to enforce immigration laws.

President Biden is in a bit of a bind.  He, along with a big chuck of his Party, want an open border.  Some see it as the "Die Lösung" policy.  However, a significant portion of the Party is opposed to free and open borders, and the resulting influx of peope (302,034 last month).♠  For President Biden, and his handlers, the question is how to appease both factions of the Party, without sending voters to the Republican side in November.

The solution, for the Democrats, seems to be to have Congress pass an immigration refor4m bill that appears to limit the number of illegal immigrants, but only slightly throttles the flow.  Under the bill, as Mr Don Surber points out, the President would be forced to act if the number of illegal immigrants exceeds 5,000 per day.  However, that is a large number.  Granted, in December the aversge was 9,743 per day, but still, 4,999 (under the limit) is 1,824,635.  That is 36,492 per state.♥

For President Trump to oppose the supposed compromise bill being drafted behind closed doors in Congress is not just smart politics.  It is smart policy.  The bill is a clock behind which the Biden Administration wishes to continue to conduct business almost s usual, while being able to say it has control of the Border Crisis.  I am with President Trump on this.♦

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  For some opposed it appears to be an issue of allocation of resources,  The illegal immigrants are not only consuming tax dollars, but are also overrunning physical facilities that take time to build, like schools and recreation centers.
♥  While Alaska, Hawaii and Rhode Island will receiver fewer illegal immigrants to settle, California and Texas, for example, will receive more.
♦  There is the issue of funding for Israel and Ukraine, which Republicans in the House have used as leverage to gain reform on the Southern Border.  This is not the reform they are looking for.  I would suggest they provide the funding for Israel and Ukraine and look to fix the border crisis in January of 2025, or before, if the opportunity presents itself for real reform, rather than sham reform.

The Immigration Bill in Congress

For John, BLUF:  President Biden and his fellow Democrats, up on Capitol Hill, and, to a lesser extent, the Media, are scsmming us with regard to illegal immigration reform.  The solution is, as it has always been, in his hand, but he is trying to pull a fast one on the American Public.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Awkward silence hits CNN airwaves when Gov. Kristi Noem confronts host for defending Biden on border crisis

From The Blaze, by Writer Chris Enloe, 29 January 2024.

Here is the lede plus four:

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) beclowned CNN anchor Dana Bash on Sunday for defending President Joe Biden over the border crisis.

On CNN's "State of the Union," Bash asked Noem about ongoing negotiations to pass a controversial border bill that Republicans believe will do little to stymie the border crisis.  Biden, over the weekend, committed to shutting down the border only if Congress passes the bill.

The bill, however, is unlikely to pass the Senate because an increasing number of Republican lawmakers oppose the bill.  That opposition is giving Democrats a talking point to use against Republicans, and Bash deployed it in her interview with Noem.

"Why not take 'yes' for an answer?" Bash asked, referring to Biden's willingness to sign the bill.

In response, Noem correctly pointed out that Biden doesn't need the bill to fix the border crisis.  Congress, she explained, has already given the president authority to enforce immigration law.  Instead, she argued that Biden's policies need to change.

President Biden is trying to pass off the situation by saying once Congress passes a bill he can act.  That is false.  It is in need of "fact checking", if that is a real thing in the Main Stream Media.  President Biden, and his Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, brought us to this point by executive actions reversing the program being conducted by President Trump and his Administration.  If President Biden was able to vitiate all of President Trumps efforts by executive orders, why can President Biden not reverse course and reinstitute those previous rules?  What does he need from Congress?

Well, it turns out, per the rumors, that he needs Congress to allow him to keep the flow of illegal immigrants going.  The word on the street is that Congressional Democrats want to give President Biden a trigger level of illegal immigrants for controls to be implemented.  And what is that trigger level?  It is 5,000 illegal immigrants a day.  That is just shy of 2 million people a year (1,825,000) coming across our borders.  That is not fixing the problem.  Just ask the Man on the Clapham bus

What the Democrat plan does is somewhat stretch out the arrival of illegal immigrants.  Asuming that the Democrats and the Cartels don't become greedy, and bring only 4,500 illegal immigrants a day over the border,♠ when my youngest Great-Grandchild reaches thirty-five we wikl have drained 63,236,250 people out of Latin America.  That is a 10% reduction in their population.  It would be a 20% increase in our population today.  How is that fixing our immigration problem?

The United States needs immigration.  Legal immigration.  Our treatment of illegal immigrants is a slap in the face to legal immigrants, the ones who do it the right way,

Frankly, the President, Joseph R Biden, Jr, is being dishonest in his presentation of the situation with regard to illegal immigration.

Further, he is failing in his responsibiliity to lay out how we are going to absorb those millions of people, how we are going to house them, educate them, get them jobs and assimilate them.  How we are going to make them good US Citizens.  And, he is whistling past the graceyard when it comes to the question of terrorists coming across our border, with the intention to do us grevious harm.

Kudos to Governor Kristi Noem, and to Governor Greg Abott.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  That is not conting the "got aways".

He's Back

For John, BLUF:  Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo resigned over allegations of sexual abuse.  But, at 66, he has time for one more term in public office.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Andrew Cuomo plots comeback with border attacks on Biden

From The New York Post, by Columnist Bob McManus, 26 January 2024, 5:17 p.m. ET.

Here is the lede plus four:

Here he comes.  To save the day?

Andrew Cuomo, always intrusive and never in doubt, just tucked into Joe Biden and the Democratic Party on America’s self-inflicted border-hopper crisis.

“The migrant issue is creating mayhem across the country and showing the ineffectiveness and schisms in the Democratic Party,” writes ex-Gov. Bigfoot for The Hill — a policy-wonk-centric, Washington-based venue.

That is to say, a site watched closely by political pros from sea to shining sea: Cuomo sent a message not likely to be missed — on two levels.

“President Biden’s administration has not been able to solve the migrant problem,” he continued, “primarily because of the divided opinion within our own party.”

This is an opinion piece and as such, it is a little tart about former Governor Cuomo.  Plus, the Newspaper itself is not in the Progressive Camp.

The above notwithstanding, I am not surprised that Governor Cuomo is making a bid to come back.  And, he couldn't have picked a better topic.  Given the apparent lack of depth on the Democratic Bench, he is, in my mind, a possible replacement for President Biden some time before the November Election.

For sure illegal immigration is a major issue at this time.  Further, the Administration is not using the authority available to it to solve the problem.  I am very doubtful that the mystery bill♠ being developed on Capitol Hill will provide the relief teh American People are looking for.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  Here is a take by NPR.  However NPR does not present up front the concerns about rumored high number of illegal immigrants required to trigger action.

Legal vs Illegal Immigration

For John, BLUF:  The issue of immigration is heating up in this Presidential Primary Season.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

A 2024 Vulnerability

Here is the sub-headline:

The Democrats are out of step with public opinion when it comes to immigration.

From The Old Gray Lady, by Columnist David Leonhardt, 17 January 2024.

Here is the lede plus one:

The first thing to know is that views on immigration aren’t static.  During Trump’s presidency, Americans became more favorable to immigration, evidently in reaction to Trump’s opposition to it.  Consider this:  By the end of his presidency, the number of Americans who favored increasing immigration exceeded the number who favored decreasing it for the first time in six decades of Gallup polling.

That trend has since reversed, as you can see in the chart.  The biggest reason seems to be a surge of illegal immigration during President Biden’s term.  One cause of that surge has been the Biden administration’s approach.  Many would-be migrants now believe — correctly — that so long as they can reach U.S. soil, they will be able to stay for years.

I think I missed the part where the poll looked at the difference between legal and illegal immigration.

I favor increased legal immigration.  Don't you?

On the other hnd, I deplore illegal immigration.

1. In makes a mockery of the work of those coming legally.  I know a Canadian, retired on US Social Security, with Daughters born in the US (thus Daughterscould be President—just the risk they have to take), who is spending several thousand dollars and a lot of time doing it legally.  What a slap in the face to her for illegal immigrants to be walking free in the US, flying on airliners without IDs.
2. While we endured the ever-changing demands of Dr Fauci and company, for public health reasons, illegals come in lacking tests and shots.  The picture in my mind of legal immigrants is a long line of individuals holding chest Xray folders outside the US Embassy in Manila.  My above mentioned friend spent $300 for a chest X-ray to help satisfy the US legal requirements.  Illegal immigrants, maybe never, but if required, for free.
3. Illegal immigration is about human trafficking, which should be abhorrent to decent people.  And, some of it is sex trafficking, including under age girls.
4. Illegal drugs and fentanyl overdose deaths.
5. The Cartels use illegal immigration to reach into US towns and cities, for corrupt purposes, while we weaken police forces.
6. The danger of terrorists infiltrating our nation, so they can give us a dose of 7 October, as a way of weakening support for Israel.  That would be an affront to God, which is a thing I like to avoid.

So, yes, views change over time.  Rep Jerry Nadler wants the bracero program back.  I guess.  But, I want a steady stream of immigrants, at a pace our infrastructure (including schools) can absorb.  People coming here not just as economic migrants, but as believers in our concept of freedom.  That should be rewarded.

As to the last para of the article, it reminds me of the Bertolt Brecht♠ poem, The Solution.

After the uprising of the 17th of June
The Secretary of the Writers Union
Had leaflets distributed in the Stalinallee
Stating that the people Had forfeited the confidence of the government
And could win it back only
By redoubled efforts.  Would it not be easier
In that case for the government
To dissolve the people
And elect another

Which reminds me of Ms Joy Reid's comment about the Iowa Caucuses and results, noting parts of Iowa are too White and too Evangelical.  Does she wish for them to be redistributed, or just diluted?

Hat tip to my Middle Brother.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  It the name Bertolt Brecht does not ring A bell, think Three Penny Opera, and in particular the Bobby Darin classic Mac the Knife.

Global Migration

For John, BLUF:  I picked this item because of the acronym:  "WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic)".  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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What Cannot be Discussed

Here is the sub-headline:

Immigration and the North-South Conflict

From In My Tribe (Substack), by Blogger Arnold Kling, 3 December 2023.

Here is the lede plus three:

In his new book The Geek Way, Andrew McAfee quotes Marc Andreessen as having tweeted:

The most serious problem in any organization is the one that cannot be discussed

McAfee stresses that when top executives make it clear that a certain topic is taboo, there is a good chance that the firm is vulnerable on that issue, both financially and morally.  He argues that openness and transparency are better for the organization, even if in the short run it makes executives uncomfortable.

I think that we can interpret the political tension in the United States and Western Europe in Andreessen’s terms.  The political elites do not want to discuss the issue of how to handle large-scale migration of people from the global South to the global North.  Underlying this is an unwillingness to discuss cultural differences between the WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic) and the rest.  And an unwillingness to favor the former over the latter.  Consequently, these leaders face populist revolts, surprising them with Donald Trump, Brexit, Geert Wilders, and the Irish anti-immigrant riot.

The Blogger then goes on to discuss the recent riots in Dublin, Ireland, over an Immigrant who knifed several people.

The Blogger then describes how the elites differ from the general population on immigration and how the elites try to stiffle discussioon of the subject, demonizing those from the proletariat who do not see immigration as a wonderful moral success.

One of the issues is the ability or willingness of new arrivals to assimilate into the existing society.

But people outside the progressive elites can see with our own eyes that immigrants from the global South into Western Europe are not assimilating.  Right-wing intellectuals use expressions like “invasion” or “great replacement.”  But their fears are not allowed to be discussed in polite company.  As Matt Goodwin has pointed out repeatedly, in the UK even the Tory party is unwilling to raise the issue.

I am optimistic that the assimilation model can still work in the United States. Immigrants from Latin America tend to believe in assimilation.  They do not belong to a Muslim culture that is hostile to ours.  But the Democratic left does not want to champion assimilation, because doing so would concede the conservative proposition that our culture is in some respects superior and worth assimilating into.

Agreed!  He then goes on to talk about illegal immigration.

What annoys many Americans is illegal immigration.  This in turn is encouraged by the perverse way that we deal with asylum requests

I differ with the Blogger in that what annoys me is that those trying to immigrate legally face large bureaucrstic hurdles, hurdles not faced by those who are jumping the Southern Border.  I have been following the plight of a Canadian woman who had previously lived in the United States, and worked here, and has children who live here.  Her path has been long, expensive and bureaucratic.  It is not a path that is a credit to Emma Lazarus and her words "Give me your tired, your poor/Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free".

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Stopping Internal Migration

For John, BLUF:  It seems President Biden is looking to fix the illegal immigration problem by allowing them in. but restricting them to the border states.  This is a bad idea.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Biden Move to Keep Illegals in Texas Is Part of the Democrat Long Game

From PJ Media, by reporter Matt Margolis. 9 September 2023, 11:42 AM.

Here is the lede plus one:

Remember when Democrat officials nationwide virtue-signaled their support of illegal immigration by declaring themselves sanctuary cities and states?  That was amusing.  But then, when red states starting shipping their illegal immigrants to these illegal-immigration-loving locations, suddenly, they weren’t so keen about it?  That was even more amusing.  Just as quickly as these illegal immigrants started showing up in liberal enclaves the local population and leaders figured out they didn’t actually want them there—and they’re complaining endlessly about the drain on resources and increase in crime.

In comes Joe Biden, the architect of the ongoing border crisis, who is now considering forcing illegal immigrants to stay in Texas as they await screening for asylum.  This would severely limit their ability to travel in a country they don’t belong in in the first place.

“Administration officials have been considering the idea as a way to stem recent increases in the numbers of migrant families crossing the southern border, which reportedly reached an all-time high last month,” the Los Angeles Times reports.  “Supporters of the remain-in-Texas idea, which has yet to be finalized, hope that it would help the administration advance its goals of quickly deporting families who fail initial asylum screenings and deterring other families from crossing in the first place.”

The first question is why, if the US border is not sacred to the immigrant, why would the border between Texas and Louisiana or Arkansas or Oklahoma be sacred:  The second question is if the Biden Administration will tax the rest of the nation to help fund the "remain in Texas" consequences.  As New York City Mayor eric Adams points out, providing for illegal immigrants is not cheap.

This is a national problem, but without national solutions.  I would like to see politician of both major parties coming together, with experts from relevant institutions, such as the Congressional Research Service, to inform the People and to craft laws to allow for orderly absorption of immigrants in a manner that allows orderly absorption.

There is the question as to if the President can stop interstate migration of immigrants will he try to stop other migration between states.

We should all be communicating with our Representatives in Congress to encourage them to fix this, and if they don't we should vote them out.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Housing Illegal Immigrants

For John, BLUF:  Chicago has been receiving hundreds of illegql immigrnts and ran out of places to put them up, so are now looking at converting unused schools.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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OOPS! Chicago Democrats in Trouble With Black Voters Over Migrant Invasion of South Side

From PJ Media, by Reporter Megan Fox, 11 May 2023, 11:49 PM.

Here is the lede plus six:

Chicago got a lot more than it bargained for when the people voted for “sanctuary city” policies.  Taking them at their word—that they would welcome hordes of illegal aliens—the governor of border state Texas, Greg Abbott, has been sending busloads of people who cross into his state illegally right to the heart of Chicago.  It’s the best idea anyone has come up with yet. Let the sanctuary cities become the new border towns! Let the blowhards who say it’s inhumane to turn people away absorb them! Afterall, they’re the compassionate ones, right?  They’re the ones who continually point the finger at the border state governors and criticize their reluctance to take on the never-ending human waves.  So why, when they’ve now been given the chance to welcome them with open arms, is there trouble in sanctuary paradise?

The mayor of Chicago, Beetlejuice Lori Lightfoot, wrote a letter to Abbott last week begging him to stop sending the people she said she wanted.

Lightfoot said that Texas was planning on sending more migrants to Chicago starting Monday, which she argued against, noting that Chicago does not have the resources to house more migrants.  She said in the letter that since Chicago has responded to the arrival of migrants sent by Texas in August 2022, the city has cared for more than 8,000 people.

She wrote that Chicago has “no more shelters, spaces, or resources” to address another influx of migrants to the city.

Abbott continued sending busloads.

And now one community in Chicago has found out that one of their school buildings is going to become temporary housing for the masses of people flooding into Chicago with no background checks or paperwork.  They don’t like it one bit and the really funny part is they’re all Democrat voters.  Democrats have a total lock on the black vote but they found themselves in front of a near riotous crowd of their own voters when they delivered the bad news.

Alderman Michelle Harris of the 8th Ward said, “While this crisis may constitute an emergency for the city of Chicago it does not constitute an emergency for the South Shore community!”  She joined with her constituents in protesting the placement of 250 to 500 people in an abandoned school.  The board making the decisions were loudly shouted down.  Everyone involved in this is a Democrat, and it’s hilarious.

You can tell the author of the piece is not a Democrat by the way she tells the story.

As illegal immigration becomes a national issue, rather than an issue for border states, the attitude of voters may change, in quiet and subtle ways.  The Elites in the Northeast section of the nation are not welcoming to illegal immigrants.

It is unlikely the surge of illegal immigrants with the end of Title 42 COVID-19 Rules will reconcile US Voters to acceptance of mass illegal immigration.  If the Biden Administration does not clean up this immigration mess it will likely influence the 2024 Presidential Election.  The advantage will go to the Republicans.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Divided on Illegal Immigration

For John, BLUF:  There are at least ten US States with a population less than the number of illegal immigrants coming over the Southern Border in the last 12 months.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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No, Thanks: Schumer Wants Amnesty For ’11 Million Or However Many’ Illegal Aliens Are In The U.S.

From The Daily Wire, by Reporter Tim Meads, 16 November 2022.

Here is the money quote:

“Now more than ever, we’re short of workers. Uh, we have a population that is not reproducing on its own with the same level that it used to. The only way that we’re gonna have a great future in America is if we welcome and embrace immigrants -- the DREAMers and all of them. ‘Cause our ultimate goal is to help the DREAMers, but get a path to citizenship for all 11 million or however many undocumented there are here.”

Senate Majooority Leader Chuck Schumer

Based on this quoote, I don't see the next Congress coming to a solution to the immigration issue,  However, I an thinking that, at some point, the Democrats will figure out that immigrants are not a long term stream of Democratic Party voters.

Exit Question:  Why, in my web search, did the first dozen responses all come from non-standard media sites,  No big name newspaper or TV Network.

Hat tip to a friend down in Orlando.

Regards  —  Cliff

Helping Others While Ignoring Our Own

For John, BLUF:  The US Veterans Administration already has a mixed review, based on what Veterans I know have to say.  This will only make it worse.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Mayorkas looks to divert VA funding to illegal immigrants

From Hot Air, by Reporter JAZZ SHAW, 29 April 2022 9:36 AM ET.

Here is the lede plus three:

When Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas recently unveiled his “six pillar plan” for dealing with the crisis on our southern border, he certainly didn’t mention this truly awful idea.  During his recent testimony before Congress, Mayorkas slipped in one option that Joe Biden is reportedly considering.  In order to provide better care for the tens of thousands of illegal aliens streaming across the border, the White House is looking at the possibility of diverting funding from the Veterans Administration for that situation.  Additionally, some of the doctors and nurses tasked with caring for our veterans could be reassigned to providing care for the illegals.  Our colleague Spencer Brown at Townhall has the details.

During his recent testimony before Congress, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas informed lawmakers that the Biden administration was considering diverting resources from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to deal with Biden’s border debacle.  This includes not just funding but also VA nurses and doctors who are tasked with caring for America’s veterans, and who may now be sent to care for illegal immigrants.

It’s a ludicrous idea and a terrible decision that Biden seems ready to make. Veterans’ health care has struggled in the past — notably during the last time Biden was in the White House as Vice President in the Obama administration.

America’s veterans deserve the best possible care as a small benefit in return for their service to our country and defense of our freedom.  But Biden thinks those who care for veterans can just be shuffled around as his administration flails about trying to handle the border crisis his policies created.

To be clear, any Cartel summgled human being who falls off our Southern Border Wall and breaks a leg, pelvis or skull, deserves medical care.  As does any other Illegal Immigrant.  They are our fellow human beings, found on the road to Jericho, or anywhere else.  But so are our Veterans, who should not be abandoned in the rush to help others.

Perhaps, if Congress can not stop this action, the solution will be for those Veterans denied service by the VA to gather on our Southern Border and create a human shield, preventing illegal immigrants from entering our nation without the proper paperwork in hand.

It would appear we need more creative ways of helping those who flee their own homes, hoping to reach a land flowing with milk and honey.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Fix The Border Now

For John, BLUF:  In our name the Federal Government is allowing conditions to exist which result in immorality being inflicted on those trying to reach the United States outside the legal immigration process.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Seeking refugee status should not be lifethreatening

From The [Lowell] Sun, Letters to the Editor, by Citizen C R Krieger, 22 September 2021.

Here is the lede plus three:

Last month some 200,000 human beings came across our southern border, helping to perpetuate two separate, but related, evils.

The first evil is that people we are willing to accept as refugees are forced to endure a gauntlet of hardship, theft and sexual abuse for the privilege of crossing our southern border.  Amongst those 200,000 last month, we have seen seemingly abandoned children.  We hear reports of rape and extorted sex.  If we pay attention, we hear of child abuse.  Then there are the fees applied by the human traffickers for their “services.”

The second evil is the fostering of cartels in Mexico, which are smuggling drugs into our nation.

These are drugs which harm our population, and in particular our youth and our less fortunate.

The letter goes on to suggest that we help these people by allowing them to self identify in their nation of origin and provide them transportation to the United States, rather than requiring them to run a violent and expensive gauntlet to prove their worthiness to come to the United States.

Space being what it is, the letter does not go on to suggest that an equally effective alternative would be to finish rebuilding the border wall and turning people back, which would have a ripple effect, discouraging others from trying the trek.

The point is that what we are doing now is morally wrong.  Further, it is probably not sustainable.  We, as Citizens, need to reach out to our US Representative and two Senators and say that the present process is not only not working, but is a moral embarrasment.

Regards  —  Cliff

https://enewspaper.lowellsun.com?selDate=20210922&goTo=A07&artid=3

The Health of the Nation

For John, BLUF:  For decades we screened immigrants for poor health, and excluded individuals  Now we are told COVID-19 is very dangereous, except for those coming across our Southern Border.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Federal Court Ruling Just Made the Border Crisis Infinitely Worse

From PJ Media, by Reporter Rick Moran, 17 September 2021, 9:34 AM ET.

Here is the lede plus two:

A federal judge in Washington has ordered the government to stop using a public health law to deny families entry into the United States illegally.  U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan gave the government 14 days to appeal before the order is implemented.

Title 42 was instituted in March of 2020 in response to the pandemic.  The law allows for expedited removal of most illegal aliens, including families.

The immediate effect of Sullivan’s ruling will be dire. Families that show up at the border will not be turned away.  Instead, they will be processed and released as they await their court hearing — possibly as long as five years away.

This strikes me as revolutionary.  I remember going to the US Embassy in Manila, The Philippines, and seeing long lines of emigrants outside, holding what appeared to be x-rays.  Why?  Because of tuberculosis.  We were screening folks for infectious diseases.

The article quotes The Wall Street Journal:

In a statement, the ACLU said the policy was unnecessary to control Covid-19 in the U.S. and that the U.S. can safely allow migrants to seek protection.

“President Biden should have ended this cruel and lawless policy long ago, and the court was correct to reject it today,” said Omar Jadwat, director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project.

Does this mean that both the ACLU and Judge Sullivan believe that Vaccination mandates are wrong?

Equally interesting is if the Executive Branch let this one go, without worrying about the consequences, because it aligned with the Administration's immigration policy.

This being Constitution Day, we should ponder, Article 2, Section 3, Clause 6, wherein the president must "take care that the laws be faithfully executed."  Do you think President Biden has ducked his responsibilty by soft peddling the value of this law, passed by Congress?

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Ending Homelessness

For John, BLUF:  The Homeless are a problem that will never go away, but it shouldn't be as bad as it is.  And, mental health is probably a large part of the solution.  But, not the whole solution.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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It’s time to finally end homelessness

From The [Lowell] Sun, by Messers Donald Whitehead and Joel Segal, 23 June 2021.

Here is the lede plus one:

On any given night in the United States, upward of a halfmillion people are homeless. And that doesn’t include the millions of others who are living hand- to- mouth in hotels, or doubled up with family members or acquaintances, in often highly stressful temporary housing situations.

A recent study by the National Low Income Housing Coalition estimates a shortage of more than 6.8 million affordable housing units for low- income Americans. “ The crisis created by COVID-19 has made it clearer than ever that stable, affordable housing for all is an imperative for public health, individual well- being, and our country,” said Diane Yentel, the group’s president and CEO.

We have the problem of homelessness, but we also have the problem of not enough housing stock.  Up here in Northern Middlesex County, in Massachusetts, we are expecting an increase of 200,000 people between 2015 and 2040.♠  Who is going to build the needed housing?  I am not sure we have the incentives in place to create that housing.

We need to start looking at this.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  That is not counting our "fair share" of illegal immigrants coming across our Southern Border, which could be a million this year.  Thet are not all stying in Texas, or New Mexico, or Arizona, or California.