Republicans and Immigration

What Congressman Smith and other Republicans propose for dealing with undocumented workers is just stomping on fire ants -- lots of motion but no action. Anyone who has lived in Texas for a summer knows that stomping on fire ants is ineffective, as are the Republican plans for building walls and increased border patrols. The effective solution for fire ants is systematic and tailored to the situation: bait and slow-acting poison. The effective solution for undocumented workers is to eliminate what they very naturally seek: jobs. These jobs, working for illegal employers, will attract undocumented workers over, under, or through the highest wall. Can you imagine building a wall around a fire ant bed? A fool's mission.

How do we systematically eliminate jobs from illegal employers? The way President Obama is quietly and effectively doing it now: send an IRS auditor into the businesses to look for signs of undocumented workers -- low and unpaid wages, unpaid overtime, unpaid payroll taxes. One agent can eliminate 50-100 illegal jobs in a day with no confrontations or family disruptions.

God gave us feet and a brain so we can move from barren land to fertile land -- immigration to improve one's lot in life is a natural act. No army can overcome it.

Why have we not heard Congressman Smith supporting the Presidents effective plan?

Since Mr. Smith almost certainly won't answer here, I'll answer for him:

 1) The Republicans don't want President Obama to succeed at anything (they have stated this). Such behavior by Congressman Smith, putting party over country, is not the behavior of a statesman leader.

 2) Many of the businesses that are illegal employers are run by Republicans. They don't really want to have their businesses audited and the jobs eliminated. "Stomping on the fire ants" helps to keep the undocumented workers scared and submissive -- and easily cheated out of wages.

 3) The Republicans seem to like lots of motion. Quiet, effective action isn't so thrilling, but the grand idea of building a wall for protection seems glorious -- as it has to civilization after civilization who forget history. And there's probably a Republican crony who's just waiting for the no-bid contract to build it at taxpayer expense.