Speech #1040060749

Mr. Speaker. I rise to call attention to last nights "48 Hours" broadcast on CBS regarding immigration. If any of us had any doubts about the blight of illegal immigration that is plaguing this Nation. they were most certainly set aside by last nights welldocumented television coverage. This program clearly illustrated that our borders are quite obviously no longer under control. Instead. immigration is out of control in this country. We are already at a point of crisis and the problem grows daily. I cannot understand why the American people--the legitimate. legal. nativeborn or legally naturalized American peopleare not in revolt over this issue. Illegal immigration takes jobs away from Americans. takes additional taxes out of American pockets. crowds American schools and hospitals. and contributes to the crime that makes Americans afraid to walk their own streets. We may not have an all out revolt just yet. but I believe that anger over this issue was one of the factors in last falls election resuits. We in Congress should take heed because we have been derelict in our responsibility on this issue. Last nights program cited many examples of the costs of illegal immigration. I will repeat but a few of them here: Despite all our attempts to be certain that illegal immigrants are excluded from employment. there are loopholes in our laws that permit U.S. companies to fire American workers and replace them with temporary foreign workers. Corporate downsizing is one thing but firing American citizens in order to replace them with foreigners willing to work for a lower wage is another. I was particularly shocked to learn that a New Jersey company. the AIG insurance company in Livingston. has participated in this practice. For two centuries. our Constitution has guaranteed citizenship to anyone born on our soil. But illegal immigrants have found a way to abuse this right: Pregnant women cross the border into the United States as illegals. give birth to a child and then claim the right to immigrate legally based on the citizenship of that child. Some 40 percent of children born in California are now born to parents who are illegal aliens. This is an outrageous abuse not only of our Constitution and legal system. but of the innocence of childhood as well. This endrun around the Constitution was not the intent of the Founding Fathers and we must find a way to stop it. The birth of these children not only circumvents our law. but results in huge medical costs for the hospital care of the mothers and their children. These costs are not covered by insurance and ultimately drive up the cost of insurance premiums for American citizens. Education is another issue involving the children of illegal immigrants. When illegal aliens are enrolled in public schools. costs go up but tax revenue does notillegal parents dont pay taxes. This results in overcrowding of schools and. ultimately. higher taxes for taxpaying citizens. In some border communities. as many as 40 percent of school enrollments come from illegal aliens. Crossing our borders illegally is not the only crime committed by some illegal aliens. Thousands turn out to be criminals come to prey on American citizens. This not only increases fear and reduces safety. but runs up exorbitant costs when these criminals are caught. convicted. and housed in U.S. prisons. The Immigration and Naturalization Service has been hampered by incompetence. inetliciency. and indifference. The inability of this agency to do its job has become common knowledge. to the point that it is no longer a serious deterrent to attempts to illegally enter our country. The INS must be improved and we must do our part by ensuring that it is adequately staffed and funded and has the legal tools it needs to do its job. Illegal immigrants may be the lawbreakers in this equation. but U.S. employers are often their accomplices. turning a blind eye and deaf ear to the issue. Employers have not taken seriously their responsibility to determine that wouldbe workers are. in fact. legal U.S. citizens. and to not only reject illegals but report them to the aufhorities. An immigration task force headed by Barbara Jordan recently concluded that a national identitication card may be the only answer here. Such an idea is supported even by a broad spectrum of opinion. liberal to conservative. These costs of illegal immigration add up very quickly. How can we balance the budget or make difficult cufs in worthy programs when this illegal activity is allowed to continue unchecked at such expense? As a member of the Congressional Task Force on Immigration Reform. I call on the House leadership to make this a priority of the House of 104th Congress. We must focus the spotlight on this national scandal and see that it is ended. not next year. next month. or next week. or even tomorrow. but today.