McCain-Kennedy Bill

Today at 6:00 pm the U.S. Senate reached an agreement on the so called Amnesty bill. This bill would allow many illegal immigrants to stay in this country and apply for the Z-visa. This is the bill that Mitt Romney referred to in the debate on Tuesday night-the infamous McCain-Kennedy proposal.

Senator Jon Kyl was just on Hannity and Colmes and he did confirm that the bill does offer amnesty. This bill could hit McCain hard since the bill seems to treat the immigration issue as if the U.S. had no control over the problem. It's really weird, the bill offers amnesty with a variety of easily removed restrictions. I really just don't get it, and apparently I'm not alone.

I know the Democrats have been fired up by the Hollywood contingent on this issue. I say that because everyone from Newsweek, to Cosmopolitan, US Weekly has covered the fact that Adrienne Shelly was killed by a mexican illegal immigrant last Fall. Shelly was a well respected Hollywood actress and director, with a family, living in New York when she was brutually murdered. Her death fired up many people in that community on the issue of managing immigrants as I can't imagine a lot of the Hollywood Liberals wanted them sent home. Oh no, who would clean their mansions? And then there are the Republicans.

It's true that the Republicans have been worried about alienating hispanic voters by not being 'fair' enough. Who I guess they assume are mostly not legal themselves? There is a very strong lobby by the commerce minded groups to keep the illegals here and free to work. I have to wonder if any campaign contributions were made to grease the wheels of this piece of legislation. It just makes the party look sketchy for rushing the bill and Sen. McCain will probably pay for sponsoring this bill with his campaign for President.

Excuse me, while I go all Tancredo on this issue. There is no reason that all the illegal immigrants could not be rounded up, the border clamped down, and the criminals sent home. It seems that the politicians are so happy to pander to voters that they are not thinking with their heads on either side. The businesses want the immigrants and the illegals want to stay? Who cares about the long term effects or what happens to the current citizens of this country or the message it sends to the rest of the world.

This bill treats our own government like it was helpless and inept. Oh, well, maybe that's the message, that the U.S. Government is so uselss it can't even manage the job of removing illegal immigrants from this country. In fact, it's not the job of removing them that has kept our own government from taking action but, the wonderful dollars that come from the business lobby. And so, we should offer the illegals enticement packages so we can provide for them better? I know it's not so we can scoop them up and send them home.

What really makes me angry is that our country should reserve space for refugees and those who are willing to wait in line with respect to become citizens of this country. We are selling out our own values and ourselves if we continue in this same vein of behavior with illegal immigration.

Who knows? Maybe I will be wrong, maybe this Z-visa and it's requirements will work. Maybe. Right now, I am not feeling hopeful.