I thought it fitting to combined these two articles. I have bolded one section of the first one. Then you can come to your own opinion when you read the DNC's Thoughts on Job Losses. I targeted the section referring to North Carolina.


Immigrants cross the U.S., following jobs
Migration brings business opportunities for growth

By REBECCA BOONE
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS


Last Updated: December 6, 2005, 05:22:58 AM PST


Third in a four-part series.
BOISE, Idaho -- Three years ago, a tiny financial services office opened in Nampa, with a handful of employees and a focus on Spanish-speaking clientele.

But along with Idaho's Latino population, the business is exploding -- El Centro is opening a second office in Caldwell, with plans to expand to Denver and Chicago soon, said manager Da-vid Cahoon.

"We're looking at hyper-growth

areas. In Denver, there's a huge La- tino market there, and the same with Chicago," Cahoon said. "In Idaho, the Hispanic population is growing."

Most of the United States' Spanish-speaking immigrants, legal and illegal, are from Mexico. Statistics from sev- eral agencies suggest the number of illegal immigrants in the country is growing, with Bear Stearns in New York estimating that 12 million to 15 million of the nation's jobs are held by illegal immigrants. About 95 percent of Cahoon's clients speak only Spanish, he said, and at least 15 times a week he turns down a hopeful home loan applicant because he or she lacks U.S.-issued identification.

Even as businesses work to find ways to earn immigrant dollars, government officials in so-called new destination states are struggling to deal with the illegal immigrant population.

Instead of staying in border states, said William Frey, a demographer at the Brookings Institution, immigrants are heading to the suburbs in Tennessee, Mississippi, the Dakotas, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

"Illegal immigrants are not just randomly flowing into places. They're following jobs," said Gordon Hanson, an economics professor at the University of California at San Diego. "Look at where the growth in the illegal immigrant population is strongest: It's in areas with growing populations, where there are more restaurants, grocery stores, construction and retail outlets. And it's in areas where the native U.S. manufacturing and labor force is aging and disappearing."

Industries and towns changing

Such as in North Carolina, where the number of illegal immigrants jumped from 26,000 in 1990 to 206,000 a decade later.

Many of those undocumented workers have been drawn to jobs in the textile industry, Frey said.

Mike Hubbard, vice president of the National Council of Textile Organizations, has seen his industry and his North Carolina city of Gastonia change with the influx of immigrants.
"Companies are trying so very hard to make sure that they fully document the people who come in to work, but sometimes you find out the documents are phony," Hubbard said. "There's been a lot of immigrant labor that's taking the textile jobs."

As a child in North Carolina, Hubbard rarely heard Spanish, he said. Now many textile managers are learning the language so they can talk to employees, and businesses are translating their safety materials. North Carolina neighborhoods have changed, too, he said.

"Now there's Spanish grocery stands on every corner," he said.

Hoping for federal help

In Colorado, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement estimates that the number of illegal immigrants has jumped from 31,000 in 1990 to 144,000 in 2000. Elected officials are turning to the federal government for ways to deal with the influx.

Lindy Eichenbaum Lent, a spokeswoman for Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, said the issue has become prominent across the state.

Because illegal immigrants are generally more poor than the rest of the population, they tend to put a greater strain on indigent health care and other social services, Frey said.

"We look with great interest to Washington and proposed legislation on guest worker programs that could underwrite services that we're already providing," she said. "Our recourses are getting stretched by a number of factors, and immigration is only one."

Undocumented workers have become part of the local economy, she said.

"They're helping to generate revenue, and paying taxes. Legislation could potentially move this shadow world into part of the system," she said.

Mexican IDs accepted

Some city governments are moving on their own to bring more Mexican nationals into the mainstream economy. About 360 cities nationwide accept ID cards issued by Mexican consulates as valid identification for obtaining library cards, help from community health centers or other services. The cards are commonly used by illegal immigrants who are not eligible for Social Security cards.

Many of the evolving economic advantages offered by illegal immigrants are offset by social costs, said Hanson. Illegal immigrants tend to have lower incomes than their legal counterparts, are less likely to be insured and have larger families, he said. That puts pressure on indigent health care costs and public schools.

"Public education is by far and away the biggest expenditure," Hanson said.

In 1997, the state spent $1.5 million to help just more than 11,000 students learn English, she said, compared with $4.8 million for nearly 21,000 students in 2005.

Cahoon believes any negative affects may be countered by the opportunities. "We're not even tapping into the whole market yet, it's so big," he said. "More and more business people are starting to realize to survive they need to do this."
http://www.modbee.com/local/story/11559 ... 3482c.html

DNC: Mr. President, Where Are North Carolina's Manufacturing Jobs?

12/5/2005 4:11:00 PM


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To: National Desk

Contact: Amaya Smith of the Democratic National Committee, 202-863-8148

WASHINGTON, Dec. 5 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Today, President Bush spoke at a construction machinery plant in North Carolina to talk about economic issues. Unfortunately, today's event is closed to the public, as most of the President's carefully scripted events are, leaving the people of North Carolina unable to ask the President what he plans to do to stop the dramatic loss of manufacturing jobs in their state.

Since President Bush took office North Carolina has lost over 172,000 manufacturing jobs. From 2000-2003, 190 textile and apparel mills closed, causing a dramatic loss of 31,000 jobs in just three years. ( http://www.BLS.gov, www.ncruralcenter.org )

"While President Bush seems intent on praising his economic record, the people of North Carolina know the truth behind the rhetoric," said Democratic National Committee National Spokesperson Amaya Smith "This Administration has done nothing to stop the hemorrhaging of manufacturing jobs in North Carolina or to stop these jobs from moving overseas.

"North Carolinians know America can do better. If the President is truly concerned about the economy he would join Democrats in working on an economic policy that empowers working Americans and that addresses the needs of North Carolina's workers."
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http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=57622