Thread: Houston Chronical-82% SUPPORT AMNESTY THAT SUPPORT AZ.??????

I have never read a Poll that indicated 82% of any segment of United States Citizens were in favor of Amnesty for the ILLEGALS, normally well over 70% are agianst Amnesty. This must have been a Poll of ILLEGAL EMPLOYERS, other Elisit Special Interest Groups, and not to forget Senator McCAMNESTY supporters.

Americans' views on immigration reveal complexities
By SPENCER GAFFNEY
Washington Bureau
July 18, 2010, 8:38PM

WASHINGTON — When it comes to the highly inflamed issue of immigration, Americans hold complex and seemingly contradictory views.

On one hand, a clear majority of Americans in numerous polls — including Texans — support Arizona's tough new law, which would require police officers to ask suspected illegal immigrants for identification.

A Gallup Poll released earlier this month shows just 33 percent of the public approve of the Obama administration's lawsuit attempt to have the law nullified, while 50 percent disagree with it.

But it's more complicated than that.

A whopping 82 percent of people who support the Arizona law also support comprehensive national immigration reform that includes a path for current illegal immigrants to become citizens, according to a bipartisan poll conducted in June by Lake Research Partners, a Democratic firm, and Public Opinion Strategies, a group of Republican pollsters.

"It seems inconsistent," concedes David Mermin, a partner at Lake Research Partners. "But what's consistent is a desire for action."

The common thread running through public opinion on immigration is anger: anger at the federal government for failing to enforce immigration laws, anger at businesses for hiring illegal immigrants, anger at landlords for renting to them and anger at Congress for inaction.

And while most Americans favor a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants who pay a fine and otherwise obey the law, 59 percent of voters say the government should secure the United States' southern border before addressing reform legislation, a Fox News/Opinion Dynamics poll in late June found.

Scott Rasmussen, whose polling firm has conducted numerous polls on immigration-related issues, said those numbers reflect people's displeasure with Washington.

"Of people who are angry about immigration, over 80 percent are angry at the federal government," said Rasmussen, president of Rasmussen Reports.

Texans want action
Texans strongly favor action from the U.S. military: 69 percent say American troops should be used along the Mexican border to prevent illegal immigration, according to a Rasmussen Reports poll conducted June 16.

That hasn't happened. The Obama administration has approved sending 1,200 National Guard troops to the southern border, with 250 to be stationed along Texas' 1,250-mile share of it.

In the absence of an aggressive federal response, voters across the country are inclined to accept state action. When the Lake/Public Opinion poll asked supporters of the Arizona law why they supported it, 52 percent gave as their reason, "the state took action because the federal government has failed to solve the problem."

Rasmussen found that 59 percent of Texans would favor an Arizona-style enforcement measure.

Mermin says inaction in Washington is becoming a contentious point for voters.

"There's a lot of things people are frustrated with - the economy, BP," he said. "(Immigration) feels like another unsolved problem we haven't been able to deal with effectively."

Anger at employers
But the anger doesn't end there. Rasmussen said that most Americans are more upset with people who profit from illegal immigration than with the immigrants themselves. Seventy percent of Americans support strict government action against employers who hire illegal immigrants, a Rasmussen poll published June 4 found.

"People would like to see people who hire them face sanctions," said Rasmussen. "They'd like to see the politicians that protect them face sanctions, [and] they'd like to see landlords who provide housing face sanctions."

The public frustration is reflected in the meager 39 percent approval rating for President Obama's handling of immigration, according to a Washington Post poll last month.

Obama called for comprehensive immigration reform in a speech last week, but with other divisive legislative issues on Congress' plate, movement on immigration is unlikely any time soon.

As a result of the repeated delays, said Rasmussen, people increasingly don't see Washington as a viable agent for change on immigration.

"There is a huge distrust of Washington when it comes to immigration," said Rasmussen. "Overwhelmingly, (Arizonans) prefer the Arizona officials over Washington officials."

spencer.gaffney@chron.com

Comments

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/met ... 13989.html

i have a hard time believing this poll

The results of the poll depend on the wording of the questions of the poll. It's easy to twist the results by wording things a certain way to where it's a closer match to what the reader thinks. The usual wording I've seen on these polls are something as follows:

Option A : The government should do nothing about immigration.
Option B : The government needs to actively fix immigration.

Option B could mean amnesty, open borders, or it could mean enforcing the current laws.

Does anyone know the wording in the poll being quoted?

A whopping 82 percent of people who support the Arizona law also support comprehensive national immigration reform that includes a path for current illegal immigrants to become citizens, according to a bipartisan poll conducted in June by Lake Research Partners, a Democratic firm, and Public Opinion Strategies, a group of Republican pollsters.

And while most Americans favor a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants who pay a fine and otherwise obey the law, 59 percent of voters say the government should secure the United States' southern border before addressing reform legislation, a Fox News/Opinion Dynamics poll in late June found.

I disagree!!

Polls and statistics can say anything you want them to say.

MOST AMERICANS favor ENFORCING OUR LAWS - NO AMNESTY- NO PATHWAY TO CITIZENSHIP - NO REFORM LEGISLATION!

The Houston "comical" is notrious for it leftist leanings. I'd like
to see what the poll questions were and who they asked and where.

They didn't ask me.

There was a flap a couple of years ago where one of these places asked
a bunch of our soldiers if they'd like for the war to be over so they could
go home. Of course they almost unanimously sad yes. Then they took that
information and twisted it to say the soldiers didn't support Bush and the
war effort.

I kind of feel like this is what's happening here.

Def