Thread: The Immigration Debate

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Exclusive: The Immigration Debate
Michael Cutler
Author: Michael Cutler
Source: The Family Security Foundation, Inc.
Date: June 5, 2006

Some things that seem so obvious as to be taken for granted occasionally need to be re-emphasized. One such observation, much misused and abused in politics, is that words mean things. And as FSM Contributing Editor Michael Cutler points out, when the meanings of the words we use to talk about illegal immigration are undermined, our security is the next thing to be weakened.

The Immigration Debate
Michael Cutler
June 5, 2006

George Orwell wrote the classic novel, “1984”, about a bleak future in which a totalitarian government ruled with an iron fist, invaded the privacy of its citizens through “Big Brother” and developed a new form of language known as “Newspeak” which was meant to change words in order to change perceptions. It took the concept of propaganda to a new level in which words were used to manipulate the citizens of that dictatorial country.

Today we live in an era of the “politically correct”. In theory, this is because of a desire not to offend anyone. If this is the sole purpose for political correctness, then I am in favor of it. However, if “PC” is twisted to engage in another form of Newspeak, designed to alter perceptions vital to understanding critical issues, then we have left the realm of benevolence and entered that of propaganda, and we thus have altered perceptions of reality. This is a threat to our democracy and our society.

In the late 1970s, I worked for the former INS as a special agent. The President at the time, Jimmy Carter, mandated that all INS employees stop using the term “illegal alien”. We were told initially to refer to aliens in the United States in violation of the law - the law we were sworn to enforce - as “undocumented aliens”. Several months later, we were ordered to eliminate “alien” and to use “undocumented worker”, whether or not an alien was illegally in our country. We were warned that any employee using another terminology faced severe discipline. Virtually all of us at the INS were upset with this unprecedented order. I began referring to illegal aliens as “Pre-Citizens” to vent my frustration and soon found other INS employees did the same.

The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) is the body of federal law covering the entry of aliens into the United States, their right to remain in the U. S., the grounds under which they might become deportable and the various means by which an alien might become a U.S. resident, including naturalization. The INA contains a list of pertinent definitions. One of the definitions, “alien”, is this: any person who is not a citizen or national of the United States. When I began working for the INS, the Border Patrol Academy required INS personnel to memorize verbatim all such critical definitions as part of the training process, and “alien” was certainly one of them.

The term “alien”, therefore, is not a pejorative but rather a legal term denoting a person who is not a citizen of the United States. Countries throughout the world use comparable language to describe their country’s non-citizen visitors. In fact, when U.S. citizens travel to any other country, we become aliens in those other countries.

Why then, did the Carter administration alter this definition, and why were the administrators at INS Headquarters so adamant about this game of semantics? It was hard to understand back then, but now it is crystal clear. Just as George Orwell created a fictitious system of language control known as Newspeak in order to alter perceptions, the Carter administration was determined to alter the perception of what it means to be either a U.S. citizen or an alien. Not surprisingly, his term “undocumented worker” makes no sense and obfuscates reality.

When an INS agent arrested an illegal alien for running our borders or for violating the terms under which s/he was admitted into the United States, it was because that person was an alien. While it is true that some aliens were arrested for working without permission, many other illegal aliens violated U.S. law by border running, felony conviction, overstaying a temporary or nonimmigrant visa or other such law violation. Work had nothing to do with the reason that many of the illegal aliens were arrested. It was not that they lacked documents, it was that they were present in our country without authority. Eliminating the term “alien” from the lexicon blurs the distinction between citizens and aliens and that was clearly the objective of Mr. Carter’s version of Newspeak that endures to this day.

The alteration of the immigration lexicon continues to expand. We read articles that proclaim the need to “legalize immigrants”. What a confusion of terminology! Immigrants are aliens who already have been legalized through lawful admission for permanent residence. They are, in fact, already on the path to United States citizenship as long as they are not convicted of crimes and meet other INA requirements. Politicians say that we should provide a pathway for undocumented aliens to become citizens as long as they have been “good citizens and paid their taxes”. How can an illegal alien be considered a “good citizen” if s/he is an alien who is here in violation of our laws? The difference between “illegal immigrant”, “undocumented worker’ and other such Newspeak terminology obviously makes no sense, but more importantly, obscures the truth.

A number of years ago, I learned of an alien who was to be arraigned by local police for possession of a small quantity of cocaine. I went to the Brooklyn courthouse where I was to arrest and charge him with Re-Entry After Deportation which would subject him to a potential sentence of 2 years in jail rather than the 90 day sentence he might receive for possession of a small quantity of cocaine. Additionally, it was understood that by taking him into federal custody, he would face deportation after the completion of his jail sentence. When he was brought before the judge, his defense attorney demanded to know why agents of the INS were involved in his client’s case. He adamantly declared, “Your honor, my client is a citizen! I demand an explanation as to why the INS is involved in my client’s case!” The judge and prosecutor asked me to explain my involvement and my answer was straightforward. “You are right counselor, your citizen is indeed a citizen. The problem is he is a citizen of a different country - not the United States of America!” The judge laughed raucously and my partner and I led the defendant out of the courtroom in handcuffs.

There is a world of difference between being an alien and being a citizen of a country. The Mexican Constitution draws many more distinctions between what a native-born citizen of Mexico or what an alien is permitted to do and more significantly, not permitted to do.

However, there are those who are determined to erase the borders of our nation and make it simple for illegal aliens to live and work in the United States. There are a number of motivations behind this. Democrats are happy to see the human waves of illegal aliens racing across our borders because they represent new voters for the Democratic Party’s candidates. At the same time, the Republican Party is pleased that these illegal aliens provide the cheap labor that many of their major campaign contributors demand. Consequently, politicians as disparate as Ted Kennedy and John McCain work cooperatively because their ultimate objectives are the same. They want open borders and the free flow of aliens across our borders regardless of how it may imperil our nation and our citizens.

Such politicians use phrases designed to obscure the real issues and to embarrass those of us who want secure borders. They repeat phrases, knowing that repetitive phrases gain credibility. They insult hard-working Americans by saying that illegal aliens do the work Americans won’t do. The West Virginia coal miners who died in the mine explosion were all American citizens. As long as there are Americans who will work in dangerous, dirty and back-breaking coal mines, and as we saw on September 11, 2001, jump on fire engines and race into blazing infernos to rescue total strangers, it is outrageous that there are politicians who demean our citizens with those statements.

The reality is that Americans always have and will do the dangerous and dirty jobs as long as they earn enough to support their families. It is not that Americans are lazy or soft. It is not that Americans lack initiative, it is that Americans need and want to participate in the “American Dream”. But the employment of illegal aliens who will work for substandard wages often in horrific conditions undermines the poor and middle class of the United States for nefarious reasons that also undermine the safety of the nation.

Open borders advocates say our nation has tried enforcement and failed; therefore the only solution is to provide those who’ve violated our laws with a path to citizenship. This is a false argument. According to the FBI’s “Uniform Crime Report”, New York City is the safest big city in the United States. Protected by nearly 40,000 police officers, NYC has slightly more than 8 million residents. But there are about twice as many illegal aliens scattered across the entire country with fewer than 3,000 special agents of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to enforce the immigration laws. So it is not that our country found that immigration laws are unenforceable; it is that there are virtually no resources dedicated to that vital mission. It is the illusion of enforcing the immigration laws that has failed.

It has been said you have only one opportunity to make a first impression. The first impression people throughout the world get of the United States is often the way we enforce immigration law. Our politicians have been sending a very dangerous message to people of the world: not only can you come to the United States illegally and get away with it, you can expect to enter our country and be rewarded for it! Illegal aliens’ rewards seriously impact nearly every aspect of American life - from education, healthcare, Social Security, the economy and the environment to criminal justice and national security. No responsible homeowner would leave his doors open for criminals to gain access and “clean him out”. A responsible homeowner or apartment dweller keeps his door locked and opens it only after being convinced that the person knocking is not a risk to his safety. Our country should do no less.

According to a recent GAO Report, the entire immigration system by which aliens apply for and receive immigration benefits is failing us. In fact, the 9/11 terrorists all entered the United States through ports of entry and then “gamed the system” in order not only to enter but to embed themselves in our country as they prepared to attack.

James Sensenbrenner, the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee released a statement concerning this report that can be found at:
http://judiciary.house.gov/media/pdfs/g ... e31006.pdf There is a link contained in that memo that will take you to the actual GAO report.

Several months ago I joined Bay Buchanan in traveling to Cochise County, Arizona, to see the U.S./Mexican border and to talk to a number of very concerned ranchers whose properties were violated constantly by drug and alien smugglers. I told them this: I am the son of an immigrant. My parents died while I was in college, but my mom legally immigrated to the United States when she was a teenager in the years before the Second World War and the Holocaust. Had it not been for the generosity of the United States in admitting my mother, she would have perished in the Holocaust as did her mother, my grandmother, for whom I am named. I celebrate the lawful admission of aliens to the United States to share in the “American Dream.” Not to secure our borders, however, and not to correct the immigration system against illegal immigration and those who would do us harm is absolutely insane!

In considering all of this I want to impart one basic thought. The primary responsibility of a government is to provide for the protection of its citizens. This responsibility transcends political parties, as it is neither a Republican nor a Democratic nor a liberal nor conservative issue. It matters only that we are all Americans.

To those who would obfuscate the issue by engaging in Newspeak, I offer a challenge. If you truly believe in open borders and the idea that our country should have no meaningful way of controlling whom we allow into our country, try to explain your position without a semantic smokescreen, and simply argue your case honestly and forthrightly. If you are unable to do this, go home and give it up! The stakes are way too high and it is time for the truth to be known.

FamilySecurityMatters.org Contributing Editor Michael Cutler is a Fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies and a well-respected authority on immigration and border security issues.

©2003-2006 FamilySecurityMatters.org All Rights Reserved

Our politicians have been sending a very dangerous message to people of the world: not only can you come to the United States illegally and get away with it, you can expect to enter our country and be rewarded for it! Illegal aliens’ rewards seriously impact nearly every aspect of American life - from education, healthcare, Social Security, the economy and the environment to criminal justice and national security.

The primary responsibility of a government is to provide for the protection of its citizens. This responsibility transcends political parties, as it is neither a Republican nor a Democratic nor a liberal nor conservative issue. It matters only that we are all Americans.

If you truly believe in open borders and the idea that our country should have no meaningful way of controlling whom we allow into our country, try to explain your position without a semantic smokescreen, and simply argue your case honestly and forthrightly. If you are unable to do this, go home and give it up! The stakes are way too high and it is time for the truth to be known.

BINGO!!



THANK YOU Pat!

whew I have been trying to tell Harkin this for months. This is a great article well written and right on the Mark as far as how they are masking the issues and obscuring the truth.

thanks

Great article. Thanks for posting. Wonder how many people the Family Security Foundation reaches? I'd love to see such an article in a major newspaper but that won't happen. People need to KNOW what is going on....

According to the FBI’s “Uniform Crime Report”, New York City is the safest big city in the United States. Protected by nearly 40,000 police officers, NYC has slightly more than 8 million residents. But there are about twice as many illegal aliens scattered across the entire country with fewer than 3,000 special agents of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to enforce the immigration laws. So it is not that our country found that immigration laws are unenforceable; it is that there are virtually no resources dedicated to that vital mission. It is the illusion of enforcing the immigration laws that has failed.

So true! Turn our local law enforcement loose on them. I bet they would like nothing more than to go pick up the local trouble maker and ship him back to the border.

Here is a term that has evolved due to "Newspeak". Shell Shock! It's been called operational exhaustion, infantry fatigue now it's called PTSD- post traumatic stress disorder. Lot softer sounding than Shell Shock!!!

Dixie