Thread: NJ: Status check plan fuels immigration debate

Status check plan fuels immigration debate

EDITOR'S NOTE: Monmouth County Sheriff Kim Guadagno wants the county to take part in a controversial federal program known as 287(g), which deputizes local law enforcement officers as federal immigration agents.

Guadagno, who had promised to begin the program when she ran for sheriff last year, said she would limit it to checking prisoners' immigration status during routine bookings at the county jail. A story about the plan in Sunday's Press rekindled the debate over illegal immigration.

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Eagle143: It seems to me what Sheriff Guadagno is proposing is a happy medium. She does not intend to set out and hunt down every person in the county who is here illegally. The sheriff is intent on ridding our communities of the criminal element, not those who are violating federal immigration laws simply by being here. Now, isn't that what everyone wants, Latinos included?

MISSNAVYMOO: It isn't that people don't want immigrants. We simply don't want the ones who sneak in here illegally by crossing the rivers or overstaying their visas. All I ask is that these people — if you can find them — be checked. If they are in jail, check their status and if they're here illegally, deport them. That isn't prejudicial. It isn't a step into concentration camps or other nonsense.

It's simply asking people in authority — employers, prison wardens, schools, etc. — to obey the law instead of allowing misguided bleeding heart liberals to overlook the rules in favor of "compassion." Compassion has to work for all citizens — legal ones and American-born as well as illegal aliens (not "undocumented" immigrants. They're illegal aliens. Stop the euphemisms, please!) — or it isn't true compassion.

Mudshark: As someone who has worked in immigration and on international labor issues for 17 years, including three years on the U.S.-Mexico border, I commend Monmouth County for this move and urge Ocean County to do the same. People make the argument that working without authorization, overstaying a permit of stay or entering without inspection are federal offenses, not local. Robbing a bank is a federal offense also. If a local cop sees a bank being robbed, should he or she ignore it? People who advocate for illegal immigrants are part of the system of exploitation that victimizes them, whether they are aware of it or not.

americandream: To all of you illegals who may be looking over your shoulders in the future, tell all your friends and family from the old country that illegal immigration won't be tolerated in the U.S. any longer. Stay home!

humbleangel: People still get confused, or pretend they are, over the huge difference between "illegal aliens" and legal immigrants in this country. We need no protective measures from legal immigrants who come to our shores. Yet we have those who continue to try and protect those who are nothing more than lawbreakers.

They have no respect for our laws and don't obey any they happen to disagree with. Instead of working with our legal system, they do whatever they want. I do not and will never depend on any illegal to maintain my life. I need fellow legal American citizens only.

phillydan: I need fellow legal American citizens only? Oh yeah? Do you ever eat? Do you ever purchase products at any retail establishment? Trust me, you depend on immigrants working for slave wages every single day of your life. If it makes you feel better to think that you don't, keep thinking that. This country's economy would completely collapse without cheap Mexican labor.

airpat: Undocumented immigrants do not need to look over their shoulder. This is not what this plan by the county means, nor should it. The idea — and it's a good one — is not to start rounding up the estimated 20 million undoucmented aliens, but rather start reporting and hopefully deporting those illegals who are causing crime in this country. The law-abiding, honest, hard-working immigrants who wish to stay in this country as legal U.S. citizens should be given that opportunity as soon as possible.

Scottsdale4Me: Can someone tell me why this sheriff is focused on immigration issues when we have jail guards in Monmouth County who make more than the governor? Why can't she do something about runaway overtime costs?

cdeanni: In reference to Guadagno's remark that it is too expensive to enforce 287(g) with more than a few people, I would ask what it costs to keep these people in jail? I am sure we could send them home, first class, with the money we would save getting them out of our jails.

guyfam: Put a lawful end to New Jersey's sanctuary status and hold all public officials and law enforcement brass responsible for being in contempt of the law. I commend Guadagno for being competent and loyal to her duties as a public servant in protecting the citizenry.

fairhavennonhousewife: The only illegals that have to be concerned are the criminals. And why should they be allowed back on the streets after they do their time? Good job, sheriff.

delegate314: How can anyone in their right mind oppose checking the immigration status of people already lodged in the jail for a criminal offense? I can assure you, as the bargaining representative for the sheriff's officers, that we have no way to check someone's immigration status in the field. This is simply a way of making sure that those who should not be here anyway, and have already been arrested for another crime, are simply not released back into Monmouth County. Furthermore, for all those who complain about taxes, if the criminals are here illegally, then the federal government will pay the county to house someone we were already housing.

And for those of you who think this will only harm the Latinos, I have been at the jail on days where federal agents were in the process of removing prisioners for deportation. There were plenty from Asia, Eastern Europe and the Caribbean.

GillBates: Folks, there is an answer: Make Mexico a state. Just annex it. Then we get a whole bunch of citizens paying taxes and we get a country with untapped natural resources. Beyond that, we could actually harden the southern border of Mexico. If Mexico doesn't want to be part of the U.S., then let it pay to bring their citizens back. It may sound like a joke, but it's the only answer. Think Gadsden Purchase and Manifest Destiny.

bewarenj: It's about time someone started with this program in New Jersey. I hope the rest of the state sees some good in it and expands it.

Gunny: Finally, some common sense introduced into the system. Now we can hear from the libs with all the reasons we can't do this to protect our own country. Hellooo!

captbob: It is the duty of law enforcement to check the immigration status of an immate, the same as they would check for any outstanding arrest warrants. It is time to quit being so touchy-feely with illegals and start doing the proper job. As Theodore Roosevelt said, every immigrant who comes here should be required within five years to learn English or leave the country.

thomcu: If one looks at the overtime collected by the Ocean County Sheriff's Department and Ocean County Corrections (also part of the Sherrif's Office), it's hard to imagine that $25,000 to $50,000 to train some staff would break the bank. The Ocean County freeholders and the sheriff need to follow the lead of our neighbor to the north.

Longbranchguy1: Yeah, send them all back so we can pay $10 for a head of lettuce or cut our own lawns. I think there are lots of Americans who would love to wash dishes in a restaurant. Wake up people. They are here because they are performing jobs that Americans don't want. Look at the Brazilians in Long Branch. They have almost all gone back home. Why? Because they came here to install hardwood floors and siding and now home construction has dried up and there is no more work. Can anybody truly admit they have never benefited from illegal labor?

thomcu: I travel south daily on the Garden State Parkway and see some of the folks you're talking about with Long Branch lettered on their vans that have North Carolina, Maryland and Pennsylvania license plates. Why do they have out-of-state plates? 1. They don't have what New Jersey requires for a driver's license. 2. They likely have no auto insurance. 3. When summonses or tickets become due, they are nowhere to be found.

These guys will cut their prices to the point where no traditional contractor can compete with them. The consumer does not benefit from these low prices. The big builders are the beneficaries of the cheap labor. I recently received quotes to replace my roof. One contractor was 30 percent lower than the others. Why? Because no Americans want to do that work? I don't think so.

airpat: Every time there is a debate on this forum concerning illegal immigration, I ask the same questions and no one will answer them. Are American taxpayers willing to spend $6 billion more to round up every single "illegal" and ship them back home? Are Americans willing to see wholesale price increases in the tens of billions in higher costs in the construction, food and service industries if these industries suddenly face massive job losses and are unable to find the workers to do the jobs? Are Americans going to subsidize landlords and other businesses whose incomes are destroyed by the sudden loss of more than 20 million customers?

These are hard questions that need to be answered before we start the biggest roundup of people in history. Why can't the decent, hard-working, law-abiding ones be given the opportunity to live the American Dream like our forefathers? But by all means, send the criminals back on the first plane. We have no use for them.

hickmom: Who would have thought that our public policies didn't already cover checking a criminal's immigration status? This law should have been a given from the beginning. Our government leaders are so afraid of offending anyone that we have become the doormat of the world. How is it that our politicians don't worry about offending us? As Americans, we have to take a stand and let our government know that it is OK by us to invest in implementing 287(g). Finally, something I would be proud to pay for with my taxes.

puffaroo: We wouldn't have to spend $6 billion to send the illegal immigrants home. Deport enough of them as cheaply as possible, and place a heavy fine, like $25,000 per illegal worker, on any employer caught without valid I-9s and supporting documents for every employee. Make it uncomfortable to live here illegally, and make it prohibitively expensive for anyone to employ them here.

WitchHazel: I see this as a conflict of interest between the sheriff and the Monmouth County prosecutor who, if I am not mistaken, is a big advocate for the illegals, mainly the Latinos. The county even has a hotline should they feel they have been discriminated against.

puffaroo: Illegals are here, by definition, illegally. What part of "illegal" do people not understand? If you sneak into this country, you're here illegally. If you overstay your visa, you're here illegally. If I did the same thing in another country with similar immigration laws, my actions there would be just as illegal. The sheriff is doing what someone else should have done but failed to do.

stuckinnj: The 287(g) program is needed to protect legal residents and taxpayers in New Jersey. The states that have enacted it have seen a decrease in crime and taxes, and now have a better quality of life. New Jersey needs this! The U.S. has some of the most liberal immigration standards and anyone who cannot meet them either has a criminal background or cannot pass a medical exam. Either way, these people end up becoming a burden on the taxpayer.

gotoutofAP: It's the same old story. Business gets labor at bargain basement rates without paying income taxes, Social Security taxes or Medicare taxes. The illegals get a nice fat paycheck and the taxpayers and legal immigrants get screwed.

vermontgirl: I will gladly volunteer my weekend to do the checking of illegal immigrants. It always comes down to "It will cost too much." I'm so sick of hearing it. I'll do the job for free just to get them out of New Jersey.

NJ4NJTruth: Why aren't they checking the status of these people now? There should be immigration officials at every muster zone every day. And they should be getting the business tax ID's for every vehicle that picks one of them up to ensure they are paying their fair share of taxes. It's time to stand up, legal citizens. Refuse to hire, employ or do business with any contractor and business that hires illegals. Ask for their papers if they come to work at your home. No papers — no work. Report these businesses to the IRS.

phillydan: You think your taxes are high now? Try deporting every illegal in the country. You want solutions, great. Come up with some real ideas other than the impractical and impossible. Naturalize all current immigrants without criminal histories and start collecting taxes from them. Use the increased tax revenues to help shrink our debt and to cover the cost of keeping more illegals from entering the country and to help deport those who truly should be.

I have worked with many illegal immigrants and lived near them and my observation has always shown that the majority of these hard-working people only want to fly under the radar without causing any trouble at all.

LawAndOrderDemocrat: Amnesties have been tried before during times when our economy was in better condition. I do not think an amnesty will help our failing economy. I have met too many hardworking Americans who have told me that they lost their job because they were replaced with illegal immigrants. We need to take care of our own people. I like Mexicans. I think they are good people with good values. The reality is that because they fly under the radar, unscrupulous employers will continue to fail to deduct taxes from their paychecks. I think we should have a moratorium on immigration until the unemployment rate is lower.

hairapparent: No offense, some are good people but if they don't belong here, deport them.

qtpye: Make a state law like Arizona did to punish businesses that hire illegals. When that law went into effect, there was a mass exodus. If they can't work here they have to leave or starve. One thing I'd like to know: There are illegals from many nations here, yet the bleeding hearts hold the Mexicans so near and dear as opposed to others. Why is that? Illegal means against the law and laws must be enforced. It's not our problem that Mexico's government is corrupt and its economy is bad. We have problems of our own to deal with.
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SO WHY WAS SHE ELECTED?

AND DON'T PAY HER FOR SHE IS NOT SERVING THE CITIZENS AND ENFORCEMENT OF AIDING AND ABETTING LAWS.