Thread: Lou Dobbs Makes Case for Comprehensive Immigration Reform

There may be nothing more disturbing than accidentally running into a broadcast of Lou Dobbs Tonight on CNN. But there I was at the gym last night, captive to Dobbs ranting about the 300,000 illegal aliens who were supposedly going to be stealing American jobs. (I wrote earlier about the faulty assumptions and outdated statistics that story relied on.)

Still, it got me wondering about what the economic impact really is of illegal immigration, and what the impact might be if advocates of comprehensive immigration reform got the path to legalization they’ve been advocating.

Among the helpful points in this thorough examination of the subject from The American Prospect is that the Internal Revenue Service estimates that undocumented immigrants contributed nearly $50 billion in federal taxes between 1996 and 2003.

The author’s main point, though, is that providing undocumented workers a path to legalization would ultimately have the effect of raising wages for everyone — it’s far harder to under-pay and otherwise exploit legal workers.

Perhaps most importantly, legal, tax-paying hard-working immigrants drive up demands for homes, cars, goods and services — and ultimately, that’s what we desperately need right now. The destitution or deportation of 11 million people within our borders, leading to more foreclosures and business failures, isn’t going to help anyone.

The claims by Dobbs and others, such as Fredrick County, Md. Sheriff Charles Jenkins, who claimed at a congressional hearing last week that the rise in crime in many communities “can be tied directly to the unchecked flow of illegal immigrants through our southern borders with Mexico,â€

Among the helpful points in this thorough examination of the subject from The American Prospect is that the Internal Revenue Service estimates that undocumented immigrants contributed nearly $50 billion in federal taxes between 1996 and 2003. While sucking up hundreds of billions in entitlements and sending money out of this country. Not so good now, eh?

The author’s main point, though, is that providing undocumented workers a path to legalization would ultimately have the effect of raising wages for everyone — it’s far harder to under-pay and otherwise exploit legal workers. Nice try, no cigar. Employers will get other illegal aliens. After all, it's not like we've enforced the laws in the last 20 years is it? .

Nonsense. Largely impoverished illegals consume alot more than they pay in taxes, and will be entitled to more taxpayer $$ if they're legalized -- and legalizing them will not suddently them wealthier.

And flooding the job market with more low skilled workers will drive down wages, especially for the more vulnerable in our society.

Wow - I don't know what drugs you have been taking - but you obviously have not been watching the news. Guess you missed those 600 illegal aliens getting taken out of a production plant, while 600 to 700 American citizens lined up for the jobs and then cheered and clapped as the illegals were taken out.

It is happening all over the country. Grant it that the MSM is not covering the stories so that is perhaps why you don't know about it, but you can find it in the local news in all the towns where it occurs.

PS - you also need to get your facts straight about illegal aliens coming here "just to work". Millions of illegals are in jails for murder, kidnaping, drug running for the cartel and gang violence.

Don't know where you live or why you are so mis=informed. Lou Dobbs is married to a Mexican, and though he does have good facts and figures he is not nearly as informed as many other news outlets when it comes to illegal immigrants and the cost to the American people.

Even Sen Diane Feinstein a pretty left leaning Dem from CA admitted that her own study found that 80% of the gangs creating crime in LA County and Southern CA were in the country illegally.

Legalizing 'everyone' with the present family reunification policy in place, would provide for 17 families to eventually immigrate for every alien who is amnestied.

I believe that people fluent in English and with an American High School education (paid for mostly by us) are at a premium in the Third World. Read my profile to get an idea of what I always wanted to do for a career.

Instead of 12 million undocumented immigrants, the only people not legalized would be those where there’s some question mark. By removing the population of people just here legitimately to work and raise their families, you can narrow the focus of immigration enforcement. Then enforcement can really focus on the actual violent criminals.

LOL, so in other words, we can have immigration enforcement without actually enforcing anything. Gotcha.

Why don't we all just not pay taxes, fill out the paperwork anyway, and then we can focus on the real tax evaders. Wonder how that would work out.

We can all email Daphne Eviatar, Law Reporter about the numerous flaws of her ignorant theory .
Send away . I know we all will be respectfull .

deviatar @ washingtonindependent . com

Left a lengthy comment over there on one of Daphne Eviatar's articles. I certainly wasn't alone. When will Congress get the message?

Does this twit really think she's any match for Lou???