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Published Saturday, October 29, 2005

Write Standards for Illegal Immigrants

"Our goal at DHS," Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff testified, "is to completely eliminate the `catch and release' enforcement problem, and return every single illegal entrant, no exceptions."

Well, actually, there are a few exceptions to Chertoff's announcement before the Senate Judiciary Committee -- about 11 million exceptions.

Chertoff was talking about another plan to crack down on illegal immigrants caught along the U.S.-Mexico border.

He was not talking about the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants who already live in the United States.

Chertoff admitted as much when he agreed with Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., that rounding up and deporting 11 million illegal immigrants was virtually impossible.

"It would take billions and billions of dollars to do it," Chertoff testified. Everyone knew what that meant. It isn't going to happen.

Not only would Congress balk at spending that much money, no politician would support a deportation program that includes thousands of Elian Gonzalezstyle photo opportunities. It isn't going to happen.

Chertoff was supporting President Bush's renewed push to pass immigration legislation that includes a guest-worker program.

Immigration reform was one of Bush's original priorities before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Illegal entry by terrorists presents problems completely different from those of undocumented workers willing to take jobs spurned by U.S. citizens.

Cracking down on illegal entries along the border is nearly as impossible a task as rounding up and deporting 11 million illegal workers hidden in plain sight throughout the nation.

The U.S.-Mexico border region is a vast area. To seal the border would take the manpower of a national army, and cost more billions and billions of dollars. Even then, if people felt it was profitable to come here, they'd find a way.

As it is now, if illegal immigrants can cross the border and evade capture for a few miles, they are virtually home free. Along some portions of the border there is an active effort to nab illegal aliens in an area five to 10 miles from the border. In other areas, the capture zone extends out 100 miles or so, depending on roads, terrain and guesswork.

After that, unless illegal entrants get into trouble with the law, they are generally ignored by authorities.

It's illegal to hire illegal immigrants, but that law is seldom enforced because there are no national standards to identify legal from illegal workers. Traditional IDs are easily forged and

readily available on both sides of the border.

Because illegal immigrants are, by definition, living outside the law, they are often cruelly exploited by unscrupulous employers, landlords and merchants. They also are often victimized by criminals who have little fear of being reported.

Besides the Bush immigration reform proposal, Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, is sponsoring legislation that would require all 11 million illegal immigrants to return home and apply for a guest worker program there.

It isn't going to happen. Illegal immigrants are poor, not stupid.

Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Kennedy have a plan to allow illegal immigrants to step forward and pay a $2,000 fine that would allow them to go to the end of the line of people trying to obtain legal working papers.

It isn't going to happen. For about $200, they are good to go with a set of fake identity papers.

Illegal immigration undermines the rule of law. A national standard needs to be adopted to tell citizens from noncitizens, and legal workers from illegal workers. At that point, employer sanctions need to be enforced.

An efficient guest-worker program needs to be developed to match approved workers with approved jobs. Once the legal mechanism is in place, Congress needs to bite the bullet and pass the last-ever amnesty program. After that, immigration laws should be rigorously enforced.

It isn't going to happen, of course.