Results 1 to 3 of 3
Like Tree3Likes

Thread: Why Pence worries Trump supporters on immigration

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

  1. #1
    Administrator Jean's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2006
    Location
    California
    Posts
    65,443

    Why Pence worries Trump supporters on immigration

    By W. JAMES ANTLE III • 7/17/16 8:25 AM

    Donald Trump officially, if belatedly, rolled out Mike Pence as his vice presidential choice Saturday. While many Republicans who have otherwise been skeptical of Trump were happy, some of the New York businessman's biggest fans are not.

    The biggest reason is immigration. Ten years ago, while still a member of Congress, Pence floated what he described as a "middle ground on immigration." He argued in an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal, "[M]y bill does not include a so-called path to citizenship, i.e., an amnesty, for the some 12 million illegal aliens in this country."

    Immigration restrictionists weren't so sure. The Indiana Republican did not offer the straightforward path to citizenship favored by then President George W. Bush and key Senate Republicans like John McCain in partnership with Ted Kennedy.

    What Pence did propose was that illegal immigrants could apply for legal status by leaving the United States and touching back in their home country. They could then come back in as guest workers if they could be matched with a wiling U.S. employer.

    The matching would be done by private worker placement agencies Pence called "Ellis Island Centers." There would "initially" be no cap on the number of visas the federal government would issue under the program. The "market and the needs of U.S. employers will set the limit on the number of guest workers."

    At first, this seemed to address some problems with some of the amnesty proposals floating around Congress at the time. Only employed illegal immigrants would be eligible for legalization. Private agencies would vet them rather than government bureaucrats. People would have to leave and wouldn't necessarily be guaranteed amnesty.

    Then questions arose. The first concerned timing. Pence made his proposal when anti-amnesty, enforcement-first Republicans in the House appeared to have succeeded in blocking the comprehensive immigration reform bill advanced by the Senate. Why would a conservative offer some middle ground at that moment?

    Next came the practical considerations. Wouldn't the Ellis Island Centers have a conflict of interest when it came to ruling illegal immigrants a company wanted to hire couldn't re-enter the United States? Werern't "the needs of U.S. employers" already driving illegal immigration and some of the most abused guest-worker programs already in existence?

    Ultimately, many comprehensive immigration reformers thought Pence's plan was too complicated. Hardliners thought it was too close to amnesty. It went nowhere.

    Why is this decade-old idea worth mentioning now? First, it was a precursor to his handling of Obamacare's Medicaid expansion, Common Core, the religious freedom bill and even the Ted Cruz endorsement before the Indiana primary. Pence has a tendency to try to stake out compromises that please neither side of a contentious public debate.

    Moreover, Pence's "touchback amnesty" is especially compatible with some things Trump has said about immigration himself — the things immigration hawks find least palatable.

    After telling MSNBC that illegal immigrants in the United States had to go, Trump elaborated "the good people are going to be able to come back, but they're going to come back legally." He added, "We go out, and we're going to try and bring them back rapidly, the good ones. Rapidly. You know the word 'expedited'?"

    One way perhaps to do that? A "touchback amnesty." The possibility has people who support Trump because they think he will control immigration perplexed.

    Writing at the Trump-friendly Breitbart, Ken Klukowksi describes the 2006 Pence plan as "surprisingly similar to Trump's own proposal. Secure the border, then build a 'big, beautiful door' in the security wall so that the federal government can lawfully admit however many immigrants the country needs, at whatever level serves the national interest."

    Some conservatives support Trump because they think his immigration stance is closer to Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions'. These conservatives are by and large not happy with Pence's record on this issue.

    http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/wh...rticle/2596718
    Support our FIGHT AGAINST illegal immigration & Amnesty by joining our E-mail Alerts at https://eepurl.com/cktGTn

  2. #2
    Senior Member Judy's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Posts
    55,883
    Pence is a problem on both immigration and trade. Terrible choice in my opinion. Hope "party unity" was worth the price.
    A Nation Without Borders Is Not A Nation - Ronald Reagan
    Save America, Deport Congress! - Judy

    Support our FIGHT AGAINST illegal immigration & Amnesty by joining our E-mail Alerts at https://eepurl.com/cktGTn

  3. #3
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Posts
    1,150
    ....What Pence did propose was that illegal immigrants could apply for legal status by leaving the United States and touching back in their home country. They could then come back in as guest workers if they could be matched with a wiling U.S. employer.
    ....
    This isn't too bad really. The most important thing it would do is remove illegal immigrants from the country and it would do it right away. The problem would be the notion of "touching back". The illegals would have to actually go back and stay for some fixed period of time. They couldn't just fly in and fly back from their country of origin. Also, some means of removing them would have to exist to be done on this kind of scale. But processing them in a mass deportation as illegals would be very important.


    Another problem is the people who hired the illegal immigrants would be completely excused. It also ignores the immigration status of the employers which is another thing that needs examining. It might also qualify the employers hiring illegals to rehire illegals, creating amnesty not for the illegals but the criminal employers hiring illegals.

    Just based on this report, I see little to object to his candidacy as VP. I think he is, like Trump, actually thinking about the problem seriously with an eye to actually doing something about it.


    I think Pence's real problem is with the LGBT community, and with all the Anne Coulter fans here, that might explain the resistance we see in the objections to Pence. If this surprises anyone, they might consider all the trouble Russia is having with Europe. There is plenty to suggest that Russia's socially conservative stand on the subject plays a role.
    Support ALIPAC'sFIGHT AGAINST illegal immigration & Amnesty by joining our E-mail Alerts at http://eepurl.com/cktGTn

Similar Threads

  1. Snap Judgment: Trump-Pence
    By Shapka in forum General Discussion
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: 07-17-2016, 11:32 PM
  2. Trump Family, Staff Divided Between Gingrich, Pence
    By joe s in forum General Discussion
    Replies: 15
    Last Post: 07-14-2016, 08:42 PM
  3. Replies: 6
    Last Post: 07-11-2016, 02:58 PM
  4. Replies: 0
    Last Post: 02-26-2016, 10:45 AM
  5. WATCH: Fight Breaks Out Between Trump Supporters & Immigration Protesters
    By European Knight in forum illegal immigration News Stories & Reports
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 10-15-2015, 04:26 PM

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •