The Chase for a Better Life & What Comes With It - Essay Example

The Chase for a Better Life & What Comes With It For many years, people have immigrated to the United s from other countries in the pursuit of what they feel to be a "better life" for themselves, as well as their loved ones. They see the United States as a way to live free and prosperous, without whatever persecution they may have experienced in their home countries. Most would argue that the immigrants are who built the United States to be what it is today. While immigrants are part of the history, the problem lies when those select few choose to enter the country outside of the legal boundaries that have been set up through the US Government. Some would say that it is fear that makes them forgo any sense of reason, or rational, when they decide that this is their only best option in their quest to enter the country through any means. Through the mainstream news media, the immigration debate is a hotly discussed topic and is ever more so during election time. Observation would note that the states that see the biggest influx of immigration include California, Arizona, New Mexico and lastly Texas. During election time, politicians set out to achieve the highest office in the land and parade about the country, all the while detailing how they and they alone can fix the ailments for the country and its people. With two of the biggest political contests also being two of the states that deal with immigration issues on a daily basis, immigration itself has grown into one of the biggest discussed issues during both the primaries, as well as the general election cycle. With Americans nervous on a daily basis about their own job security and the welfare of their families, the illegal immigration debate is something that they take very personally. As the 2008 Presidential election continues, it is imperative to observe how the mainstream candidates plan to conquer this problem. The best way to do that is to not only listen to their public speeches on the matter, but to also observe their written statements, or "agendas", that are published on their online campaign websites. Most would argue that this election year is a year of firsts. Either the first woman President, the first African American President, or the oldest ever elected President will be the result of this election year. Hillary Rodham Clinton has been in the political mindset for many going back to her husband's 1992 Presidential campaign. After her husband left office in 2001, she began a career in the United Sates Senate as a representative for the citizens of New York. Even before she officially entered the race, many had contemplated and theorized as to when, if ever, Mrs. Clinton would in fact fun for the highest elected office in the nation. After looking at the mainstream candidates who are working tirelessly to achieve the highest office in the land, it is also important to assess the methods which are being taken by the local, as well as state level government, to go about the issue of immigration. Before doing so, one would have to understand the costs of the illegal immigration to the citizens of the state of Texas. To do that, the group FAIR, or the Federation for American Immigration Reform, in their online report writes that, "Analysis of the latest Census data indicates Texas's illegal immigrant population is costing the state's taxpayers more than 4.7 billion per year for education, medical care, and incarceration. Even if the estimated tax contributions of illegal immigrant workers are subtracted, net outlays still amount to more than 3.7 billion per year. The annual fiscal burden amounts to $725 per Texas household headed by a native-born resident," ("FAIR" p.1). An idea to be brought forward to the bargaining table would be the introduction of new laws to deal with the issue of illegal immigration and its impact of native citizens. As another state that deals with the issue of illegal immigrants within its own borders, the California-based newspaper the San Francisco Chronicle, in an article written by Karin Brulliard for the Washington Post dated 29 August 2007, she writes about such laws stating that, "The validity of the measures, designed to regulate an area long considered part of the federal domain, is among the murkiest territories in the already-byzantine field of immigration law, they say, largely because local leaders have never before felt impelled to act, and so there are few specific court rulings to offer clarity," (Brulliard 8/29/07). It is essentially up to the Governor of each state to serve his or her own state that voted for them. In his quest to do just that, Governor Perry's website details his intentions by saying that, "This legislative session Governor Perry is proposing 100 million to continue funding border security efforts in Texas. These funds will help to ensure border security efforts in Texas. These funds will help to ensure that our local and state law enforcement on the frontline have the manpower, training, equipment and resources necessary to address those criminal organizations that constitute the greatest threat to all Texans," ("Border" p.1). Perry's plan would include; (1) Three hundred new local commissioned officers and a hundred vehicles. (2) Seventy-five new state commissioned officers and thirty-eight vehicles. (3) Four DPS helicopters to be positioned along the border. (4) Overtime pay during surge operations for state and local law enforcement. (5) Centralized communication and (6) Modernizing technology to compete on a post 9/11 environment ("Border"). Debate on serious issues has never been without controversy when it comes to the proposed remedy. One of those proposed solutions that caught fire was the suggested use of a website in order to "track" any possible movement across the border into the state by illegal immigrants. The website, Texasborderwatch.com, would act as a way for average citizens to view, with the help of their personal computers, the entrance of illegal immigrants into their communities. Governor Perry's spokeswoman Allison Castle sums up the purpose of the program by saying, "The goal of this program is deterring and disrupting criminal activity," ("WebCam"). Castle went on to further elaborate that such cameras would be set up to where law enforcement officials would be able to easily move them between sites. The agency identified with this program would be the Border Patrol who gets routine phone calls pertaining to border control issues. The political website ontheissues.org, in a compilation of statements made by the New York Senator on this very issue, outlines the direct statements of the Presidential candidate on illegal immigration and that which comes with it, rather than using statements made by associates of the Senator as a means of making known her views. One of the questions asked of Senator Clinton had to do with the patrolling of borders between not only our neighbor to the south, but also the US/Canadian border as well. During the 2007 Democratic primary debate on the Spanish language station Univision, Mrs. Clinton was asked "Q: None of the 9/11 terrorists entered the US through the Mexican border. Why build a wall there in the name of national security You voted in favor of the border wall. Why on the Mexican border and not on the Canadian border" This question was asked of Senator Clinton as she was speaking to an audience in Texas. The Senator responded to this by saying, "I do favor much more border patrolling and much more technology on both of our borders, and in certain areas, even a physical barrier, because I think we've got to secure our borders. That has to be part of comprehensive immigration reform. I have championed comprehensive immigration reform, and it includes starting with securing our borders in order to give people the support they need to come over and support us when it comes to having a pathway to legalization. We all know that this has become a contentious political issue. We want to work in a bipartisan way to have comprehensive reform--employer verification, more help for local communities so that they can pay for schooling and hospital and other expenses that they have to bear because of the immigration crisis," ("Issues" p.1) Located on her campaign website, Senator Clinton details how she is ready to govern as it comes to this issue. As is pointed out; (1) she championed the Legal Immigrant Children's Health Improvement Act, which would give states the option to provide federally funded Medicaid and SCHIP benefits to low-income legal immigrant children and pregnant women. (2) She wrote the Access to Employment and English Acquisition Act to meet the growing demand for English language courses and other job skills. (3) She strongly supports the DREAM Act, which provides a path to citizenship through military service or higher education for children who were brought to the U.S. by their parents. (4) She offered an amendment to make family reunification the guiding principle of our immigration system ("Reforming" p.1). Many of those people closest to the candidates offer them recommendations as to how best proceed. A primary suggestion for Senator Clinton would be to maintain and follow through with her pledge of economic help to those impacted, such as the citizens of Texas, by the high cost of illegal immigrants. The federal funding to best be allocated should amount to the equivalent of the total fiscal burden to the residents which would be given directly to the state. Only then would it take the enormous burden off of the already struggling average person, who in their own right is trying to do best by their own families. As was noted by a previous source, the overall cost of illegal immigrants to Texas is 4.7 billion dollars. In a time of a weak economy and public schools suffering, to name a few things, such aid assistance from the federal side would come as a great relief in taking off the burden of the already over burdened Texas taxpayer. Regular taxpaying citizens should not be saddled with the lacking foreign policy as it comes to illegal immigration, and the replacement of federal funds to the citizens of Texas to offset the cost would be a necessary step to lead the state on a direction towards more solid economic means. After all, it is the average citizen which holds the key for those who select higher office and as such are a necessary stakeholder to remain cognizant of. Thousands remain nervous on a day to day basis as they look towards an uncertain future for themselves. Unlike those in Washington, the average citizen in the country, such as Texas, cares little for the political ramifications of the decisions that are made. What they do care about is how these decisions will impact their lives. They feel that by entrusting the Presidency to the candidate, that they in return must keep them as the primary focus in the service to the country. Works Cited Brulliard, Karin. "The Immigration Debate: Legality of local anti-immigrant laws in doubt". Published by: San Francisco Chronicle. Article Date: 29 August 2007. Original newspaper story came from: Washington Post. Accessed: 18 March 2008 URL's: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgif=/c/a/2007/08/29/MN2ERQQGO. DTL&feed=rss.news. Washington Post: www.washingtonpost.com FAIR: Federation for American Immigration Reform. "Costs of Illegal Immigration To Texans: Executive Summary". Date Published: April 2005. Accessed On: 18 March 2008. URL: http://www.fairus.org/site/PageServerpagename= research_research2859 FOX News.com. "Texas Gov. Rick Perry Revives Controversial Border WebCam Program". Date Published: 19 November 2007. Date Accessed: 19 March 2008. URL: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,312230,00.html Hillary for President. Reforming Our Immigration System. Date Accessed: 20 March 2008. URL: http://www.hillaryclinton.com/issues/immigration/ On The Issues: Every Political Leader on Every Issue. "Hillary Clinton on Immigration". Dated Accessed: 20 March 2008. URL: http://www.ontheissues.org/2008/Hillary_ Clinton_Immigration.htm Texas Governor Rick Perry. "Border Security". Dated Accessed: 19 March 2008. Organization: Perry Alliance Network. URL: http://www.rickperry.org/issues/border Read More