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Illegal Immigration A Factor In Presidential Campaign
A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

The festering boil known as illegal immigration will soon become an irritant to both sides in the presidential campaign.  The US Supreme Court will hand down it’s ruling on the controversial Arizona immigration law in June.  No matter what the ruling, illegal immigration will be injected smack-dab in the middle of the campaigns of both political parties.  There is no avoiding it.  I think that is a good thing.

Like a boil -- it needs lancing.  We need to have this fight and be done with it.  Problem is, as I see it, we're never going to be done with it as long as we approach illegal immigration and border security piece meal, in fits and starts.

I see the problem of illegal immigration and border security is black and white -- no shades of gray, no nuance.

In my opinion, the US should halt ALL immigration immediately until we can devise a reasonable, lawful, way to equitable legal immigration.  That might take a decade, or two, to devise, but it can be done and should be done ASAP.

Secondly -- pull the Border Patrol back from the border and place the US Army in charge of border security.  The border should be sealed as tight as Dick's hatband.  This would necessitate that troops assigned to border security have the option of the use of lethal force -- when they deem it necessary.  There MUST be a penalty to pay for those who continue to defy the law and attempt to breech the borders of the United States.

Our ungrateful neighbor to the south can be expected to raise caine, so -- let them.  

There are those who say such action would result in Mexico refusing to ship goods manufactured in their country north into the US.  OK.  I'm fine with that.  Besides, it will hurt Mexico far worse that the US.

And, yes, we should have a round up of illegals in the US.  Please don't tell me that's impossible -- because only a fool would believe that.  If we can find terrorists hiding in diverse places around the globe, surely we can find illegal aliens living in plain sight in America.

Understand:  We must first secure the border or a round up of illegals will be ineffective.  Hauling them back across the border is akin to a speed bump for those intent on breaking our laws and illegally entering the US.

The situation with illegal immigration in the US is so bad that even if we seal the border on January 21st, 2013, it will take decades before we will see a meaningful difference.

It is plain that doing nothing will result in the loss of the United States to Mexico.    

Just so we are clear -- I do not subscribe to the theory that wee need a world without borders.  That is pure bovine scatology ... period!  That is global-speak for global governance or -- as I prefer to call it -- a one-world government.

 The plain truth is ... global governance will never work on this planet.  Any global government on Earth would, of necessity, have to be totalitarian.  It could not survive otherwise. 

But, all the above considered, there is a definite movement, especially within the United Nations, to do exactly that -- and they make no bones about it.

In the United States, it is the folks on the left side of the political spectrum who are the driving force behind global governance and open borders.  THAT is why Americans have had such a difficult time obtaining any meaningful border security enforcement from our government, which is -- for all intents and purposes --at least half controlled by the left.

We have become a bilingual country, already.  Makes no difference that it is not official.  It is a fact. 

Recently, I went shopping for a lockable gas cap for my truck.  All the lockable gas caps available at this particular store were in containers that had only Spanish language on the carton's sides.  I left without purchasing a gas cap.  I'll eventually buy one that is in a carton with English on it.  At least I'll know what I'm buying.

I'm often referred to as a "nationalist."  OK.  I'm all right with that.  After all, I AM a nationalist.  According to the dictionary a nationalist is one who has "Devotion for the interests or culture of one's nation."  Yup!  That's me!

Taken a bit deeper we learn that nationalism is the belief in the preservation of identity features, independence in all subjects, the well being and the glory of one's own nation.  These are all fundamental values.  Yeah, I'm guilty.

Place nationalism up against global governance, and I'll go with nationalism every time.

There are those who will distort what I have just said about nationalism and immediately distort my meaning and begin screaming National Socialism (The Nazis).  THAT is horse hockey!    That is an extreme definition of nationalism.  You want extremism?  OK. The nationalism I subscribe to is EXTREMELY simple:  AMERICA FIRST! 

A little nationalism would have our southern border sealed properly, patrolled properly, and criminals within the United States who have chosen to break and enter our country illegally either imprisoned or shown the door and, if necessary, forcibly removed from US soil.

If you think I am passionate about illegal immigration, then talk to the folks living along the southern border.  Heck, I'm way up in North Carolina.  Those folks have to live with being overrun by criminals that the federal government won't lift a hand to deter. 

I had a look at some data concerning North Carolina from the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR).  What I found was more than a little interesting.  Take a look at this:

Summary Demographic State Data (and Source)
Population (2010 CB est.):     9,535,483
Population (2009 CB est.):     9,380,884
Foreign-Born Population (2010 CB est.)     719,137
Foreign-Born Population (2000 CB est.)     430,000
Share Foreign-Born (2010)     7.5%
Share Foreign-Born (2000)     4.6%
Naturalized U.S. Citizens (2010 CB est.):     217,183
Share Naturalized (2010):     30.2%
Legal Immigrant Admission (DHS 2001 – 2010):     148,046
Refugee Admission (HHS 2000 – 2009)     15,117
Illegal Alien Population (2010 FAIR est.):     410,000
Costs of Illegal Aliens (2009 FAIR)     $2,063,064,501
Projected 2050 Population (2006 FAIR)     14,535,000
(If you'd like to check the figures above and/or see more information reference immigration in North Carolina go to:
http://www.fairus.org/states/north-carolina
  
Can you imagine what illegal aliens are costing the taxpayers of Arizona and the other border states???

It MUST stop.  It will not stop, however, until we send legislators to Washington with the WILL and the COURAGE to do whatever is necessary to bring it to a screeching halt.

Don't expect either of the presidential candidates to actually tackle the problem of illegal immigration and secure borders in their respective campaigns.  Nope!  They are both vying for the so-called "Latino vote."  For them it is the "Third Rail" of politics -- at the moment.  But -- hope springs eternal.....

J. D. Longstreet