Thread: New Immigration Policy on the way?

Very interesting the developments in the making.
Senators reach deal on immigration changes - NBC Politics

The best I can say is "It's about goddamned time."

I don't know if this particular set of reform is what's actually needed, since the actual details haven't really been addressed just yet, but it's nice to see some sort of a bi-partisan effort to revamp a system that is terribly outdated and inefficient....essentially broken.

A better employment verification system can help cut down on the employment of illegals, and hopefully they'll add some tougher penalties for businesses who go ahead and hire them anyways.

A more efficient path towards citizenship would be a big plus for the U.S. Right now it's a hugely time-consuming process with an unbelievable amount of red tape involved. I've got friends with green cards who don't go to the next step simply because of the difficulty in the process.

Better tracking of people here on visas is a worthy goal, because a significant number of illegals are people that came here on legitimate visas and simply stayed afterwards, somewhat off the grid. I don't know how well this can actually be accomplished....but hopefully an easier path towards citizenship will also help cut down on the number of people who stay here illegally after their visas expire, by giving them the ability to do things the right way in a reasonable amount of time.

I'm also not opposed to their idea of "importing" low-skill workers for things like agriculture and other professions that pay a similar wage. Those jobs have to be done, but with the high cost of current US labor it wouldn't be a great idea to change things in the agricultural industry too much. I obviously don't know exactly how the "import" of labor would go, but I am sure that if the people who pick strawberries or oranges or whatever were paid the Federal minimum wage, those products would cost more to produce then customers would be willing to pay because of the big increase in labor costs.

So all-in-all....I'm gonna wait for actual details before deciding if this group of senators is doing things correctly, but at least this first step is encouraging.

~Morningfrost

I am glad SOMETHING is being done finally, but the particulars of the deal won't become evident for a while, and I may not like some of the details that are in it when it does. I hope this isn't something that just sits on the back burner doing nothing, this needs to be addressed in a timely fashion.
And I'm with MF on the quicker path to citizenship once the process has started. I have a kitchen manager whose wife has been "stamped" for citizenship (meaning she has met all the requirements and is just waiting for the call to raise her right hand), since 1995. Yea, that's right - 1995. Going on 18 years now, and she is still waiting. They originally told her 3 years or so. If her father, who is in his late 70's dies, she will have to start the entire process over since she began her ordeal as a "dependent of a live naturalized citizen". She goes all the way to the back of the line and has to start over as a "dependent of a deceased naturalized citizen" if that happens. When people say this system is broken, they are not lying. I don't care which side of the aisle you are on, something needs to be done.

Originally Posted by Morningfrost

I'm hoping for more punishments on business' that hire illegals, to be honest, and better ways to check if they are. The biggest reason we have illegal immigration is because there's work here and we hire them. If they don't get hired here and can't make money here, we'll have a LOT less illegal immigration.
~Morningfrost

The problem with that statement is that it is not always black and white when it comes to proving whether businesses knowingly hired an illegal worker. If someone comes into my restaurant and I decide to hire them, all of the required paperwork is filled out, and all the required documentation is copied and filed per the US Government. If that documentation turns out to be forged, I can tell you the system we have in place doesn't have the ability to find out for 6 to 9 months.
Anyway, I could tell you things about this system we have that shows just how broken it is. Hopefully this will be the first step in fixing it.

Yea...it´s crazy how long it takes for someone to become a citizen. Someone that´s clearly met all the necessary requirements.

Originally Posted by Bubbasam

I am glad SOMETHING is being done finally, but the particulars of the deal won't become evident for a while, and I may not like some of the details that are in it when it does. I hope this isn't something that just sits on the back burner doing nothing, this needs to be addressed in a timely fashion.
And I'm with MF on the quicker path to citizenship once the process has started. I have a kitchen manager whose wife has been "stamped" for citizenship (meaning she has met all the requirements and is just waiting for the call to raise her right hand), since 1995. Yea, that's right - 1995. Going on 18 years now, and she is still waiting. They originally told her 3 years or so. If her father, who is in his late 70's dies, she will have to start the entire process over since she began her ordeal as a "dependent of a live naturalized citizen". She goes all the way to the back of the line and has to start over as a "dependent of a deceased naturalized citizen" if that happens. When people say this system is broken, they are not lying. I don't care which side of the aisle you are on, something needs to be done.

Couldn't have said it better myself there Bubba. Our current citizenship process is unnecessarily long, and a big, big overhaul needs to take place.

~Morningfrost

Originally Posted by Xavsnipe

Yea...it´s crazy how long it takes for someone to become a citizen. Someone that´s clearly met all the necessary requirements.

Even with reform Xav, it's unlikely they'll allow your donkey to become a citizen.

~Morningfrost