Crossing the ID border
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
The Monitor's View
Americans learned last week they can no longer look the other way when someone else hires an illegal worker. A federal raid on six Swift & Co. meatpacking plants in the US nabbed more than 1,250 "undocumented" migrants - and dozens were charged with using the IDs of real people, perhaps even of children.
The usual practice for many of the estimated 12 million illegal migrants living in the US has been to buy fake IDs with made-up numbers and names. But organized rings in at least 10 cities now sell authentic-looking Social Security cards and some 26 other types of IDs with real names.
These IDs make it even more difficult for employers to reject illegal workers - if employers even bother to check. Such forgery has reached an "epidemic," say federal officials, with illegal migrants and their handlers now violating both the privacy rights and economic rights of innocent Americans.
In one case, a man named Jason Smith found he owed $12,000 in back taxes because an illegal immigrant used his Social Security number to work at a chicken plant for three years.
To avoid detection, fake-ID rings often use a child's identity. Usually, only when the children reach 18 would they find out they have a record of bad credit or other financial complication. One Mexico-based ring's reach is so "breathtaking," a federal judge stated in one case, that it hits "at the heart of the sovereignty of the United States."
Most identity theft is done to steal money, not work in someone's name. But with about 1 in 30 Americans now having their financial identities stolen each year, and with illegal migrants making up nearly 1 in 20 workers, a dangerous link has been made between two massive violations of law. Government is cracking down on ID theft, but both states and Congress have only begun to come to grips with illegal migration - despite the threat of terrorists using fake IDs to hide in the US.
A federal system that allows employers to check Social Security IDs is flawed because it cannot detect cases where migrants use legitimate names and numbers. (Swift & Co. uses the system, but only a fraction of companies do.)
Even if this system is improved, ID thieves may find new ways around it. And expanding a guest-worker program for Mexicans may only be compromised by other ways of forging documents; in addition, that program may never be large enough to curb the flow of illegal migration.
Another offered solution - "earned amnesty" - would be difficult if illegals simply buy fake records to claim they've been in the US for years. And amnesty is hardly a reward to give those who knowingly commit the felony of identity theft.
Congress recently boosted border enforcement and raised fines on employers who hire illegals. Both measures are good first steps and need to be pursued effectively for years. Companies need to raise wages high enough to attract legal workers, while law enforcement needs to show a consistent record of cracking down on employers who knowingly hire illegals.
No one's true identity can ever be stolen. But Americans need to know that both their financial and border security are not at risk.
*
MEXICANOCCUPATION.blogspot.com
THE LA RAZA DEMS – NO BORDERS WITH NARCOMEX AND NO LEGAL NEED APPLY HERE.
*
While Obama pushes war over there, he is equally intent on leaving our borders with NARCOMEX undefended, open and ready for business with the Mexican drug cartels.
*
The Administration's Phantom Immigration Enforcement Policy
According to DHS’s own reports, very little of our nation’s borders (Southwestern or otherwise) are secure, and gaining control is not even a goal of the department.
By Ira Mehlman
Published on 12/07/2009
Townhall.com
The setting was not quite the flight deck of the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln with a “Mission Accomplished” banner as the backdrop, but it was the next best thing. Speaking at the Center for American Progress (CAP) on Nov. 13, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano declared victory over illegal immigration and announced that the Obama administration is ready to move forward with a mass amnesty for the millions of illegal aliens already living in the United States.
Arguing the Obama administration’s case for amnesty, Napolitano laid out what she described as the “three-legged stool” for immigration reform. As the administration views it, immigration reform must include “a commitment to serious and effective enforcement, improved legal flows for families and workers, and a firm but fair way to deal with those who are already here.”
Acknowledging that a lack of confidence in the government’s ability and commitment to effectively enforce the immigration laws it passes proved to be the Waterloo of previous efforts to gain amnesty for illegal aliens, Napolitano was quick to reassure the American public that those concerns could be put to rest.
“For starters, the security of the Southwest border has been transformed from where it was in 2007,” stated the secretary. Not only is the border locked up tight, she continued, but the situation is well in-hand in the interior of the country as well. “We’ve also shown that the government is serious and strategic in its approach to enforcement by making changes in how we enforce the law in the interior of the country and at worksites…Furthermore, we’ve transformed worksite enforcement to truly address the demand side of illegal immigration.”
If Rep. Joe Wilson had been in attendance to hear Secretary Napolitano’s CAP speech he might well have had a few choice comments to offer. But since he wasn’t, we will have to rely on the Department of Homeland Security’s own data to assess the veracity of Napolitano’s claims.
According to DHS’s own reports, very little of our nation’s borders (Southwestern or otherwise) are secure, and gaining control is not even a goal of the department. DHS claims to have “effective control” over just 894 miles of border. That’s 894 out of 8,607 miles they are charged with protecting. As for the other 7,713 miles? DHS’s stated border security goal for FY 2010 is the same 894 miles.
The administration’s strategic approach to interior and worksite enforcement is just as chimerical as its strategy at the border, unless one considers shuffling paper to be a strategy. DHS data, released November 18, show that administrative arrests of immigration law violators fell by 68 percent between 2008 and 2009. The department also carried out 60 percent fewer arrests for criminal violations of immigration laws, 58 percent fewer criminal indictments, and won 63 percent fewer convictions.
While the official unemployment rate has climbed from 7.6 percent when President Obama took office in January to 10 percent today, the administration’s worksite enforcement strategy has amounted to a bureaucratic game of musical chairs. The administration has all but ended worksite enforcement actions and replaced them with paperwork audits. When the audits determine that illegal aliens are on the payroll, employers are given the opportunity to fire them with little or no adverse consequence to the company, while no action is taken to remove the illegal workers from the country. The illegal workers simply acquire a new set of fraudulent documents and move on to the next employer seeking workers willing to accept substandard wages.
In Janet Napolitano’s alternative reality a mere 10 percent of our borders under “effective control” and sharp declines in arrests and prosecutions of immigration lawbreakers may be construed as confidence builders, but it is hard to imagine that the American public is going to see it that way. If anything, the administration’s record has left the public less confident that promises of future immigration enforcement would be worth the government paper they’re printed on.
As Americans scrutinize the administration’s plans to overhaul immigration policy, they are likely to find little in the “three-legged stool” being offered that they like or trust. The first leg – enforcement – the administration has all but sawed off. The second – increased admissions of extended family members and workers – makes little sense with some 25 million Americans either unemployed or relegated to part-time work. And the third – amnesty for millions of illegal aliens – is anathema to their sense of justice and fair play.
As Americans well know, declaring “Mission Accomplished” and actually accomplishing a mission are two completely different things. When it comes to enforcing immigration laws, the only message the public is receiving from this administration is “Mission Aborted.”
*
MEXICANOCCUPATION.blogspot.com
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight
Monday, September 28, 2009
And T.J. BONNER, president of the National Border Patrol Council, will weigh in on the federal government’s decision to pull nearly 400 agents from the U.S.-Mexican border. As always, Lou will take your calls to discuss the issues that matter most-and to get your thoughts on where America is headed.
*
No comments:
Post a Comment