Sometimes Democracy works

The Immigration Bill failed today...and is dead for at least a year or two.

Just a few weeks ago this was a bill negotiated in private and guaranteed to become law. It was drafted by Teddy Kennedy and our great Republican (?) Senators John McCain and Lindsay Graham, and strongly supported by George Bush and the White House. We were told that it was a significant improvement over the present situation, and it was "the best we could do". We were told it would move through Congress fast, and they said "trust us, it is a good bill". No review of the details, no committee reviews, no financial reviews of the cost to the American public - just "trust us". And some of the floor votes on this bill were made even before the final version was written!

The American people did not buy it.


Shortly after debate started and votes were scheduled in the Senate the people started asking questions...the more information that came out about this bill, the worse it looked, and then a silent revolution started. We do not riot in the streets, fly Mexican flags, or cry "racism"... it's not our style. We do what a democracy is supposed to do - let our Representatives and Senators know that if they don't follow the will of their constituents, they will lose their job.

This bill was stupid, a waste of time, and could lead to a "cleaning of the house" in Washington. It's good that George Bush does not have to run for re-election...if he did, his fate would be the same as his fathers. What a disappointment he has been. And this whole exercise showed how out of touch with the people Congress is on this issue.

Here are some of the highlights of the bill that failed:

- 12 million people would have been 'legal" within 24 hours, after a background check. It takes 90+ days to get a passport now, and the government tried to convince us they could check the background of 12 million people within 24 hours after they register. These 12 million would have been eligible to bring in additional family members increasing the "new legal immigrant" total to 20-30 million people depending on whose estimates you believe.

- These new "legal" immigrants would not only get access to social benefits, but even "in state" tuition rights to our colleges. Which means that if an "American" wanted to go to an out-of-state college, he or she would pay a higher tuition than an illegal immigrant.

- These new "legals' would have access to legal representation if they needed it, paid for by the American people.

- Illegal convicted felons would not be deported, and could have easily become legal. If a gang member signed a document that he or she would no longer be involved with gang activities, they would become legal. What would you do if you were a gang member?

I could go on, but this is just a snapshot of this crazy bill...but you the public came alive. Our family personally wrote over 20 letters to Senators and Representatives...not angry letters, just explaining our position and also pointing out that many of our Democratic friends felt the same. This was a bipartisan bill, and it had significant bipartisan opposition.

So we won this round, but it is just the start...in the end, all we citizens have is our vote, so even those that are not politically active need to think about the future. We have a lot to do to get this country back on track, and security is the most important thing. This bill should have been a security bill - close the borders first and stop the influx, then figure out who is in the country illegally, and then deal with those folks in an orderly fashion. The USA is still a country of immigrants, but let's do it the right way.

Congratulations to the American people.`