I Strongly Support the Immigration Reform Bill
I find it odd that people with whom I usually agree are
opposed or
luke warm (or first
opposed then
luke warm because part of what makes Atrios so great is that he is eager to learn even from people even younger than he is)
Notice Kevin Drum is just luke, not even luke warm. I think Black's commentary on the law where he proves he is willing two write at 5:06 pm that what he wrote at
1:35 pm was wrong is about the most awesome contribution to political discourse since
Areopagitica (sample quote "there can no greater testimony appear, then when your prudent spirit acknowledges and obeyes the voice of reason from what quarter soever it be heard speaking; and renders ye as willing to repeal any Act of your own setting forth, as any set forth by your Predecessors") and I absolutely seriously mean that.
Every sensible person decries the pointless hurdles set between undocumented aliens and citizenship but none (that I know of) put it as well as
Drum The path to citizenship for current illegals is good, though absurdly complex for dumb political reasons. (Note to Republicans: your base is going to hate this provision no matter how much you lard it up with idiocies designed to make it look like it isn't "amnesty." It's a losing game.)
The part that liberals hate is the "guest worker" program. Here the program is contrasted with more legal immigration as if that were the alternative. In practice guest workers would not be allowed in the USA at all. It is clear that many guest workers will overstay their temporary visas.
To me that is a feature not a bug. I support legal immigration but if people prefer to immigrate illegally rather than stay in their current coutries I am on their side and I would certainly rather that they enter legally then overstay than that they risk death in the Arizona desert.
So my unusually extreme pro-immigration position makes me eager to accept a hypocritical compromise dictated by the desire of exploitative employers to have non permanent resident employees, exactly because it is bound not to work as its promoters claim.
