Letter to the Editor

Illegal Immigration Undermines America's Future

por Nathan Tabor

Just days after his re-election, President Bush shocked the trusting Conservatives who elected him by resurrecting his ill-advised "amnesty for illegal aliens" program that he promoted in the past but has downplayed since 9-11.

It is true that Hispanics helped to re-elect the president in 2004, and more and more of them are embracing the party of traditional family values. Republicans are right to welcome legitimate Hispanic Americans into their ranks and to reward their loyalty. A good way to do so is to put them in positions of influence, as Bush has done with his nomination of Alberto Gonzales for Attorney General.

Karl Rove, the president's top political adviser, has called Bush's initiative "immigration reform" rather than amnesty, but it amounts to the same thing. It allows those who are here illegally to remain and to prosper, and this is simply wrong.

We should not enact policies that reward those who break our nation's laws. Granting privileges like driver's licenses and social security cards to illegal aliens is a slap in the face to law-abiding, taxpaying citizens and an even greater slap to legal immigrants.

We have immigration laws for simple and valid reasons: to protect our uniquely American culture, our national sovereignty, our public security, and our standard of living.

Our nation of 300 million citizens seems large, but its population is tiny compared to the billions of the Third World. If we, as an advanced society with a low birthrate, continue to import a Third World population with a high birthrate, we will be faced with the challenges of a Third World society, as well. By God's grace, our society has succeeded in creating immense wealth where many others have created only poverty. But if we open up our borders, this island of productivity and prosperity will soon disappear beneath a flood of squalor.

The real minimum wage in America has been declining for more than a decade. Why? Supply and demand. For years, we have been artificially modifying the supply side by quietly tolerating a massive influx of unskilled workers across our borders. There are now over 10 million illegal aliens in the U.S. Remove them, and opportunities will abound for authentic Americans. We won't need to raise the minimum wage; it will raise itself. We can reverse the trend by simply enforcing our current immigration laws. That's why I support tightening security on our borders by modernizing surveillance equipment, funding additional border guards, and improving training for existing personnel. We also need to streamline procedures for deporting illegal aliens once they are found. Yes, we need to be sensitive to the safety of those who are caught sneaking in, but we also need to be firm in our resolve to secure our borders. Open borders threaten our nation's safety.

Since the attacks of September 11, 2001, two things have become clear. First, we have enemies, and they are vicious and without conscience. Second, those enemies obviously believe that an attack from within is more feasible than an attack from without.

Our immigration laws have the primary purpose of protecting us. The use of visas and passports allows our government to monitor and to control who enters our country, and why. Certainly, most illegal aliens are not terrorists. But it only takes one. Most Americans, when confronted with these facts, will probably continue to want what they want now: strict enforcement of our immigration laws. Isn't it better to face the issue of illegal immigration now, and to do something about it? We owe it to our children and grandchildren, who will reap later what we sow today. How will the America we leave to our children stack up against the America that our parents left to us? By our actions or inactions, we're deciding what their future will be.



Nathan Tabor is a conservative political activist based in Kernersville, North Carolina. He has his BA in Psychology and his Master's Degree in Public Policy. He is a contributing editor at www.theconservativevoice.com. Contact him at NathanTabor@theconservativevoice.com.