Letter in opposition to bloated, crony Amnesty Bill

[Brian4Liberty]

A letter in opposition to the Gang of Eight's "immigration reform" bill. It should be called ObamaCare part II, for it's staggering scope, complexity, increase in government, hidden pork and handouts to lobbyists.

Signed by over 150 conservative leaders, groups and grassroots activists.



We write to express our serious concerns regarding the Gang of Eight's immigration bill, S. 744. We oppose this bill and urge you to vote against it when it comes to the Senate floor. No matter how well intentioned, the Schumer-Rubio bill suffers from fundamental design flaws that make it unsalvageable. Many of us support various parts of the legislation, but the overall package is so unsatisfactory that the Senate would do better to start over from scratch.

We have a variety of concerns; some of us share only one, others share all. Among these concerns are that the bill:

Is bloated and unwieldy along the lines of Obamacare or Dodd-Frank;
Cedes excessive control over immigration law to an administration that has repeatedly proven itself to be untrustworthy, even duplicitous;
Legalizes millions of illegal immigrants before securing the borders, thus ensuring future illegal immigration;
Rewards law breakers and punishes law enforcement, undermining the rule of law;
Hurts American job-seekers, especially those with less education;
Threatens to bankrupt our already strained entitlement system;
Expands government by creating new bureaucracies, authorizing new spending, and calling for endless regulations;
Contains dangerous loopholes that threaten national security;
Is shot through with earmarks for politically connected interest groups;
Overwhelms our immigration bureaucracy, guaranteeing widespread fraud.

Reforming our immigration system is an important priority. But S.744 is such a defective measure that it would do more harm than good. We urge you to vote against it and against any cloture vote to bring up the bill. Only then can a constructive, measured debate take place on how to improve America's immigration policy.

Signed (affiliations are included for identification purposes only):

List of Gang of 8 Coalition Opposition Letter Signers

National Conservative Leaders

Barbara Anderson, Citizens for Limited Taxation

Gary Bauer, Campaign for Working Families

Rev. C.L. Bryant, One Nation Back to God

Howie Carr, New England Talk Radio Host

Conn Carroll, Senior Editorial Writer, Washington Examiner

Ann Corcoran, Refugee Resettlement Watch

Monica Crowley, Ph.D., Nationally Syndicated Radio Host

Glynn Custred, Professor Emeritus CSU East Bay

Jim Eagan, Sumner United for Responsible Government (Tennessee)

Elaine Donnelly, Founder and President, Center for Military Readiness

John Eastman, former Dean Chapman University Law School

Ken Eldred, CEO, Living Stones Foundation

Erick Erickson, Editor of RedState

Maria Espinoza, Houston Eagle Forum, The Remembrance Project

T. Willard Fair, President & CEO, Urban League of Greater Miami, Inc.

John Fonte, Hudson Institute

David Frum, Frum Forum

Brigitte Gabriel, President and Founder, Act for America

Frank Gaffney, President Center for Security Policy

Victor Davis Hanson, Hoover Institution, Stanford University

Donna Hearne, Constitutional Coalition, St. Louis, Missouri

John Hinderaker, Powerline.com

David Horowitz, David Horowitz Freedom Center

Laura Ingraham, Nationally Syndicated Radio Host

Micky Kaus, Columnist, Daily Caller, author The End of Equality

Roger Kimball, Encounter Books and The New Criterion

Cliff Kincaid, President, America’s Survival

Mark Krikorian, Center for Immigration Studies

Stanley Kurtz, Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center

Kelly Monroe Kullberg, Christians for a Sustainable Economy

Stanley Kurtz, Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center

Lars Larson, Radio Host Compass Media Networks

Mark Levin, Author and Radio Host

David Limbaugh, Lawyer and Author

Herb London, President of the London Center for Policy Research

Dr. Gina Loudon, Nationally Syndicated Radio Talk Show host

Michelle Malkin, author of Invasion and syndicated columnist

Ed Martin, Chairman Missouri Republican Party

Jenny Beth Martin, Co-Founder and National Coordinator, Tea Party Patriots

Ken Masugi, Senior Fellow, The Claremont Institute

Andy McCarthy, executive director, Philadelphia Freedom Center

Eric Metaxas, Author and Speaker

Paul Mirengoff, Powerline.com

Frank L. Morris, Sr., Ph. D.

Mike Needham, CEO Heritage Action

Peter K. Núñez, Former U. S Attorney Southern District of California, Former Assistant Secretary for Enforcement Department of the Treasury

Rev. Rick Scarborough; President of Vision America Action

John O’Sullivan, Editor-at-Large, National Review

Daniel Pipes, President, Middle East Forum

Judson Phillips, Founder Tea Party Nation

Andy Ramirez, Law Enforcement Advocate and Journalist

Sandy Rios, Vice-President Family PAC Federal and Morning Host for AFR Talk

Phyllis Schlafly, President and Founder Eagle Forum

Smart Girl Politics Action

Carol Swain, Professor of Political Science and of Law, Vanderbilt University

Tea Party Nation

Virginia Thomas, Liberty Consulting

Brad Thor, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author

Richard Viguerie

Former Congressman Allen West

Tom West, Professor Hillsdale College

Tim Wildmon, President of the American Family Association and American Family Radio

Grassroots Activists throughout the Country

Alabama Federation of Republican Women

American Grizzlies United (Wisconsin)

Angela Bean, Coordinator South Atlanta Tea Party Patriots (Georgia)

Blanchard Tea Party (Idaho)

Jack and Joan Billman, Greencastle Defenders of Liberty, Greencastle, Indiana

Martha Brewer, Lamar County Tea Party Patriots (Alabama)

Canton T.E.A. Party (Georgia)

Sam Clovis, President Serious Civics for America, Inc. (Iowa)

Common Sense Campaign of South Alabama

Carroll County Tea Party Association (Georgia)

Darin Danielski, Lake County Area Defenders of Liberty, Oconomowoc, Wisconsin

Dyersville Tea Party (Iowa)

Kay Edmonds, Precinct Delegate, Clinton, MI, l9.12 Forum Steering Committee Member, Lenawee GOP Executive Committee Member, Veteran (Post Korea)

Empower Indiana (Indiana)

Hamilton County Patriots (Indiana)

Mark Herr, The Midsouth Tea Party (Tennessee)

Dustin Inmman Society, Georgia

Bill & Prudence Fields, Eagle Forum Virginia

Friends of Idaho

Georgia Conservatives in Action

Kay Godwin and Pat Tippett, Co-Chairs, Georgia Conservatives in Action

Becky Gerritson, President Wetumpka TEA Party, Wetumpka, Alabama

Donna Goeddaeus, Northwoods Patriots Tea Party, Conover, Wisconsin

Green Bay (Brown County) Wisconsin TEA Party

Greencastle Defenders of Liberty (Indiana)

Ron Hei, Tea Party Patriots of Covington County

Wally Hauck, Ph.D., President of Optimum Leadership, Member of Milford, CT Republican Town Committee

Marcia Hora, Iowa Grassroots Coalition

Illinois Tea Party

Danny B. Joyner, Commander, Alabama Patriots, Brewton, Alabama

Dave Kramer, Dyersville Tea Party (Iowa)

Las Vegas Valley Tea Party (Nevada)

Janna Loar, State Leader Ohio Counts

Michigan Eagle Forum

Montgomery Tea Party (Alabama)

Lisa Nancollas, Mifflin County Tea Party Patriots and Pennsylvania State Coordinator Tea Party Patriots

Sara Jo Odom, Eagle Forum Oklahoma

Patriots of Liberty TEA Party, Auburn, Alabama

Bobbie Patray, President Eagle Forum Tennessee

Carol Payne, Eagle Forum Lubbock, Texas

Pennsylvania Coalition for Responsible Government

John Putnam, Chairman, Jasper County Republican Central Committee (Missouri)

Merre Putnam, State Committewoman, 32nd Senatorial District

Steve Ramey and David Hancock, Gwinnett Tea Party (Atlanta)

Russell Ramland Park Cities/Preston Hollow Leadership Forum, Dallas, Texas

Jennifer Schubert-Akin, Activist Steamboat Springs, Colorado

Janet Smith, Local Coordinator, Greenfield Area Tea Party, Greenfield Indiana

Standpoint Tea Party Patriots (Idaho)

Rainy Day Patriots (Alabama)

Jeff Schwilk, San Diegans for Secure Borders Coalition

Kim Simac and Shirley Kufeldt, Northwood Patriots, Eagle River, Wisconsin

Todd Isaac “Ike” Skelton Lebanon Tea Party (Missouri)

Janet Smith, Greenfield Area Tea Party (Indiana)

Loretta and Ricky Short, Wetumpka TEA Party (Alabama)

Eunie Smith, President, Eagle Forum of Alabama

South West Pennsylvania Eagle Forum

Pam Stout, Idaho State Coordinator, Tea Party Patriots

Barbara Susco, Florida Eagle Forum

Taxed Enough Already Party, Barbour County, Alabama

Taxed Enough Already Party, Quitman County, Georgia

Tea Party North (Indiana)

Vanderburgh County Tea Party Patriots (Indiana)

Dawn Wildman SoCal Tax Revolt Coalition, Inc.

Don and Skeet Workman, Eagle Forum Lubbock, Texas

Sally Zelikovsky, Founder of Bay Area Patriots and Coordinator of San Francisco Tea Party

Dennis Zellaha, Tea Party Patriots and Iowa Grassroots Coalition (Iowa)

[Brian4Liberty]

More:


Over 150 conservative leaders, groups and grassroots activists have signed an open letter opposing the Senate immigration reform bill.
...
“The Republicans who parrot the mindless ‘we must do something’ mantra might wish to review how the Democrats responded to Obamacare criticism in 2010. I recall the liberal cries of ‘We must do something…the health care system is broken….’” Ingraham continued in her email to TheDC. “What is broken is our system of government whereby the elites in both parties consistently ignore the will of the people on an issue as important as border enforcement. This bill will make life more difficult for middle class Americans and legal immigrants who are already struggling to find decent-paying jobs that cover the bills. Some Republicans are desperate to agree to anything in hopes of winning the Latino vote. They are on a fools errand, will infuriate their grass roots supporters, and will compromise their remaining credibility as a ‘law and order’ party.”

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2013/05/21/over-150-conservative-leaders-groups-sign-letter-opposing-gang-of-8-bill/

[paulbot24]

At least we know who has read the bill.

[JCDenton0451]

So even David Frum, a former George W Bush speechwriter and a major neocon opposes the Amnesty. Why isn't a real conservative like Rand Paul opposing this? The fact that he chose to stay out of this fight so far is itself a victory for Progressives.

[Brian4Liberty]

So even David Frum, a former George W Bush speechwriter and a major neocon opposes the Amnesty. Why isn't a real conservative like Rand Paul opposing this? The fact that he chose to stay out of this fight so far is itself a victory for Progressives.

That is a good example of how bad an idea it is for the GOP to think they will get support from leftists and Democrats when they support leftist causes. Frum can agree on ths issue with some of us, but it will buy him exactly nothing in the future.

[Spoa]

So even David Frum, a former George W Bush speechwriter and a major neocon opposes the Amnesty. Why isn't a real conservative like Rand Paul opposing this? The fact that he chose to stay out of this fight so far is itself a victory for Progressives.

Senator Rand Paul is opposing it to a certain degree:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSaOqfBVWBc

I agree with him that the millions of illegals should be allowed to stay, but the border should be secured first and the illegals should not be given welfare.

[Warlord]

So even David Frum, a former George W Bush speechwriter and a major neocon opposes the Amnesty. Why isn't a real conservative like Rand Paul opposing this? The fact that he chose to stay out of this fight so far is itself a victory for Progressives.

Rand just said tonight he's opposed to it as written. He will try and amend it when it hits the floor (and will be outvoted by the gang).

Someone like Frum was part of the administration that created the DHS they want to give all this power to so excuse me for not taking him seriously.

[Brian4Liberty]

Someone like Frum was part of the administration that created the DHS they want to give all this power to so excuse me for not taking him seriously.

The "ivory-tower" neo-conservative pundits have recently started to back away from this issue. It's pure PR though. They have seen what damage it is doing to their boy Rubio. They would love to see it pass, but still be able to say that they opposed it "once they saw what it really was".

[Noob]

How about this message..


Please oppose the S. 744 immigration bill, that would give out a minimum of 33 million lifetime work permits to foreign citizens in the first decade alone.

The last thing we need when 20 million Americans are unable to find full-time jobs at every level of occupation is for Congress to flood the country with more foreign job-seekers.

S. 744 promises to give work permits to at least 11 million illegal border crossers and visa overstayers. It also would continue the recent elevated flow of 11 million new immigrants a decade. And it would add at least another 11 million the first decade through new immigration categories and increases in existing categories.

It is irrational and cruel to give out 33 million more work permits when millions of Americans who ARE employed are suffering long-term wage depression due to the persistent shortage of jobs and excess of workers.

This bill would give out about the same number of green cards in a single decade as all the immigrants who arrived in the entire last century. No matter what you may think about legalizing most of the current illegal population in this country, you can't possibly justify adding 33 million potential foreign job seekers as competitors for scarce U.S. jobs.

Furthermore, this bill would be a pathway to higher chain migration and massive new social service expenditures in a time of budget deficit and debt crisis. And it would lead to more illegal immigration because it gives the legalization and work permits first with only promises of future enforcement, just like the previous seven amnesties between 1986 and 2000 which had no hard enforcement triggers and served only to entice 11 million new illegal immigrants who now demand their own amnesty.

A study from the Heritage Foundation shows that S 744, the immigration-amnesty bill, will impose a net cost on taxpayers of over $6 trillion. This is outrageous. In fact, the authors stated, "This should be considered a minimum estimate. It probably understates real future costs…."

As horrible as this number is, the legislation will cost Americans much, much more as the study only includes the amnesty provisions, not those that allow 22 million more legal immigrants to come to the U.S. over the next decade. Please oppose this legislation.

The Heritage analysis found that illegal immigrants who receive citizenship will use $9.4 trillion in services and benefits, while paying only $3.1 trillion in taxes over the next 50 years. Rather than saving social security, the amnesty program will help destroy it.

The bill would create a national biometric database of virtually every adult in the U.S., in what privacy groups fear could be the first step to a ubiquitous national identification system.

Buried in the more than 800 pages of the bipartisan legislation is language mandating the creation of the innocuously named “photo tool,” a massive federal database administered by the Department of Homeland Security and containing names, ages, Social Security numbers and photographs of everyone in the country with a driver’s license or other state issued photo ID.

Employers would be obliged to look up every new hire in the database to verify that they match their photo.

The notion that such a thing would fix our immigration system is simply untrue. What it will do, however, is rob me and my fellow Americans of our freedom by subjecting us to increasing government surveillance.

A National Database with biometric information would also be created. This DHS database would record each person's name, age, and social security number, in addition to their photograph, allowing government bureaucrats to track American’s every move.

Let me be clear: no immigration reform legislation should mandate that all Americans carry a National ID. The ID plan is not essential to border security whatsoever and must be rejected.

I urge you to oppose any legislation requiring U.S. citizens to obtain a National ID system just to get a job, or any other bill that would establish a National ID card that includes biometric scanning or tracking devices.

As your constituent, I INSIST you vote against S. 744 the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act This bill is shaping up to be a repeat of 1986: Americans are being promised a bill that amnesties illegal alliens, but also secures the border and prevents the hiring of illegal aliens. I reality, only the former will happen.

Please oppose this bill. Americans deserve nothing less than its defeat.

[Austrian Econ Disciple]

They make simple things into monstrosities that no one can comprehend. Who cares who is in the country? Enforce property rights, and let people freely move about as they wish, trade and work with whom they wish. If you're so inclined - make citizenship (e.g. VOTE), much harder, but for gods sake, have open borders and dissolve DHS, TSA, Border Patrol, and any I.D. system. Of course such a libertarian solution will never get even two votes in that corrupt, thieving, tyrannous cesspool.

[Brian4Liberty]

How about this message..

Pretty good. Did you write it?

[HigherVision]

I agree with him that the millions of illegals should be allowed to stay, but the border should be secured first and the illegals should not be given welfare.

They will be given welfare though.