FEATURED STORIES

POLICE AND ILLEGALS - ONE COMMUNITY'S STORY
COMMON SENSE ON IMMIGRATION
ARE WE THERE YET?


COMMENTARY: by NPG President Donald Mann

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's decision to "fast-track" the Senate's debate on immigration reform last week is a terrible way to deal with an issue that will have such a far-reaching and long-lasting impact on our nation. His decision to bypass committee consideration of this important legislation and bring to the floor the identical seriously-flawed measure that passed the Senate last May is a slap in the face to all who have worked so hard to find responsible solutions to this growing national crisis.

Now, we are left with the prospect of major decisions on immigration being made in piecemeal fashion. Senators not fully understanding the long-term consequences of their votes will be forced to vote yes or no on key amendments. And a final Senate bill will emerge that is going to be severely disappointing to a great majority of Americans.

Here at NPG, we saw all of this coming months ago. On January 9th of this year, I wrote to both Senator Reid and Speaker Pelosi noting that it is "crucial that this legislation not be written in Congress's back rooms. Any immigration reform legislation must undergo full, open and immediate hearings so that all issues can be discussed and key players identified." But politics ended up ruling the day. And Senator Reid wanted to make sure he got debate rolling before bipartisan discussions - aimed at fashioning a responsible piece of legislation that could be presented to the Senate - could be concluded. A bit of the blame for the legislative chaos we are going to see in the Senate in the next few days must also be directed at the Bush White House which has been dragging its feet on crafting a strong immigration reform bill.

Without question, the phone lines to the Capitol will be burning this week as millions of Americans on both sides of this issue push their Senators to vote one way or the other. We urge all NPG members to contact Senators either via phone, fax, e-mail, letters or by dropping in at their local offices to demand responsible immigration legislation that will not allow illegals to stay in our country.

Many immigration rights groups did not like last year's Senate bill because, in their minds, it did not go far enough in giving blanket amnesty to all illegal immigrants presently in the country. This time around, there are a number of key proposals floating around that trade off a path toward citizenship to those illegals presently in our country in exchange for cracking down on which family members can be sponsored by current immigrants in the future once they get legal status. Keeping families intact is going to be a big issue in the Senate debate and you will hear the words "compassionate", "just", and "humane" very much overused, especially when you consider we are dealing with millions of people who broke our laws to get into our country.

It is essential that true reform-minded Senators don't let "feel-good" politics overwhelm the debate and rule the day. We must keep this debate focused on real numbers - including the terrible fact that an additional 60 million people could be added to our population in just 20 years. Such a huge gain in America's population numbers will create havoc with our economy, society and environment. The key to getting immigration under control is to secure our borders and begin to effectively enforce our laws. Only then should Congress even consider a guest worker program or path to citizenship, which are terrible ideas and do not have the backing of the American people.

It is sad to think that we are going to witness a political circus in the Senate in the coming weeks that will have such dire consequences for our great nation. As one senior Republican Senate aide noted about Senator Reid's actions: "These guys [the Democrats] want the issue, not an accomplishment. This divides his party as much as ours." The Washington Times noted that "Mr. Reid's move appears designed to force Republicans to filibuster the bill, thus allowing both sides to point fingers at each other."

Certainly, this is no way to write responsible legislation.


POLICE AND ILLEGALS - ONE COMMUNITY'S STORY

It's a story that is playing out across the country more and more these days - finding the right balance between police and illegals.

A recent article in the North County Times related how Escondido, California is dealing with implementing a new policy. The new effort, where police will detain even minor lawbreakers without proper identification and turn them over to immigration for possible deportation, is very worrisome to many illegals who have been here for quite a while. Escondido is one of a number of U.S. cities that has tried to aggressively crack down on illegal immigrants. It passed a controversial ordinance prohibiting landlords from renting to illegals but had to back down when faced with a costly legal challenge.

The new police policy is creating both political and social tension in the community. A number of city council members side with being more tolerant of law-breaking illegal immigrants. However, resident Tisha Bennet supports the new arrest policy saying, "Not to do so would be an act of betrayal to the citizens of this city and to America." The challenge for police is to develop policies to detect anyone here illegally and turn them over to the proper immigration authorities. Click on the link above for the full story.


COMMON SENSE ON IMMIGRATION

NPG doesn't agree 100% with Robert Samuelson's immigration views but we have quoted him repeatedly over the years because he provides such a succinct and valuable insight into looking at the problem. In his May 2nd column that ran in The Washington Post, Samuelson stressed how both liberals and conservatives have to "discard some of their most cherished ambitions" if we are ever going to find a consensus solution to what he terms "an unquestionably broken" immigration system. This renowned economist uses well-researched numbers and dollar figures to make his point about how much immigration is costing America. He also looks at the practical side of dealing with the 12 million illegals already here. Most notably, he reminds us that we can't find a workable solution by fashioning an immigration bill that takes a little bit from the liberal agenda and a bit from the conservative side. What we need is a responsible consensus for the long-term.

As Samuelson notes: "If the Senators negotiating these hard issues fashion a compromise simply by mixing items from each side's agenda - agendas that are mainly opposed - the resulting accommodation will disappoint both and ensure that immigration looms ever larger as an economic and political tinderbox"? NPG couldn't agree more. Click on the link to read the full column.


ARE WE THERE YET?

If it is possible for millions of commuters to take solace in their long delays, then it may help for them to read about the plight of others across the nation who spend more and more time in their cars due to massive congestion in and around some of our largest cities.

U.S. News and World Report last week carried an insightful article that reminded us that increased traffic and an ever-longer commute does not only add up to more time behind the wheel but also takes a toll on our quality of life. The article is rich with information such as Prof. Robert Putnam's findings that "community involvement falls 10 percent for every 10 minutes spent driving to work." or that "In the 2000 census, just 4.7 percent of people said they used public transit to get to work." The article notes that some people even shy away from entertainment and leisure activities, such as going to the beach on a nice day, simply because of too much traffic.

The challenge as to how we solve this problem is highlighted by such facts as "The issue mainly boils down to population growth outpacing road building. America has about 70 million more people than it did a quarter century ago, but highway miles have increased by a little more than 5 percent in that time. The Department of Transportation estimates that the demand for ground transportation - either by road or rail - will be 2 ½ times as great by 2050, while highway capacity is projected to increase by only 10 percent during that time."

In addition to highlighting America's growing traffic problems the article offers an insight to some of the solutions - including tolls and high tech fixes - sure to be part of the future in many cities. Click on the link above for the full story.


POPULATION AND IMMIGRATION NEWS NOTES

LET'S AT LEAST GET THE CENSUS RIGHT!

The New York Times carried an editorial this week noting that in its 2008 budget proposal, the White House ignored the Census Bureau request to begin its partnership program which they consider essential to a proper head count in the 2010 census. The Census Bureau asked for $18 million and the White House allocated nothing.

The program was deemed a great success in the 2000 census as it works with thousands of organizations. States, tribal governments, churches, schools, community service groups and corporations all feed the Census Bureau information which ensures that key groups - especially minorities - are not undercounted. In the late 90's more than 145,000 groups participated to get a proper 2000 count.

In concluding its editorial the Times noted: "As it draws up the final federal budget this spring, Congress can - and should - pony up the $18 million that is needed to get the census partnerships under way. We know that in the 2008 budget scramble, the needs of the 2010 census look less than urgent. But pulling off an accurate count requires years of preparation. If shortfalls develop now, the next census will suffer, and the country will have to pay the price for a decade, until the census of 2020.


GOING NOWHERE ON NATIONAL STANDARDS FOR DRIVER'S LICENSES

The states started balking at the massive costs of implementing the national standards for driver's licenses the minute the REAL ID Act was passed by Congress. Now there is even bi-partisan pressure building in Congress to delay or even repeal the rules before they take effect, supposedly next May. As of right now, both Washington and Montana have passed laws pledging not to comply. Idaho has refused to budget any money for compliance. Resolutions opposing the new licenses have been passed by one or both houses of the legislature in Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Michigan, North Dakota and Utah.

The states complain that the law imposes billions of dollars in costs to comply with its requirements. The act demands that states verify all documents presented by license applicants and even includes demands for birth certificates or other proof of legal residence for those renewing their driver's license. In addition to standard information already required on a driver's license, REAL ID requires states to use security features that can be verified by a machine to prevent counterfeiting.

For all the turmoil and debate, the Homeland Security Department is standing its ground. In the end, standardized REAL ID licenses are going to be needed for many aspects of our lives especially those involving interaction with the federal government as well as boarding an airplane.


QUOTABLE

"Far from a nation that takes its immigration laws seriously, we remain in a shoddy, dangerous state of immigration non-enforcement nearly six years after the Sept 11 terrorist attacks - chaos that will only worsen if Congress and the White House join hands on a "comprehensive" illegal alien amnesty plan."

Michelle Malkin
Nationally syndicated columnist


"The government could start by securing our borders. A sovereign nation that can't do that is not a sovereign nation. This is secondarily an immigration issue. It's primarily a national security issue. We were told twenty years ago if we produced a comprehensive solution, we'd solve the illegal immigration problem. Twelve million illegals later, we are being told that same thing. I don't believe most Americans are as concerned about the 12 million that are here as they are about the next 12 million and the next 12 million after that. I think they're thinking: Prove you can secure the border and then people of good will can sit down and work out the rest of it, while protecting those folks who play by the rules."

Former U.S. Senator Fred Thompson
California speech, May 3, 2007


"Barring a dramatic change of direction, the Census Bureau projection of 420 million Americans by 2050 is - from past experience - likely to prove much too low. Particularly if the nation adopts the immigration amnesty proposals being made by leaders of both political parties, our population may well rise to 500 million by then, and keep growing."

Lindsey Grant
The Age of Overshoot
An NPG Publication


"Only in America can you be an illegal immigrant demanding a citizen's rights."

Lisa M. Russo
Letter to the Editor
NY Daily News 5/4/07


WHY THE NPG JOURNAL?

The NPG Journal (offered free to all recipients) exists to give more widespread distribution to timely news stories and articles related to population, immigration, environmental and political issues that currently affect our daily life -- or have the potential to seriously impact our future. NPG President Donald Mann offers his personal insight and commentary on individual stories, especially those that challenge, confirm and/or complement our NPG Research and Forum Papers. The goal of the NPG Journal is to greatly expand NPG's educational mission. As NPG celebrates its 35th Anniversary we continue to emphasize the need for Americans to speak up on population issues and keep our nation -- especially our elected leaders on the national, state and local level - focused on taking action to help resolve today's immigration crisis and work to halt, and eventually reverse America's out-of-control population growth.

We welcome your feedback to articles posted on the NPG Journal and urge you to forward us the e-mail address of friends you think would like to receive a complimentary copy of the NPG Journal on a bi-weekly basis. Contact us at npg@npg.org


ABOUT NPG:

Negative Population Growth, Inc. (NPG) is a national nonprofit membership organization with over 30,000 members nationwide. It was founded in 1972 to educate the American public and political leaders about the devastating effects of overpopulation on our environment, resources, and standard of living. We believe that our nation is already vastly overpopulated in terms of the long-range carrying capacity of its resources and environment.