Mexico to lobby aggressively for immigration reform
Mexico plans to begin an aggressive lobbying effort in the United States to secure an immigration reform agreement, the country’s new ambassador in Washington said Tuesday.
Mexican consulates in the United States will talk with state and federal lawmakers, business chambers, civic organizations and “all actors of U.S. society” who support comprehensive immigration reform, Arturo Sarukhan said.
…Sarukhan said the government’s lobbying effort would not overshadow its promise to speak out to protect the rights of Mexicans living in the United States, which he said “forms the backbone of our diplomacy in the U.S.”
Man, I’ve had it up to here with the Mexican government, its countless consulates and ubiquitous officials running around our country meddling in our affairs, corrupting our politics and trying to steal our sovereignty.
Want more information? Start with DP post A Rallying Point For Anti-Illegal Conservatives
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Well, I look at the Mexican problem from the perspective of one who lives a fifteen minute drive from Tijuana and has met more than a few native Mexicans personally. There are a couple facts we should be able to agree upon.
The total illegal population in the U.S. is estimated at 10-15 million, the vast majority of them Mexicans. Given that Mexico’s population is about 110 million, about 10% of Mexico’s population is already here illegally.
Mexico’s population has a median age of about 17, meaning there’s a huge labor pool looking for work. The country doesn’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of generating the jobs needed.
Mexican government is corrupt at all levels, following the pattern set by the Spanish conquistadores. The legal system is Napoleonic, where a person of “standing” can make an accusation, and the accused must prove his innocence. Mexicans think our system is fairer and more honest.
Politically, the Mexican government is aware that virtually everybody has a relative in the states, and isn’t so much meddling as showing its concern for Mexicans in the US for domestic political purposes. It also views emigration to the US as a safety valve, knowing that its super rich have no intention of letting go of their monopolies that suppress job creation, and that a large pool of young unemployed will eventually cause a revolution. They also know that remittances by Mexicans to relatives back home are a huge source of foreign investment that Mexico can’t do without.
I personally like Mexicans, who have a belief in God, family and country, in that order. They’ll work any job because they believe it’s shameful for an able bodied person to take charity - they’re catholics with a protestant work ethic. They know they have no future in Mexico, and view America as the promised land, where they can succeed if they work hard and follow the rules.
To me, they’d make fine Americans. Most of those I’ve met complained how hard it is to get in the country legally, and especially how long it takes to get a green card for work, even after being admitted. The usual wait for a legal immigrant to get a work permit is 12-15 months AFTER they’ve already arrived. Only the rich can afford to live here for over a year without a job, so those not so well off must sneak across the border, or starve.
The point is that this is not some sneaky invasion, but a mass migration that can’t really be stopped, even if we militarized the border and stationed a million troops we don’t have at a cost we can’t afford. We have to seek other solutions.
I don’t know what solution will work best, but we have to accept that a significant portion of Mexico’s population is voting with its feet in favor of becoming Americans. If Mexico were to suffer a revolution or become a failed state, both real possibilities, that percentage would increase dramatically.
For any other nation, absorbing such a huge migration would fundamentally alter who they are. Fortunately for us, the average Mexican likes us just the way we are.
“but we have to accept that a significant portion of Mexico’s population is voting with its feet in favor of becoming Americans”
I don’t accept this at all. The whole tone of your comment is that we OWE the Mexicans a relief valve.
“the average Mexican likes us just the way we are”
That must be why there are so many Mexicans marching in American streets holding Mexican flags. I lump this in with the mistaken CW that there are moderate Muslims yearning for democracy.
Historically the land has belonged to whoever could take it and hold it..the current population of the USA are primarily descendants of those who took and held this land. The question now is “do we have the guts to hold it for our children and grandchildren or will we roll over and let it go without a fight.”
LOCK AND LOAD
I personally like many Mexicans too Lorenzo, but that has absolutely nothing to do with it.
It is total bullshit that the flow of illegals cannot be stopped. That is the lie of those that have an agenda, whether that agenda is economic, socialistic, or simply misguided compassion.
Fortunately for us, the average Mexican likes us just the way we are.
That attitude would probably change in a hurry if the government were to begin strictly enforcing our immigration laws.
In the general comments section (#s 44 and 45), SteveF and I note that Mexico’s “aggressive lobbying effort” may have included instigating the prosecution of the Border Patrol agents who are jailed for shooting a Mexican drug smuggler.
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Lorenzo comments:
Family values don’t stop at the Rio Grande?
As for the Mexican drive to succeed, consider Bill’s post about what’s going on in a rural Washington community: the immigrant parents are hardworking but the teens underachieve in school and form gangs.
Agreed. This is why I maintain that securing the border and enforcing employment law should be accompanied by reform of the grotesquely dysfunctional legal immigration system.
GUYK:
It’s not looking good. We have leftists who don’t accept what the country stands for, and we have large and small employers who put short-term economic gains above the good of the country and welfare of their fellow citizens. These two groups form an alliance that restrains–undermines–those Americans who want to hold the land.
JackWayne on Lorenzo:
Seeing a weak horse and a strong horse, the average Mexican naturally prefers the strong horse.
Lorenzo on the Mexican government:
A few months ago, a DP post claimed that our political elite takes the Mexican political class as a role model. The Mexican rich are shafting their fellow citizens for private gain; so are American employers who hire illegals and undermine immigration law. Like Mexico, the USA seems on track for upheaval if present trends continue.
Coffee - I agree that we could stop the in-migration if we wanted to. Eisenhower did it 50 years ago. Even as recently as 2 or 3 years ago, Gen. Tommy Franks commented to the effect that “any country that wants to control its borders can” - that, of course, being a reference to Iraq. I was sort of surprised Bush did not have him forcibly retired for making such a heretical remark.
As for Mexico, what is wrong with it? It has a young population, long coastlines with natural harbors, mineral resources, fertile lands, and a temperate climate, seemingly all the ingredients for success. So why is it such an underachiever?
The answer: It’s full of Mexicans. Now before all of you jump all over me, this is not a race thing. This is about Mexican culture. There is something wrong with a society that accepts (or in too many cases warmly embraces) corruption, has a take-it-or-leave-it attitude toward education, thinks it’s OK for 30 year old men to “date” 14 and 15 year old girls, and on and on. Not to mention the influence of the Catholic Church, brainwashing people with the “be humble, you’ll get your reward in the afterlife” nonsense and a fatalistic approach to life.
I am still baffled as to what it is George Bush finds so impressive about Mexico that he wants to import the culture and replace ours with theirs.