A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that State Senator Debbie Riddle, she of ‘Anchor Baby’ fame on AC360, had filed yet another anti-immigrant bill. But this one, I said at the time, Republicans have no intent on its successful passage.
This is because it hits hard right at the center of the illegal immigration problem: employers actively seek out illegal aliens so they can pay them miserably and keep them under their thumbs. Big money donors to the Republican Party make heavy use of illegal labor. This is common knowledge and it sweetens the sheer hypocrisy that pervades the anti-immigrant rhetoric spewing forth out of Republican mouths.
Making it a felony that includes a $10,000 fine and jail time if an employer knowingly hires an immigrant in the country without a work permit punishes the true criminals in this issue: American citizens, not illegal immigrants who are only here because there is so much money to be made here as opposed to their own countries it far outweighs the risks involved.
I still think Republicans have no intention of passing this bill, but while there seems to be even more reason to think so because it reeks of the hypocrisy that the bill was meant to correct, there may yet be another agenda playing out here. An agenda based on greed.
The hypocrisy is that is because, come to find out, there is one exception to not being able to hire illegal aliens, and that is that private citizens who hire domestic help can still hire illegal aliens without penalty.
This is such a glaring loophole, termed the “laundry loophole” by Back to Basics, that it clearly indicates complete insincerity. And it seems to be unconstitutional to boot. Individuals who own companies are liable for prosecution and punishment if they hire an illegal, but a private citizen would get off scott free.
So Maria would be a problem for the owner of a meat packing company, but not a problem for Debbie Riddle if she works as Riddle’s housekeeper.
That’s how you solve a problem like Maria.
But who knows. The other agenda that may be behind all of this is that when illegal aliens can no longer find jobs chopping up chickens at Tyson, they will have no problem finding a job as a gardener or a nanny. An artificial domestic labor market is created where there are no alternative jobs available to drive up the competition - and wages. Cheap domestic labor becomes even cheaper domestic labor.
Either way. This bill reflects on the one hand Republican hypocrisy and on the other hand, Republican greed.
Take your pick.
3 comments:
A Powerful commentary and quite amusing at that!
Thanks, Geri.
As a fellow "boomer" I figured you'd get the joke.
Most of the people who are "illegal" coome here for a betther life and they want to make a living. Even with the low wages they have, these people are happy to make what they do. Since they use fale Social Security cards, they are paying federal taxes, Social Security taxes and Medicare Taxes. In addition, when they buy their clothing, food, and household items for their living, they do pay for sales tax. When they pay property taxes directly or their landlord includes it as part of their rent. When they buy gas for their vehicles, they pay fuel taxes. Wshatever money is leftover, they save and help family members or relatives with. In addition, they have risk their lives and security so they don't get caught by the government or worse some or some racist scumbag who enjoys picking on someone who doesn't look like them.
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