Border Patrol Rep. Warns of “De Facto Amnesty”

There was a story last week about illegal immigrants, most from Central America, who were apprehended in Texas. Several cases of scabies ( it’s kind of like having crabs except all over and not just limited to your pubes.) Also, many of them are being flown to Arizona and released.

This morning Stu Harris, Vice President of the AFGE Local Border Patrol Union, came on the show to talk about what he sees as an imminent crisis as support is growing for, if not an open-door policy, then some form of amnesty. Some of the concerning things Mr. Harris shared with us include…

----Illegal immigration is up in the Rio Grande valley. Harris estimated that one to two-thousand illegal aliens are apprehended each day in that area alone.

----A huge percentage of the recent illegal immigrants are OTMs…Other Than Mexico. Many are from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador…home to some of the most violent criminal gangs in the world.

----The scabies are communicable. And they are being passed along to Border Patrol agents. Harris said that there are 12 reported cases of agents being infected with scabies from illegal immigrants.

----Rumors of imminent amnesty are driving the surge in illegal immigration. People are making the arduous journey from these distant countries because they believe that if they can make it to the U.S. they may get in on an impending amnesty program and not be deported.

-----They may be right. Immigration reform is enjoying bi-partisan support in Washington. President Bush made a softer stance on illegal immigration a key platform of his administration. President Obama has followed with his own support of various forms of amnesty.

---- Illegal immigrants are routinely being set free. According to Harris, there is simply not enough room to house the sheer number of immigrants. As a result, many are “being given a bus ticket to wherever they want to go and released on their own recognizance.” Court dates are backed up to 2018, so by the time they are required to appear, which most never do, many already have had children born in the U.S….known as “anchor babies”.

----A lot of identity theft is a result of illegal immigration. Once released, many of these people need to get an ID to either get a job or enroll for government benefits. The buying and selling of American’s identity is a booming business. Once your identity has been sold to an illegal immigrant, any criminal infractions, financial penalties or debt can suddenly become your problem.

I don’t believe all people who come to this country illegally are bad people. To the contrary, I have known many who are very good folks. Hardworking, honest, productive…the kind of people who we should want as fellow countrymen. But with every bushel of good apples there are probably some bad.

What do you think? Should we pump the brakes on this rush to amnesty? Or, is this an issue that is blown out of proportion because of xenophobia and racism? Your thoughts are welcome below.