>>I don't claim to have a perfect solution. Neither does anyone else; otherwise we would have heard it by now. I do think we need a coherent policy that recognizes the following:
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>>1. We need to have some sort of immigration process, even if it's just registration. 11 million or more of us living in secret, fearing that knock on the door, is not healthy.
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>>2. Unregistered residents should receive no government benefits other than emergency medical care. This should put to rest the argument that they're costing us money.
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>>3. Putting up walls and/or deploying tens of thousands of National Guard troops to the Mexican border -- like they were sitting around loafing already, as opposed to keeping a wary eye out for roadside bombs and suicide bombers in Iraq -- is not the solution.
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>>4. There are about 50 million Mexican-American citizens, plus another 11 million or so illegals. It's way too late to put the genie back in the bottle. We need to deal responsibly, the best way we can, with the facts as they are. This is not some video game.
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>I don't have any better solution than anybody else. It pains me to admit it, but I'm in agreement with the President on this. I think we should seal our borders as best we can, but I would deploy whatever active duty troops are available rather than use Guardsmen again. I'll admit to being ignorant about this, but my impression is that the Guard should be more of a state militia than an adjunct to the active army. I don't know how much has been called up for Iraq, but I would use as much of the ready reserve as possible before calling out the Guard again.
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>This whole issue reminds me of the scene from Fiddler on the Roof. One daughter asks permission to choose someone outside the arranged marriage. The next seeks his blessing, but will marry anyway. "Where does it stop? Where does it stop?" For him, it stopped when the next daughter married outside the faith (and his final inability to deny his own flesh and blood was not typical). So.......Where does it stop?
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>Several years ago (others know the details better than I) there was an amnesty granted along with an implicit "No more -- it stops here!" Now we're looking at all sorts of options to grant another amnesty but any steps to prevent having to do the same thing again in a couple of years are (pick a term.......irresponsible, racist, etc.)?????? Where does it stop.....Where does it stop?
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>I don't have strong objections to granting a work permit to an illegal who has been here for some number of years. I believe in the concept of a "statute of limitations" for other things and don't have strong objections to applying it here. I would make that work permit valid for five years and revoke it for anybody who has not yet taken/passed a citizenship test (the details are not important, it's the concept).
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>I would allow some additional number of "guest workers" for seasonal jobs. I know all about the "migrant worker" problems but that's a different issue -- and one that would help be resolved by having the people doing that be here legally where there is some recourse available. And I would enforce the laws against those hiring illegals, with additional penalties for those paying less than minimum wage.
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>Everybody else would be sent back. I don't have an answer about what to do about the children who were born here. They are citizens, but does that give their "illegal" parents permenant living rights here? It's the most difficult part of the way I feel and, again, I have no good answer.

I'm betting that the final answer will be along the lines of:
1) seal the borders asap and keep them that way;
2) start a "guest worker" program with trackability of 'guests';
3) grant amnesty to those already sealed in who have been law-abiding;
4) Send the unsavoury characters back whence they came.
I doubt there will be any legal repercussions for business either past or future. Not only does the $ rule, but they also have direct links to power.