10/29/2013
- Phyllis Schlafly
Most Americans believe that the United States of America is an
exceptional country. The "borders test" proves that people are coming
to America, not fleeing from America to exit to other countries.
Republicans and conservatives recognize that the
principal reason for our unique abundance is our constitutional restraints on
the power of government, separation of powers, balanced budgets, and a minimum
of government supervision and interference in our daily lives. America offers a
remarkable opportunity for foreigners; no matter what socioeconomic rank they
were assigned in their native country.
Most of the millions of immigrants we have welcomed
came from countries where the only government they knew was one that made all
decisions about economic and social policy. The current level of legal
immigration to America adds thousands of people every day whose views and
experience are contrary to the conservative value of limited government.
The influx of these new voters will reduce or
eliminate Republicans' ability to offer an alternative to big government,
increased government spending, and favorite liberal policies such as Obamacare
and gun control. New voters will lean on our hard-pressed health care system
and overcrowded public schools to demand more government services.
Amnesty advocates point to the assimilation of
large numbers of immigrants in the early years of the 20th century. But that
was followed by a national pause and slowdown of immigration from the 1920s to
the 1960s, which allowed newcomers to assimilate, learn our language, and adapt
to our system of government.
Under current law, 1.1 million new legal immigrants
come in every year. The Congressional Budget Office projections indicate that
amnesty, plus its scheduled increases in legal immigration, will add an
additional 4.6 million new voters by 2014.
An enormous body of survey research shows that
large majorities of recent immigrants, who are mostly Hispanic and Asian, hold
liberal views on most policy issues and therefore vote Democratic two-to-one.
Their motivation is not our immigration policy; it is economic issues.
The 2008 National Annenberg Election Survey found
that 62 percent of immigrants prefer a single government-run health care
system. The 2010 Cooperative Congressional Election Study found that 69 percent
of immigrants support Obamacare, and the Pew Research Center found that 75
percent of Hispanic and 55 percent of Asian immigrants support bigger
government.
A Harris poll found that 81 percent of native-born
Americans believe the schools should teach students to be proud of being
American, compared to only 50 percent of immigrants who had become naturalized
U.S. citizens. Only 37 percent of naturalized citizens (compared to 67 percent
of native-born citizens) think our Constitution has a higher legal authority
than international law.
The Pew Research Center reported in 2011 that, of
all groups surveyed, Hispanics have the most negative view of capitalism in
America -- 55 percent. This is even higher than the supporters of Occupy Wall
Street.
The data do not support the notion that immigrants
are social conservatives. Heather MacDonald of the Manhattan Institute points
out that, "It is not immigration policy that creates the strong bond
between Hispanics and the Democratic Party, but the core Democratic principles
of a more generous safety net, strong government intervention in the economy,
and progressive taxation."
The current level of immigration, even without
amnesty, will add nearly 15 million new potential voters by 2036, a large share
of whom will favor the left. To allow this to happen will make Republicans a
permanent minority party.
Looking at the political motivation of the groups
pushing higher immigration and amnesty, it's obvious that the Democrats promote
large-scale immigration because it produces more Democratic votes. But why are
some prominent Republicans pushing amnesty?
The pro-amnesty New York Times gleefully reported
on Oct. 26 the front-page news that big-business leaders and Republican big
donors are gearing up for a "lobbying blitz," backed up by money
threats, to get Congress to pass amnesty. Big business wants amnesty in order
to get more cheap labor and keep wages forever low, and that is a gross
betrayal of the legal immigrants who hope to rise into the middle class and
achieve the American dream.
The big donors poured $400,000,000 into the
campaigns of losing establishment-backed Republican candidates in 2012. They
would rather elect Democrats than conservative, social-issue Tea Party-type
grassroots Republicans who don't take orders from the establishment.
If the Republican Party is to remain nationally
competitive, it must defeat amnesty in every form. Rep. Raul Labrador, R-Idaho,
summed it up: "I think it would be crazy for the House Republican leadership
to enter into negotiations with (Obama) on immigration, and I'm a proponent of
immigration reform. ... He's trying to destroy the Republican Party, and I
think that anything that we do right now with the president on immigration will
be with that same goal in mind, which is to destroy the Republican Party and
not to get good policies."
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