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1986 Simpson/Mazzolli

Drake McHugh

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I went on Congress Votes.com,and found the roll call for the 1986 bill in both chambers. One thing that was interesting was that liberals like Barbara Boxer,Ted Kennedy,and almost all the Hispanic members of congress voted against it. By contrast,many conservatives like Trent Lott(he was back then),Gingrich,Dick Cheney,Bob Dornan,and others voted for it. Was most of the opposition from the left,because of workplace enforcement(which never happened)?
 
I went on Congress Votes.com,and found the roll call for the 1986 bill in both chambers. One thing that was interesting was that liberals like Barbara Boxer,Ted Kennedy,and almost all the Hispanic members of congress voted against it. By contrast,many conservatives like Trent Lott(he was back then),Gingrich,Dick Cheney,Bob Dornan,and others voted for it. Was most of the opposition from the left,because of workplace enforcement(which never happened)?

Yep. They feared that enforcement might actually occur and upset the latino voters. Too many employers, that are also campaign contributors, rely on exploiting the cheaper labor that illegal immigration supports for the employer sanction enforcement to actually occur. To benefit from the lower wages caused by illegal labor use one does not even have to hire illegals directly, simply using subcontractors or raw material providers that use this cheaper labor is sufficient to hold down your own costs.
 
I went on Congress Votes.com,and found the roll call for the 1986 bill in both chambers. One thing that was interesting was that liberals like Barbara Boxer,Ted Kennedy,and almost all the Hispanic members of congress voted against it. By contrast,many conservatives like Trent Lott(he was back then),Gingrich,Dick Cheney,Bob Dornan,and others voted for it. Was most of the opposition from the left,because of workplace enforcement(which never happened)?

The liberals were completely against having our borders secured and our immigration laws enforced.

Originally the 1986 IRA didn't have an amnesty. The only way to get enough Democrats to vote for the bill was to amend the bill with an amnesty of rewarding law breakers.

<" According to Ronald Reagan himself, as told to his trusted long-time friend and U.S. Attorney General Edwin Meese, the biggest mistake of his presidency was signing the 1986 amnesty for what turned out to be more than half the five million illegal immigrants in the country. Reagan was uncomfortable with the amnesty but was persuaded by some of the leaders of his own party (still living) that it would only affect a small number of illegal immigrants and would assure that Congress would follow through with more vigorous enforcement of U.S. immigration laws. The misnamed Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986 was touted by its supporters as “comprehensive immigration reform” that would grant amnesty only to a few long-settled immigrants and strengthen border security and internal immigration enforcement against employers who were hiring illegal immigrants.

Internal enforcement was critical to Reagan. He knew that the real key to stopping illegal immigration was to cut off the job magnet at the employment place. He was also honest enough to call what he believed would only be a small amnesty by its real name—amnesty. He did not try to deceive the American people into thinking it was not really an amnesty, a deception much in vogue with many politicians today..."<
Ed Meese Says Reagan Regretted 1986 Amnesty | VDARE.com
 
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