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Should immigrants have a path to citizenship?

Should law abiding immigrants be given citizenship?

  • Total voters
    109

I don't agree with your opening statement.

What Trump's ICE units are doing is concentrating on identifying illegal migrants who have committed crimes, locating them, and then raiding where they are (workplace, housing, clubs, hangouts, etc.) to arrest them. However, ICE agents don't ignore OTHER migrants in these raids. They take anyone who is in the USA "illegally" along with the "wanted criminals" and processes them ALL for deportation.

That answers your second question. They are not being allowed to stay, and IMO they should NOT be allowed to stay. The U.S. already has several programs which allow foreign workers who are not seeking to immigrate, but only to temporarily work in the USA and send the money back home. Then they go back when not needed, and return with that form of permission to return to those jobs.
 
Perotista said:
Yes to all legal immigrants, no to illegal ones.
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I assume this is the answer to the question of "a path to citizenship".

I agree, only for legal immigrants. I don't know if I agree about yes to "all legal immigrants" because I think a path to citizenship needs to be a careful and well-considered, case by case scenario.
 
Of course they should. If they are in good behavior, they should become citizens after 5 years of residency.
 


The issue is larger than that.


They, meaning Poland, attempted to follow a protocol (it had a name I forgot) that was concocted in Canada within the idea of "controlled addiction". If ever there was a stupid idea............

In Poland and to a degree Canada had antiquated laws on hard drugs, and fentanyl was one that could get you a decade for trafficking in Canada back when we actually jailed people. There was one rumor that capital punishment could be used on traffickers.

So, as a result of some Euro-American get together of experts it was decided to decriminalize a suite of drugs, a measure Canada led in the mistaken belief that one could be 'moderated' in an addiction.

As far as I know fentanyl is part of a collection of drugs that are illegal across most every country.

BTW, what they don't tell you is that it is really easy to make, I am told.
 
MAGAnificent said:
If they illegally cross the border. They are in fact criminals
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As I pointed out to another poster intent matters. Crossing the border illegally to escape persecution or to find work to feed your family is a very different thing from crossing the border to smuggle narcotics. To say "well they crossed the border illegally so they are security threats" is complete nonsense. And since we're being all nitpicks about things absent a conviction they aren't criminals.

And you do realize that illegally crossing the border - the first time - is not a felony right?
 

US immigration law contains no such (bolded above) exception.

Gaius46 said:
And you do realize that illegally crossing the border - the first time - is not a felony right?
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Since many crimes aren’t felonies, should they be ignored by LEOs?
 
Gaius46 said:
As I pointed out to another poster intent matters. Crossing the border illegally to escape persecution or to find work to feed your family is a very different thing from crossing the border to smuggle narcotics.
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Yes, and we sympasize. However, we cannot help the number of people in the world that need help. We have legal immigration paths. Quotas are in place for a reason. Bypassing what other people must do creates two standards.
Gaius46 said:
To say "well they crossed the border illegally so they are security threats" is complete nonsense. And since we're being all nitpicks about things absent a conviction they aren't criminals.
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How about since you have such feelings, you sponsor a family. Take them in and provide for them until they can provide for themself.
Gaius46 said:
And you do realize that illegally crossing the border - the first time - is not a felony right?
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Does not matter.
 
Not necessarily.

Typical of the right, you've only (conveniently) sorted half the equation. With a little compassion you could've easily understood that perhaps illegal aliens are fleeing a desperate situation you may never experience and with a little grace and understanding allow them belated passage to legal citizenship, the very one you take as a given.
 
LostInSeattle said:
IF that were true, undocumented immigrants would be breaking the law left and right. They're not.
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there are news reports every day of illegally here people breaking laws - and the point is there should be ZERO people illegally here committing crimes. They shouldn't be here illegally

there are 1.5 to 2 million in California alone that don't have a drivers license and drives without insurance - did you know ? how many nationwide ?
 

How many of the billions of foreign nationals would you allow to self-declare their situations to be desperate, thus having a right to enter and/or remain inside the US and become citizens?
 
ttwtt78640 said:
How many of the billions of foreign nationals would you allow to self-declare their situations to be desperate, thus having a right to enter and/or remain inside the US and become citizens?
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I could care less about such strict gatekeeping.... it's an impossible task anyway.
 

we are #1 in the world in allowing legal immigration - that's exceptionally generous isn't it? we have a system that pays for housing and give food and money/support ...... we give work visa's, student visa's .... refugees get to come here

there are 7 billion people on the planet https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/poverty-prosperity-and-planet

Today, almost 700 million people (8.5 percent of the global population) live in extreme poverty - on less than $2.15 per day. Progress has stalled amid low growth, setbacks due to COVID-19, and increased fragility. Poverty rates in low-income countries are higher than before the pandemic. Around 3.5 billion people (44 percent of the global population) remain poor by a standard that is more relevant for upper middle-income countries ($6.85 per day), and the number of people living on less than this standard has barely changed since the 1990s due to population growth.


With a little compassion we would take a billion of those people right? its not about compassion - its about what we can handle as a country and what's done legally and right


you and I don't get to decide every day in the USA which laws we can break because it best suits us to break them do we? and if we are caught we're certainly not rewarded for breaking those laws are we?
 
quip said:
I could care less about such strict gatekeeping.... it's an impossible task anyway.
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do you deny the massive difference between Biden's border and Trump's border ? as far as people entering illegally ?
 

You break the law you have to leave and get back in line.

Someone here illegal has a path to citizenship. It's called go back to your native country and get in line.

You know, like all the people who did it... LEGALLY.
 
The facts are that immigration is a net positive for our country.
stealthycat said:
you and I don't get to decide every day in the USA which laws we can break because it best suits us to break them do we? and if we are caught we're certainly not rewarded for breaking those laws are we?
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That's a perspective only the advantaged are privileged to hold. Coming into this country (illegally) for a better life is exactly what you'd do - for you and your family - if the circumstances were switched.

Tell me you wouldn't.
 
stealthycat said:
do you deny the massive difference between Biden's border and Trump's border ? as far as people entering illegally ?
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Massive indeed. Families being torn apart by indiscriminate deportation, lack of fundamental rights and dignity. It's cruel optics...fit for a king.
 
Just "sign 'em up"?
No.
They are eligible to go through the naturalization process. All in compliance with the existing laws which cover that process and their requirements.
 

Allan said:
An asylum claimant is not breaking the law.
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Looks like someone is moving the goalposts...

Moving the goalposts - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

There's your OP and there's the move since I defeated it.

You're welcome.
 
Captain Adverse said:
What Trump's ICE units are doing is concentrating on identifying illegal migrants who have committed crimes,
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This is a lie. This isn't true. Fox News is lying to you. Trump is lying to you. Stephen Miller is lying to you. Breitbart is lying to you. Newsmax is lying to you.
 
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