Steve Sailer makes a good point here:
If Obama promises both:
A) to block illegal aliens from benefiting from his 2009 health plan, and
B) to legalize illegal aliens in his 2010 immigration plan that he announced last month in Mexico…
Then who, exactly, is being disingenuous?
It’s not just illegal immigration that is the healthcare problem. It is all low-skilled immigration, legal and illegal – all immigration, that is, of anyone whose earning capacity is too little to support the cost of American-style health insurance. As is, 25% of the uninsured population is made up of immigrants (both legal and illegal) and their children. Immigrants and their children accounted for 80% of the increase in the uninsured in the Bush years. If the government is going to help support health insurance for people who cannot afford it on their own, it is just irresponsible to be simultaneously, artificially and unnecessarily increasing the numbers of such people.
13 responses so far
1 AemJeff // Sep 17, 2009 at 2:00 pm
C’mon David. Linking to Sailer, of all people? There must be somebody who can help make your point who isn’t so easily dismissed as a hard-core racist. (e.g.)
2 Brittanicus // Sep 17, 2009 at 2:21 pm
Its time to re-examine instant citizenship (Anchor babies) which hasn’t been illuminated enough, to growing concern of the American public. For decades now pregnant women have arrived on tourist’s visas, through the fence and even at ports of call. Very aware of our mis-interpreted law governing “birthright citizenship”, that attributes full rights to the Mother of an illegal immigrant. How can Americans benefit from this Health care reform package, when we must subsidize millions of households and not just the original interloper? Outlined in the spring issue of the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons is an article that will stun a prudent person. An illegal alien entered the states in 1997 to work as a fruit picker, bringing with him his wife and three children; all illegal aliens.
The lady gave birth to a fourth child, and with that birth the family had an “anchor baby”—an American citizen by birth, who provided the entire family with a free pass to remain in the United States permanently and collect government, subsides. Unfortunately the baby was born prematurely, spent three months in the neonatal incubator, and cost the San Joaquin Hospital more than $300,000. Meanwhile, the oldest daughter married an illegal alien and gave birth to her own anchor baby, and then Cristobal’s wife gave birth to yet another baby. ALL PAID FOR BY—YOU!
This is just one taxpayer example of the ‘Rule of law’ that has cost taxpayers billions of dollars. A nurse admitted last weekend, according to Review-Journal reported that cash-strapped UMC hospital in Nevada is providing more than $20 million a year in emergency dialysis care for uninsured, illegal immigrants. Is American society insane when poverty stricken Americans are turned away, go bankrupt and sometimes die? TAXPAYERS ARE TAXED FOR THIS, BUT NOT FOR OUR OWN PEOPLE? We must insist that a Birthright Citizenship lawsuit be filed with the federal court and its original intent revisited? That E-Verify should be fully funded and a highly skilled MIT team, building on the original Immigration enforcement database to a highest level of security that cannot be compromised by the use of fraudulent documents.
The PC oriented application must be installed permanently on every business computer across this country? ICE should have the manpower to audit every workplace, with the power to arrest and detain employers who snub immigration laws? Repeat offenders should be dealt with harshly, including prison and confiscation of business assets. There should be no mitigating excuses because illegal immigrants are—STEALING JOBS– on any rung of the employment ladder? These employers for years have been an intended magnet for destitute labor in many cases, but have left the burden of paying for schooling for the children, health care and a veiled miscellaneous core of government handouts to US taxpayers. THIS IS NOT ABOUT RACISM, BUT AN ULTIMATE FINANCIAL MATTER OF SURVIVAL FOR US ALL!
Insist your politicians guarantee E-Verify is fully funded and is not scuttled by Sen. Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Janet Napolitano or any other high ranking Democrats. The Washington switchboard has their number at 202-224-3121. Research these laws, true facts and incredulous stats at NUMBERSUSA & JUDICIAL WATCH
3 Ploni Almoni // Sep 17, 2009 at 2:24 pm
Kudos for citing Steve Sailer by name. I hope Sailer and others will return the favor and also start giving credit where due.
Conservatism needs both David Frum and Steve Sailer.
4 gnunews // Sep 17, 2009 at 4:21 pm
OK. Let’s think about this for a moment. Do we really think that denying fellow human beings health care is the answer to our immigration “problem”? Stopping immigration is easy, just crack down on the employers who illegally hire illegal immigrants. That’s it.
But if we don’t enforce our immigration laws, and we allow people to come here and work, I’m sorry but denying people health care and suggesting that we allow them to bleed to death in emergency is simply disgusting.
Health care has nothing to do with immigration. People who seek to make the connection are just playing into the latent racist fears we’ve always had about immigrants.
The fact is, we need immigrants, and we always have. If we’re willing to pay living wages for jobs such as picking fruit, mowing lawns, washing dishes and cleaning hotel rooms, US citizens would do those jobs. But that’s never discussed. No one ever talks about cracking down on employers who hire these hardworking people because the only people who are worried about immigration are conservatives who are overtly pro business and latent racists.
5 mycelf // Sep 17, 2009 at 6:01 pm
Fear or loathing of immigrants is not necessarily based in racism. It is more a sense of entitlement. In any case, with regard to health care immigration issues are a red herring.
The issues are rising costs and gross inefficiency. Shoot every damn dirty foreigner on sight and Medicare still bankrupts the government; health care costs still crush US businesses and citizens.
However, I must comment Mr. Frum on keeping the attention on the Axis of Evil foreigners and their Weapon of Mass Immigration.
6 Jim // Sep 17, 2009 at 8:27 pm
Hear, Hear, Brittanicus
7 gnunews // Sep 17, 2009 at 8:31 pm
It’s not that everyone concerned with immigration is a racist, but politically the issue panders to the racists.
Immigrants are not driving up the cost of health care. Look at the medical loss ratio, exploding profits of health insurance companies and the fact that our current system is nothing close to a free market.
In a free market we wouldn’t have insurance companies.
8 Jim // Sep 17, 2009 at 8:32 pm
Giving an American job to an illegal here in the US is the moral equivalent of exporting an American job overseas. If you oppose one, you should oppose the other.
9 sinz54 // Sep 17, 2009 at 8:54 pm
Jim:
To which countries have we exported our wetback and housekeeper jobs?
10 sinz54 // Sep 17, 2009 at 8:57 pm
gnunews:
In Japan, faced with an aging population, they’ve invented robots to do most of those jobs. They actually have fruit-picking agricultural robots now. And it’s been possible to mow a lawn with robots for years now.
Provide a generous investment tax credit for hotels and agribusiness to invest in robots, and the same thing could be done here.
11 gnunews // Sep 17, 2009 at 9:29 pm
See what I mean, “wetback,” that’s racist. People who talk about immigration are often racists.
12 Jim // Sep 17, 2009 at 11:38 pm
We “exported” those jobs by giving them to illegal aliens who are willing to do those jobs, on American soil, for what is essentially a third-world wage. FTR I’m a registered independent.
13 Richard Hoste // Sep 18, 2009 at 10:23 am
Immigrants are not driving up the cost of health care. Look at the medical loss ratio, exploding profits of health insurance companies and the fact that our current system is nothing close to a free market.
Oh yeah?
You must log in to post a comment.