Texas is showing the way on illegal immigration. One of the best ways to reduce or eliminate illegal immigration is to reduce the incentives for people to flood in illegally. Blue cities and states, with their "sanctuary" policies, seem determined to lay out a big, fat, cushy welcome mat for illegal aliens. Texas, on the other hand, is taking just the opposite approach - and it's working.
Republican lawmakers in Texas have spent the past year implementing regulatory changes to limit access to services for the estimated 1.7 million illegal immigrants residing in the state, prompting both support from state officials and criticism from activist groups.
A report by the Texas Tribune detailed the steps taken, which include tightening eligibility requirements for occupational licenses, restricting access to commercial driver’s licenses, and limiting who can qualify for in-state tuition at public universities. According to the report, more than 6,400 refugees and DACA recipients have lost their commercial driver’s licenses. Additional restrictions are expected to affect noncitizens working in licensed industries such as construction and medicine.
Is it not belaboring the obvious to note that people in the country illegally should not be issued a commercial driver's license (CDL) under any circumstances? Not only have we seen too many incidents, some fatal, due to foreign-born truck drivers with little or no ability to speak or read English, but there's a matter of principle involved as well. These people entered the country illegally and remain here illegally. We should not reward them with any kind of occupational licensing, be it a CDL or a license to paint fingernails.
“Benefits, licenses, and taxpayer-funded services should not be used to incentivize unlawful presence at the expense of hardworking Texans,” a spokesperson for Governor Greg Abbott said in a statement. “These steps ensure compliance with federal law, protect the integrity of our systems, and prioritize jobs and resources for legal residents and citizens.”
That's how this should be done. Reduce the incentives, and at the very least, the influx will be reduced. Eliminate the incentives, and a large number of the illegal immigrants will, likely, leave - they may go to some of those "sanctuary" blue states or cities, but at least then they aren't Texas's problem anymore.
There is, of course, the usual whining from the usual suspects.
The efforts, however, have been met with backlash by activists.
“These all represent a broader and more coordinated shift … to create a pipeline of exclusion that stretches from limiting access to K-12 education, all the way into participation in the workforce and basic mobility through the state,” Corinne Kentor, with the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, told the outlet.
Yes. Corrinne Kentor is correct, in that part of it; there is a pipeline of exclusion being built here.
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And that's as it should be. There is a pipeline of exclusion for people who are in the country illegally. They broke our laws by entering the country illegally. They broke our laws by remaining in the country illegally. Not one thin dime of taxpayers' money should be spent to maintain these illegal invaders in our country, for any reason. No free education. No free housing. No food or other welfare benefits. No occupational licensing. No employment. Immediate deportation if they are detected.
The efforts of the Trump administration and several red state governments have gone a long way towards addressing this problem, but it remains a problem. But Texas is showing one good way forward: Remove the incentives.
Editor’s Note: ICE and CBP continue to put themselves in harm's way in order to protect America’s sovereignty and to keep our streets safe.
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