In case you missed it, the State of Indiana recently submitted a $130.4 million bill to the United States Congress for services provided to illegal immigrants in Indiana. This billing was a requirement under Indiana’s illegal immigration law passed by the General Assembly. The bill was broken out to $110.6 million for K-12 education, $8 million for welfare, and $12.3 million for prison services (that would be for criminals). You can bet Congress will do nothing about this bill which means the taxpayers of Indiana foot the cost of illegal immigrants in our state.
On the other side of the coin, you hear that illegal immigrants contribute to the state economy. Frankly, I suspect most illegal immigrants working in Indiana are paid cash under the table. The companies that hire illegal immigrants and pay this way break the law themselves. This goes for contractors, landscapers, fast food businesses and others, alike. Cash means no tax and violation of wage laws by those doing the hiring. And, this says nothing about the jobs taken by illegal immigrants that otherwise would be available to Indiana citizens.
You can be assured the federal government will do nothing to remedy this situation. President Obama in his latest move is clearly pandering to the Hispanic vote. This should tell us mountains about Obama’s character and integrity. Enforcement of immigration law has not been a hallmark of the Obama administration. It is just the opposite.
Clearly, immigration reform is sorely needed. Newt Gingrich recognized this and proposed pragmatic solutions. Getting the border tightly secured is step one. Then the Congress must practically and compassionately deal with policy and law. We cannot and should not simply round up everyone in this country illegally and ship them back to Mexico or whatever country they came from, but neither should we ignore the cost of doing nothing. It is not up to the President to decide what laws to enforce or not. That would be the right of a king, emperor, or dictator; not a President. In the meanwhile, the law should be enforced.