It’s an Invitation
Not an Illegal Alien Invasion
By Daniel Muniz

What bothers me the most about the immigration debate is the enormous dishonesty that too many Republicans have about illegal aliens. Some of it is just common misperceptions while a lot of it is nothing more than blatant lies.

The first falsehood is the assertion that this country is being invaded by illegal aliens.

There are a lot of well meaning people who do want secure borders and the rule of law observed when it comes to immigration. Unfortunately, too many of these individuals have been misled to believe that an invasion is under way, especially when there is so much footage of illegal aliens sneaking across the border.

The truth of the matter is that nearly all of these illegal immigrants were invited.

That’s right, they were asked to illegally enter this country.

Just about every state in the union has hundreds if thousands of employers who specifically seek out illegal aliens instead of citizens as employees or at the very least, knowingly outsource to sub-contractors who use this type of labor. And it is fairly easy for illegal immigrants to find such employment because the demand is enormous.

But more specifically, there are certain industries that are addicted to cheap labor.

As with drugs, as long as there is an enormous insatiable demand, there will always be someone willing to make that supply available. As a result, millions of illegal aliens have illegally crossed our border in order to satisfy this demand while millions more will soon be on their way.

But just like drugs, once employers get high on the fatter profits that cheap labor produces, they end up wanting to make even more money out of it. So as an addict engages in more outrageous criminal behavior to feed his addition, addicted employers begin to hire more illegal aliens for bigger profits. And they even exert their financial influence on politicians, namely Republicans, to make it easier for illegal immigrants to stay in this country.

Consequently, too many industries are now hooked on cheap illegal labor.

And that leads to the other falsehood which is to say that illegal aliens only the do work that Americans are unwilling to do.

That too is patently false

The truth is that there are too many industries that do not want to pay the kind of money that would attract people to do grueling, dirty, and sweaty work. Once again, it is supply and demand. If there were absolutely no supply of illegal aliens in this country, then employers would have to pay a lot more money to people to do these menial chores. Without illegal workers, cheap labor wouldn’t exist although the demand would still be high.

In fact, there have been so many occupations in which wages have actually plummeted because illegal aliens are more than willing to do the same work at cheaper rates.

Now here is where it gets ugly.

Not only do employers like to increase their profit margins with cheap illegal labor, they also enjoy the power that comes with it. These employers have a tremendous leverage over illegal workers because of fear and coercion. Illegal aliens have no rights and they really have nothing to negotiate with. They can be lied to, forced to do more work than what was agreed to, and simply be exploited.

And plenty of employers love having this illicit power because illegal aliens also make the perfect employees. They aren’t going to complain to anybody and they can easily be replaced because of the enormous supply that is readily available.

It is time for conservatives to put these two falsehoods to rest and begin to actually focus on the source of the problem instead of all the peripheral issues. First I will say that I personally believe a border fence is important but it is only a component to reforming illegal immigration. Our primary effort has to be directed to the employers who hire illegal aliens because that is the main cause of the illegal immigration problems.

And just like drugs, if there weren’t a demand for this labor (created by employers), then there wouldn’t be the supply that is crossing our border every day.

It is also time for immigration reformers to let go of their half-baked ideas.

Certain conservatives love them because it makes it look like something is being done while making a few politicians sound tough. One idea in particular is to ban landlords from renting to illegal aliens. It sounds good on paper but all the illegal immigrants have to do is find a citizen to board with. And there are plenty of other similar measures floating around that sound great but are nothing more than a waste of time because it distracts from the source of the problem which is cracking down on these employers.

It is time to get tough on employers. It is totally ludicrous to deport hundreds of illegal aliens who are found at a job site while doing absolutely nothing to the employer who knowingly hired them. These firms have to be slapped with big fines and stiff prison sentences have to be imposed on managers and owners.

But most importantly, let’s drop the dishonesty and start calling this illegal immigration wave an invitation from employers instead of an invasion. By doing so shifts the focus to the real culprits which are the companies who are hooked on exploiting illegal labor.

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