With the thunderous public silence that has met the triumphant announcement of the latest version of "immigration amnesty," I wonder if anyone has thought much about the long-term implications of this legislation. Well, I have and I don’t like what I foresee. Let’s just think about some of the potential implications of absorbing 10-12 million - and I am sure the final numbers will be much larger - new U.S. citizens. Presented another way, with consideration underway of the Kyl-Kennedy Immigration Reform Bill, Congress is voting to, with a stroke of the President’s pen, instantly increase the citizenry of our country by almost 5 per cent.

Just bear with me as I wonder a bit out loud. If, as is often presented by proponents of more liberal immigration, these illegal people are "doing work that Americans won’t do," why is this true? Is it because they are less likely to complain about working for a lower-than-minimum wage because of their undocumented status? Probably so. If an illegal alien wants to complain that he is getting paid $4.00 an hour when the minimum wage decreed by the U.S. Congress is around $6.00/hour, to who does he complain? He certainly cannot complain to his employer since he would quite likely be quickly unemployed. Can he complain to the the U.S. Department of Labor? While I am sure there are some bureaucrats in that organization who would love to help out the illegal, I am not sure the worker would take the risk.

Now, conversely, why do not some of the unemployed, low-skilled Americans fill these jobs? The usual arguments I have heard and read suggest that untrained native American laborers will not wok for "substandard" wages because they can actually realize a higher income if they avail themselves to unemployment, welfare, food stamps and other available governmental largesse. The question, thus, becomes: Why work for $4.00/hr when the sum total of your benefits (food, housing, cash) factor out to be more than 4.00/hour X 8 hours/day X 5 days per week? This is why these jobs are devoid of sufficient American labor. Legal American citizens have alternatives that pay better.

Stay with me now. If we suddenly make 10-12 million of these illegal immigrants U.S. citizens, will they continue to be willing to work for $4.00/hour? Or, like their fellow unskilled American counterparts, figure out the math? If there are now better-paying alternatives (i.e. unemployment benefits) available to these freshly-minted citizens, are they not smart enough to join their unemployed fellow citizens on the welfare roles? I know, if given the choice between staying home and "making" more than $4.00/hour in benefits watching Jerry Springer and Oprah or going outside and cutting lawns or doing construction work for $4.00/hour, I am going to stay home. And I don’t think I am any smarter than those who will soon be given this choice.

And, if there is a sudden exodus of these workers filling low-paying/low-skill jobs, who will step into this vacuum? We know that nature - and predatory employers - abhor a vacuum. I suspect there will be another infusion of immigrants just like the one that followed the last "amnesty" to illegal aliens in 1986. The next wave will probably be even larger than the 10-12 million that followed-the-leader after Immigration Reform Act of 1986. Maybe 20-30 million over the next decade. Will we then declare another amnesty? After all, if it is "impossible" to deport 10 million illegals now (as it is argued by the bill’s proponents), it will clearly be impossible to export 2-3 times that number just 10 years from now. Right?

One last thought. If these newly certified American citizens do avail themselves of the nurturing bosom of governmental nurture, what will be the costs to Joe and Sally America? The simplest of breakdowns must include the costs of schooling new children (with bilingual curricula, of course), Medicaid, and the inevitable expansion of government agencies (and accompanying expense and power) to seeing to the needs and assisting the hoard of new citizens. Here’s another little item you can think over: Since most of the current illegal immigrants are from Mexico, under affirmative action, these freshly-cut Americans will have preferences in jobs and benefits. Those who elect to start a business would be entitled to preferences for government contracts. According to the same legislation, their offspring will, theoretically, be admitted ahead of the children of American citizens, sometimes even if these "minority" applicants have lesser SAT scores.

Ironically, as the compromise bill is currently worded, it will also include "strengthening" of the border patrol and verbiage that suggests the problem of illegal immigration will, once and for all, be stopped! Perhaps, though I haven’t read the bill in its entirety, it will include more fencing along a 2000+ mile southern border. Fencing, as well know, has historically proven to un-breachable when it has been employed along the U.S./Mexico border.

[That last was a feeble attempt at humor. I beg your pardon when my sarcasm spills over.]

What is being played out on the apparently-ignored stage that is the US. Congress is a fatal sort of tango on a tightrope. Politicians of both parties are attempting to appear strong on security ("strengthening the borders") and, yet, "immigrant friendly." It is a clumsy dance of appeasement to avoid angering native Americans (by appearing to be tough post-9/11) while offering a handshake and a smile to the growing Hispanic constituency. It is, to say the least, a tenuous proposition. So far, the mainstream American voters seems anesthetized and, though grudgingly, the Hispanic voters are generally in assent, as well they should be.

However, when the potential costs are presented to the resident voters, I wonder where the chips will fall? But, for now, as the slow mental/political "digestion" process evolves, we all need to closely watch the immigration reform issue as it unfolds and make sure you inform your legislative representatives of your inclinations. This is not something that should be allowed to slip under your personal radar. A massive increase in citizenry has broad implications that will touch every part of our lives. And our children’s lives.