Let’s Fix Immigration – Voters Demand It, And It Can Be Done

Posted on January 9, 2016 by Tom Balek Standard 2

illegal_immigration Americans are worried as hell that our country, like many other Western nations, is hurtling headlong toward third-world status or worse by failing to control our intake of legal and illegal immigrants, asylees, and refugees. I attended a Trump rally last night at a jam-packed arena, and when he promised to deal with the immigration crisis the place exploded. It is unquestionably the priority item on voters’ minds this election year.

Most of our elected leaders, and some citizens, believe that it is impossible to solve our immigration and refugee problems, and we have no choice but to accept whatever happens. As long as we have the current bunch of knuckleheads in Washington, DC, I agree, there is probably no hope.

Their standard line is, “Even if you could build a wall on the southern border, you can’t round up 10 million illegals at gunpoint and bus them out of the country.”

That kind of talk is shallow, cynical, and lazy. Nobody in his right mind would attempt an armed roundup. And there are many illegal immigrants who have been here for many years, raised families, and have become responsible Americans – we can’t treat them the same as the border-hopping drug dealers. It will take a little bit of time and work to straighten this mess out.

By the way, there are probably at least 50 million illegals in the country now, not 10 million (that statistic is at least ten years old and was grossly underestimated then). Just wait until the birth rate of the immigrants and their extended families exponentially kicks in.

The DC knuckleheads can’t do it, but if we can elect some officials who will actually listen to what the American people want, and take some firm but basic steps, it’s not impossible. Here’s what I, your humble correspondent, would do.

Stop Illegal Immigration

Build the wall.

Tighten security on the Canadian border

Abolish the TSA and turn security responsibility (including identity information technology) over to the FBI, who would contract and oversee private security companies to protect borders, airports, marine ports, and any other egresses. Build stiff financial penalties into their contracts for any security failures. Make the contractors compete for the best performance at a reasonable cost. Reward the successful contractors and terminate the weak ones. Allow them to profile travelers and use any new technology or innovation that works.

Require any foreign nations with passengers/freight to the US to cooperate and meet our standards, or refuse them direct access to our ports.

Establish a security clearance process so that US citizens who travel frequently can be vetted one time and can then move through our ports easily.

Fix Legal Immigration

Revert to the proven effective legal immigration policies of the past that favor limited numbers of immigrants, based on economic conditions, who are self-sufficient, bring needed skills and talents, and will assimilate to our American language, laws, and customs. No more floods of needy third-world, predominantly Muslim, refugees who end up in monolithic ghettos on benefits. Stop using immigration as a forced-charity program, and stop allowing asylum to anyone with a lame story who asks for it. No more H1-B mid-skilled foreigners who take jobs away from Americans.

Establish a sensible work visa system for needed temporary labor, such as seasonal agriculture workers. Enforce minimum wage laws and appropriate working and living conditions.

Have the FBI contract and oversee private IT companies to establish an electronic control system that rigidly tracks all non-citizens on US soil. Non-citizens do not have Constitutional rights and must comply with restrictions and monitoring, utilizing chipped ID cards, GPS, surveillance, or any other methods.

Deal With Illegal Immigrants or Visitors Currently Here

No more government-paid benefits of any kind to non-citizens. Period. This policy change alone would make a huge difference.

Non-citizens who are employed must obtain renewable work visas. Perform rigid enforcement and stiff penalties against non-compliant employers and non-citizen employees, enforced by the FBI. Foreign employees will pay income tax but not social security or any other benefit-related taxes.

Any non-citizen convicted of any serious crime will be deported, along with family members, and permanently barred at the borders and ports.

A few key points: Our government has proven it can not perform any real work with efficiency and effectiveness, so we must turn over the critical tasks of information management and security enforcement to private contractors with firm oversight by Congress and the FBI who should publish performance statistics on the internet. The TSA is a bloated, inept, expensive failure. It must be eliminated. Private businesses who compete with each other for profit have no problem finding process improvements and cost reductions at the same time.

It is metaphysically impossible for the United States citizens to even make a dent in the poverty and insecurity of the entire planet by bringing the poor to our country – follow this link to an amazing video for proof . Forcing taxpayers to participate in the dangerous and ineffective relocation of third-world populations to our own county in the name of charity is just plain crazy. If we think it is in our national interest to help foreigners, it makes so much more sense to use our knowledge, wealth, statesmanship, and military capabilities to help eliminate poverty and oppression where it exists.

And (against my libertarian nature) I believe it’s time for everyone on US soil, citizens and non-citizens alike, to possess a national ID card and use identification technology like other modern nations do.

We have the opportunity to learn from the current and ongoing immigration disaster in Europe. Let’s not miss it. Show me where I’m wrong. Argue the details. But don’t say there’s nothing we can do about the immigration and refugee crisis.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

I hear you knockin’,
But you can’t come in.
I hear you knockin’,
Go back where you been!

I Hear You Knockin’ – Dave Edmunds

Dave Edmunds still sounds mighty fine.

South Carolina Tells Nikki Haley “No Refugees”

Posted on November 18, 2015 by Tom Balek Standard Reply

photo by WLTX President Obama’s accelerated plan to resettle up to 200,000 Syrian refugees in the United States over the next two years faces a tsunami of opposition from American citizens, and their security concerns over the program have pressed elected officials at every level into action.

Senator Jeff Sessions conducted an oversight hearing on the resettlement plan, and today House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell called for a task force to find a way to put the program on hold until their security concerns could be addressed and resolved. A number of congressmen have made statements in opposition, and some have proposed bills prohibiting the resettlement of Syrian refugees in the U.S.

Last night the Dept. of Homeland Security, the FBI, and the State Department held a classified briefing in an attempt to assuage the concerns of members of Congress. South Carolina congressman Mick Mulvaney said the briefing did not offer much new information but added he has done his own research and determined that the vetting process amounts to little more than a question on a form asking, “Have you ever been convicted of a crime?” Mulvaney expects a House vote today which would require the agencies to specifically vet each refugee in detail prior to approval for resettlement. “That would be the ‘pause’ some have referred to,” he said.

Pressure is being applied at the state level as well, and as of this writing over 30 governors have stated opposition to Syrian refugee resettlement in their respective states. South Carolina governor Nikki Haley was an early advocate of the program, but acquiesced to calls for tighter security and wrote a letter to the State Department requesting a hold on Syrian refugees headed for her state. South Carolina state representative Chip Limehouse plans to file a bill that would prevent the state from funding refugee relocation.

At the local level, county councils in South Carolina, supported by fervid testimony from constituents at council meetings, are passing resolutions that they hope would prevent Governor Haley from placing refugees in their counties. Greenville County’s resolution stated, in part: “…the Greenville County Council will not approve or proceed with the United States Refugee Resettlement Program and rejects the expenditure of state funds to assist the United States Refugee Resettlement Program in Greenville County.”

While the Greenville County resolution won unanimous approval, as did similar bills in Berkeley and Pickens counties, York County’s motion by councilman Bruce Henderson failed for lack of a second. Councilman Robert Winkler told me he is completely opposed to any program that might bring a terrorist to our shores. When asked why he wouldn’t second the motion, he said, “We just didn’t have enough time to know exactly what we were voting for. But I don’t really think there is anything we can do about it anyway – if Governor Haley wants to put refugees in our county, she can just do it, no matter what we say.” Winkler pointed out that not much county money is spent directly on refugees other than the cost of police, fire departments, and schools. Benefits such as food stamps, cash welfare, health care and housing are funded by the state and federal governments, so the county does not have any control over expenditures for refugees.

It’s not clear exactly who, if anyone, has the authority to stop the Obama administration from proceeding with the resettlement of Syrian refugees, or, for that matter, any other refugees.

Governor Haley contends that no Syrian refugees have been resettled in South Carolina to date. If the predominantly conservative local and state officials prevail, that status will not change any time soon.

This article is sponsored by Watchdog Arena.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

And if she should tell you “come closer”
And if she tempts you with her charms
Tell her no no no no no-no-no-no
No no no no no-no-no-no
No no no no no
Don’t hurt me now for her love belongs to me

Tell Her No – the Zombies

They song may be from 1965. But the Zombies are still alive!

Refugees Knockin’ At the Door – Don’t Let ‘Em In

Posted on November 17, 2015 by Tom Balek Standard Reply

(AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)

Someone’s knockin’ at the door! Somebody’s ringing the bell!

President Obama sings, “Open the door, and let ’em in.”

Never mind that public opinion weighs heavily against allowing Syrian refugees to resettle in the United States. Or that one of the ISIS thugs who brutally murdered Parisians this week is thought to have used a fake Syrian passport, throwing question on whether refugees can be vetted. Or that thirty-one governors (at last count) are opposed to to importing Syrian refugees.

Other governors, like Republican Nikki Haley of South Carolina and Democrat Steve Bullock of Montana are doing the Kabuki dance on the refugee issue. They were for it before they were against it, and then for it again, kinda, but maybe against it. That kind of Charlie Brown leadership does not enhance political resumes.

Republican presidential candidates? Lock the door. Democrats? Let ’em in.

Refugee resettlement advocates would have us believe that this is not such a big deal – it’s only about a relatively small number of Syrians, most of whom are abused Christians, who are seeking refuge in the United States. If only that were true – any of it.

In the first six weeks of this year 98% of all Syrian refugees resettled in the U.S. were Sunni Muslim. At least 75% of the immigrants flooding into Europe every day through doors specifically swung open for Syrians are not Syrian, and are not refugees. They are opportunists from third-world countries all over Africa and the Middle East, seeking economic benefits. Why shouldn’t we expect the same in the U.S., especially since nearly all refugees here are on food stamps, cash welfare, and other government benefits, according to the Office of Refugee Resettlement?

Not mentioned by the refugee advocates are all the others who are arriving here – the unvetted non-Syrian refugees, the fake asylum seekers, or the illegals who overstayed visas or walked across our porous borders. The recent election of a refugee-happy prime minister to our north doesn’t brighten the situation.

Don’t fall for the crocodile tears. This is not a question of charity – those who clamor for more immigration and refugee resettlement are taking food from the mouths of our own hungry, jobs from our own unemployed, and the hope for a safe nation with traditional American values from our own children. There is no comparing today’s immigration and refugee situation with Ellis Island. This is nothing short of an invasion of our home by people who want to replace us, not join us.

If altruism demands that we help those truly in need, let’s help them in their home countries. Let’s help them defeat their oppressors, if that’s the cause of their misery. But if they won’t defend their own homes and families, and come knocking at our door demanding our food, shelter, and safety, we have no choice.

Close the door. Don’t let ’em in.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Someone’s knockin’ at the door,
Somebody’s ringin’ the bell,
Someone’s knockin’ at the door,
Somebody’s ringin’ the bell,
Do me a favor, open the door
And let ’em in!

Let ‘Em In – Paul McCartney

GOP Candidates: Here’s Why Trump Is Eating Your Lunch

Posted on October 26, 2015 by Tom Balek Standard Reply

photo from sogoodblog.com Conservative voters (still the majority of American-born citizens) are focused on a single overriding issue in their quest for a 2016 presidential nominee, and this explains Donald Trump’s seemingly invincible lead in the primary race.

Other candidates can’t understand why Trump continues to dominate the campaign. He is not consistently conservative, having supported single-payer health care, tax hikes, and earlier Clinton campaigns. He is not opposed to big government, having admitted that in the past he frequently bought off politicians to get favored government treatment. His people skills are awful. He doesn’t have an cogent economic plan, a realistic foreign policy, or a very deep understanding of . . . well, much of anything.

So what separates Donald Trump from every other wannabe President? One thing only. He understands the dangers we face from rapidly increasing immigration (legal and illegal) and refugee resettlement from third-world countries, and he vows to stop it.

And that is enough to put him at the top of the pack of contenders for the most important leadership post in the world.

Thinking Americans instinctively know that we must seal our borders and ports and stop the tsunami of unskilled, needy foreigners. Most immigrants today don’t intend to learn our language, won’t assimilate to our common culture and values, and will not identify themselves as Americans. And even if some do, now is not the time to dilute the resources and spirit that made our country and economy great. Maybe later, if we can get things back under control! But right now our schools, our employers, our workers, our social services and our frazzled nerves need a break.

Think about any problem facing America right now (and there are plenty.) Unemployment, falling wages, national debt, rising crime rates and overcrowded prisons, rising health care cost and declining availability of services, election fraud, failing schools, abuse of women and children, income inequality, national security and threats of terrorism, deteriorating family values. List them in any order of priority you want. Now look back at each item on the list and ask yourself, “which of these situations would be improved for American-born citizens if the flood of immigrants and refugees stopped today?”

Or let’s take the other approach. Which of these problems for American-born citizens would be solved by having more immigration and refugee resettlement?

We need only look to Europe for a preview. Canada is next. If we have such humanitarian concern for downtrodden foreigners, why aren’t we helping them improve their lives in their own homelands? It would cost so much less than moving them here and caring for them. Instead of taking in millions of strong young men from the Middle East, why isn’t Europe arming them to defeat their oppressors? The politically correct position dangerously defies logic.

Donald Trump may not know what end of a toothpaste tube to open. But his many supporters don’t care. Because he, alone among all of the candidates, can state in plain language and in one sentence a way to improve most of the problems facing our nation. Stop the wholesale import of problems from the third-world.

There are many candidates who have skills and experience that Trump can’t begin to compete with. Most of them talk about building a southern fence. Some of them dance around immigration “reform”. Here’s a message for all of them: you’d better get a clue that Americans want immigration and refugee resettlement stopped immediately if you want to have any chance of beating Donald Trump to the White House.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Just eat it! Eat it!
Don’t you make me repeat it!
Have a banana, have a whole bunch
It doesn’t matter what you had for lunch
Just eat it! Eat it!

Eat It – Weird Al Yankovic

Speaking of eating your lunch, and competition and all, here’s Weird Al vs. Michael Jackson. I would have to say Weird Al eats Michael’s lunch . . .

Don’t Feel Guilty If You Are Worried About Immigrants and Refugees

Posted on September 22, 2015 by Tom Balek Standard Reply

guilty-dogs-supercut-compilation I know you are concerned about the exploding levels of legal and illegal immigration and refugee resettlement in the USA. You are worried about the high crime rates among these foreigners, the declining number of employed Americans and falling wage rates, and the destruction of our uniquely successful American economy and culture. But you probably keep your feelings to yourself because the leftists and the media (sorry, that’s redundant) call you selfish, cruel, racist, and hater. They want you to feel guilty.

Don’t feel guilty.

We have been fed a steady diet of lies about immigrants and refugees by our government and the media for decades. This is not a new phenomena – the immigration myths and atrocious government policies date back to Ronald Reagan and Ted Kennedy. But the problem accelerates as Democrats exploit their political advantage with left-leaning third-world invitees, and the world’s poor learn how easy it is to work the system here in the States.

Lies? Here are just a few, from Ann Coulter’s brilliant immigration exposé “¡Adios, America!”:

• In 1986 Congress passed a special agricultural amnesty bill that granted temporary legal status to any illegal alien who claimed to have performed seasonal farm work for 90 days in the previous year. In the first three years 888,637 agricultural amnesty applications were identified as fraudulent, but of those, only 60,020 were actually denied. One can only guess how many millions of applications were rubber-stamped with no scrutiny at all. One of the fraudulent “farm workers” granted amnesty was “Mahmud the Red”, the murderous Muslim who helped the “Blind Sheik” bomb the World Trade Center in 1993.

• Tech magnates Bill Gates of Microsoft, Craig Barrett of Intel, and others convinced Congress that the H1-B visa program was necessary to obtain brainpower from India that they just couldn’t find among America’s college grads. It turns out millions of H1-B immigrants are little more than indentured servants to their American employers, working for substandard wages in fear of losing their legal status, and displacing American workers who are often forced to train them in exchange for severance pay. There is no shortage of qualified American tech workers.

• We are told that most immigrants are here to “do the jobs that Americans won’t do.” But once here, most immigrants and refugees latch on to public benefits and are either unable or unwilling to find jobs, largely because they lack employable skills and make no attempt to assimilate to our customs and language.

There are so many more lies. Most Syrian refugees are not from Syria. Most asylum-seekers are not threatened in their home countries. The majority of “relatives” of immigrants allowed into the USA to reunify families are not related to them. Immigrants do not elevate our economy by paying more dollars in taxes than they consume in government services – not even close! Immigrants are not more likely than native-born Americans to be peaceful, law-abiding citizens.

Many third-world immigrants come from cultures with values that are appalling to Americans, including abuse of women and children. The legal age of marital consent in most of Mexico is 12. Hmong culture considers the rape and prostitution of young girls ordinary, and most of it goes unreported. Muslims practice female genital mutilation, and accept the stoning and murder of women for perceived misbehavior. Illegal border-crossers trash national parks and deface native American antiquities, and continue their littering habits in their new home cities. And while it is human nature for poor people to want the good life that others worked and died for, that does not mean it must be relinquished to them.

Are all immigrants awful people? Of course not. But many are, at least by traditional American standards. The tsunami of legal and illegal immigrants and refugees must stop until we have the ability to keep the awful ones out and invite only those who bring something to the party.

If you have a hinky feeling that the United States is in trouble, don’t feel guilty. You’re right.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

And we got nothing to be guilty of
Our love will climb any mountain,
Near or far , we are
And we never let it end

Guilty – the Bee Gees

Is the U.N. Sending Muslim Refugees to Your Town?

Posted on June 1, 2015 by Tom Balek Standard 4

Very few Americans are aware of the US Refugee Resettlement Program. In compliance with a United Nations directive, the US government pays nine government contractors (six of them ostensibly church-related) handsome fees to arrange for drops of third-world refugees in cities and towns all over our country, without warning or gaining permission from local governments, who are then forced to provide education, medical care, and social services. Ann Corcoran, founder of Refugee Resettlement Watch, has been waving the red flag for many years, trying to draw attention to what she says is a dangerous, secretive program:

In April residents of Spartanburg, SC, were alarmed to learn that their city was slated to receive about 60 of the 70,000 incoming refugees in the upcoming year, without any public approval or information about how they would be assimilated into the community. Under pressure from his constituents, Congressman Trey Gowdy demanded answers from Secretary of State John Kerry:

Dear Secretary Kerry,

I write regarding the potential resettlement of refugees to the Spartanburg, South Carolina, area. It has been reported by media outlets, and confirmed by staff within your Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM), that a resettlement agency submitted a proposal to open an office in Spartanburg. In addition, it is my understanding that the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) approved the request to resettle a certain number of refugees in Spartanburg.

As the Member of the U.S. House of Representatives representing the Spartanburg area, I am deeply concerned about the lack of notice, information, and consultation afforded to me and my constituents about this issue . . .

Congressman Gowdy asked: Who authorized the resettlement and when? How was the decision communicated to state and local officials? What plans are in place to provide and fund food, housing, education and employment for the refugees? The State Department sent a response, but it did not satisfy Congressman Gowdy, and he continues to press the issue.

Meanwhile, South Carolina governor Nikki Haley came out in support of the refugee resettlement program. But she admits the lack of transparency has been a problem.

A main criticism of the resettlement program is inadequate screening of the refugees. Recent news stories about resettled refugees report violent crime, abuse of women and children, refusal to assimilate, and connections to Muslim terrorists. Conservatives also point to the economic impacts – not only the cost of the program, but the seemingly clandestine way that taxpayer funds are diverted to pseudo-charitable agencies run by officials who draw huge salaries.

Since the USA has nothing to gain, and in fact incurs significant cost and risk, by immigrating foreigners from countries who are hostile to us and abhor our way of life, the resettlement program must be considered charity. But by definition, charity is a voluntary act of giving. The refugee resettlement program is yet one more instance of our government taking wealth from taxpaying citizens and extending charity without their consent – or even their knowledge. Our government and news media must provide transparency on this program.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

We got somethin’ we both know it, we don’t talk too much about it
Yeah, it ain’t no real big secret all the same, somehow we get around it
Listen it don’t really matter to me, baby
You believe what you want to believe
You see, you don’t have to live like a refugee

Refugee – Tom Petty