Trump orders wall to be built on Mexico border

[Minimalist]

Make them face consequence if they do exploit them.  

That being said, I'd be in favor of not making them (illegals) so vulnerable in the first place with things like easy roads to citizenship.

Isn't the road to citizenship already pretty reasonable? What I remember from when my parents became citizens is they had to take a citizenship test, which they received study guides for. Since I was under 18 (16) I automatically became a citizen when they did. We lived here for 9 years as legal immigrants before becoming citizens. That all seems reasonable enough to me.

How would we go about making it easier?

There is no path to citizenship for people who are already here illegally.  That is exactly the problem.

[The Grand Nudger]

One thing I don't get is instead of spending exorbitant amounts of money in deportation and walls, why not make becoming a citizen very, very easy, cheap and fast?

Easy question, the people who like walls and mass deportation aren't too fond of mexicans.  No one wants to hear it, everyone wants there to be something more to it.  There isn't.  

We'd get them socials, IDs, they'd pay taxes, etc etc.  

hehehehe, they already do....

The biggest complaint I hear about immigrants is the "they take our jobs" and "they don't pay taxes" and "they're using gov't services without giving anything back."  So...make it easy to become a citizen, and that kinda alleviates those problems, doesn't it?  Or at least they'll be arrested if they don't pay taxes...like my uncle.

Those aren't problems.  No one is taking anyones job, they do pay taxes, and they aren't eligible for "government services" (I do so love how the language in the executive order makes that whistle an issue of national policy, though).  The problem...is that they're just too damned mexican.  They don't have to dodge taxes to get arrested, they can get arrested for driving while brown. You don't even have to be a mexican to get pulled for driving while brown, happens to plenty of citizens.

[LadyForCamus]

What a deliciously racist explanation Scoobs.  Thank you.  Did you do that on purpose or by accident?  Perhaps...by googling "why build the border wall"....?

RHYTHM!  I didn't realize this was you, haha!  Seriously, you guys need to stop changing your user names, it's messing with my head!  

[The Grand Nudger]

Keepin ya on yer toes! 

---

Speaking of, where did the "what's racist about that" crowd slither off to, anyway?  It's just not murica without their voices in the mix.

[Catholic_Lady]

Isn't the road to citizenship already pretty reasonable? What I remember from when my parents became citizens is they had to take a citizenship test, which they received study guides for. Since I was under 18 (16) I automatically became a citizen when they did. We lived here for 9 years as legal immigrants before becoming citizens. That all seems reasonable enough to me.

How would we go about making it easier?

Honestly, I dunno.  I've no idea how arduous the citizenship process is (or isn't), but for some reason there are millions and millions of people that would rather risk deportation or dirt-poor wages rather than go through that process. Maybe they simply don't know it's a possibility, or maybe they're afraid that if they come forward to become a citizen after being illegal for a few years, that they'll be arrested anyway.

And quick question - when your parents became citizens, were they in the country legally already? If so, I imagine they didn't have to worry about any (or at least most) of the things that illegals do.

Yes, we were legal immigrants for 9 years before becoming citizens.

I don't know why some ppl dont just go through the whole process legally. But I guess regardless of how "easy" we make it, there are always going to be those who simply won't bother with it.

[FatAndFaithless]

Honestly, I dunno.  I've no idea how arduous the citizenship process is (or isn't), but for some reason there are millions and millions of people that would rather risk deportation or dirt-poor wages rather than go through that process.  Maybe they simply don't know it's a possibility, or maybe they're afraid that if they come forward to become a citizen after being illegal for a few years, that they'll be arrested anyway.

And quick question - when your parents became citizens, were they in the country legally already?  If so, I imagine they didn't have to worry about any (or at least most) of the things that illegals do.

Yes, we were legal immigrants for 9 years before becoming citizens.

I don't know why some ppl dont just go through the whole process legally. But I guess regardless of how "easy" we make it, there are always going to be those who simply won't bother with it.

But I'm talking about people who are here illegally. If they run over the border (or simply overstay a student/work visa) because they want to make some money to send back home to their impoverished family, and then are hired by a company at dirt-poor wages...they're illegal. They don't get the citizenship study guides sent to them, they don't go to citizenship classes, and they sure as hell aren't going to appear anywhere near a courtroom to get some ID.

When I said 'process for becoming a citizen' I meant for illegals, should've clarified that.

[The Grand Nudger]

Here's a fun q, how will we fill our new camps?  What will the sop be for all the new employees.  Just how do you figure out whether or not someone is illegal.  What does being under suspicion of being illegal entail?  How do they propose to differentiate between citizens and illegals?

Random checkpoints at which you will be asked to show your papers?
Raids on businesses to demand that employees produce a birth certificate?
Pulling over people that look "immigranty"?

All of the above?

(you know the best way to get em would be to require a valid, federally issued, "citizen" id at the grocery store checkout for all purchases, put a little camera on top of the lane light - bingo. You'd catch the aiders and abettors easy too...abnormally large "ethnic" food purchases.)

[abaris]

I don't know why some ppl dont just go through the whole process legally. But I guess regardless of how "easy" we make it, there are always going to be those who simply won't bother with it.

Because they can't, as min already pointed out. If they're illegals, they can't. If they're not desirable, they can't move legally to the states, so they haven't got the opportunity to go through the process.

[Catholic_Lady]

Isn't the road to citizenship already pretty reasonable? What I remember from when my parents became citizens is they had to take a citizenship test, which they received study guides for. Since I was under 18 (16) I automatically became a citizen when they did. We lived here for 9 years as legal immigrants before becoming citizens. That all seems reasonable enough to me.

How would we go about making it easier?

There is no path to citizenship for people who are already here illegally.  That is exactly the problem.

Well then dont be here illegally lol. There's a legal way to do it. And unless you're a refugee who is literally running for your life and can't afford to wait or w/e, you really should do things the legal way.

[FatAndFaithless]

There is no path to citizenship for people who are already here illegally.  That is exactly the problem.

Well then dont be here illegally lol. There's a legal way to do it. And unless you're a refugee who is literally running for your life and can't afford to wait or w/e, you really should do things the legal way.

...but what about the 11 million that are already here?