I think I’ve played out the vein of environmentally-related items for a bit, so I’ll turn my attention to something interesting that popped up in my e-mail from my friends at the Center for Immigration Studies.
The paper by writer and professor Stanley Renshon opens with a “news story” set in July of 2009 where non-citizens in the country six months are suddenly granted voting rights. While it doesn’t specifically mention who would be President, arguably such a bill would be signed by a Democrat; however given John McCain’s feelings on immigration it’s not a real stretch to suggest he might do so as well. Several local jurisdictions already grant the vote to non-citizens, a trend that began right here in Maryland.
Of course, our fair state is now one of just five that doesn’t verify citizenship before giving out driver’s licenses (h/t to O’Malley Watch) so I’m a bit surprised that a similar bill wasn’t introduced in our General Assembly this year. There’s enough friends of CASA de Maryland there that such a bill could easily pass, although it might be with less than 80 votes in the House of Delegates and something like a 25-22 vote in the Senate. Regardless, I would give such a bill about a 60% chance if one were introduced next time around.
While I have nothing at all against people who want to come here and take their shot at the American Dream (after all, my ancestors did about a century ago) there needs to be limitations on their number and skill level, both of which we have, and some limit on the rights they can claim until they take the solumn vow to become citizens. Too often we see immigrants who are in this country illegally solely to work and send the money back to their families, people with no intention on becoming citizens yet demanding the rights we as citizens have. That needs to stop.
Returning to the subject of Renshon’s essay, it illustrates another example of slippery slope politics. Until recent times, there wasn’t even a question or discussion of the subject of non-citizen voting because it was understood that voting was a solemn duty to be performed by those who were either born here or made the effort to gain citizenship after years of waiting and paperwork. But somewhere, a small group of people got the bright idea that the voices of immigrants were not being heard and, after some searching for a willing group of fellow travelers who had the power to change this, managed to get a foothold over in Takoma Park about 15 years ago. And once a precedent is set, cities who want to appear “progressive” fall all over themselves to adopt similar regulations and then the growing chorus sets their sights on higher levels of government in the name of equality – after all, it’s not fair that people in this city can do something whereas people in another city cannot. Never mind that the principle is flawed.
On the other hand, cities like Hazleton, Pennsylvania, who wish to control the tide of illegal immigrants and aren’t falling all over themselves to give them undeserved rights are immediately taken to court and placed at the mercy of activist judges who decide what they think is fair. Of course, the more voters that can be recruited to that side, the easier it is for sympathetic lawmakers to be elected (who in turn place activist judges on the bench) and the more goodies that non-citizens can and will think they’re entitled to.
Since most Americans are against these sorts of laws, the only method currently available to enact them (or stop an ordinance like Hazleton passed) on a larger level is through the judicial system. By actively seeking to give non-citizens the right to votes, those on the far left are looking at another way to game the system and guarantee themselves the power to redistribute income from the producers to those the left wing favors in return for votes, ill-gotten or not.
