When it comes to illegal immigration, EVERYBODY WINS! Except you, of course you lose

Americans tend to agree we need some kind of immigration reform, but they can't agree on how bad the problem is, or even what that reform should look like. Here is a story that will shock you into thinking harder about the problem.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - According to the Department of Justice, 96 percent of illegal immigrants who entered the United States from Central America last summer, are still in the country. Their presence is funded by taxpayers and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) is refusing to provide the true cost of this monumental disaster.

Illegal immigration is a disaster, no matter how you look at it. What compels a person and their family to willingly and knowingly circumvent the laws of at least two nations, and to leave one home in search of another? What compels a family to split itself with some leaving and some staying?

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What is the cost of this activity? Do its harms, which are many, outweigh the benefits? What about the benefits to the American taxpayer? Who speaks for the taxpayers these people depend on after they're taken into custody?

What is the political impact of a failed immigration policy?

If you're taxpayer, I have some very bad news for you.

Illegal immigration is spurred by many factors, but the most cited reason is economic opportunity. Few people feel they have the freedom and opportunity in their homes to lift themselves out of poverty. For them, the only path to stability and security is through the United States. As humans, they do have a right to security and stability, but as Americans, we have no obligation to provide these things to non-citizens, especially those who break our laws to enter the country.

The cost of the activity is substantial. In fact, it can't even be estimated accurately. However, it is certainly worth it to the illegal immigrants and their families. Billions of dollars are sent south every year to sustain people who would otherwise suffer in abject poverty without those remittances. Current estimates place the figure around $60 billion annually to just Mexico alone. 

For politicians, illegal immigration is worth a lot of money. For those on the left, talk of "compassionate" reform gains them millions of votes. Note that compassionate doesn't apply to taxpayers, just illegals. For those on the right, the problem also garners them millions of dollars and votes, creating a powerful disincentive for them to actually do anything decisive about the issue.

If a single governor or president wanted to secure the border, they could do so within hours or days by simply issuing an order. It's telling that none of them ever do.

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As for taxpayers, it's all pain and no gain. Everybody wins but the taxpayer.

According to Breitbart News, the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) used the Freedom of Information Act to send five requests to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency asking about the costs associated with detaining and processing just unaccompanied minors in 2012. That was the year after President Obama granted executive amnesty to these youths.

Breitbart explained that ICE refused to answer all of the questions, instead saying only that the cost of transporting and deporting illegal minors, as well as the man-hours involved, totaled $58,2 million in 2012. That number was four times what it was in 2011. The obvious conclusion is that Obama's amnesty encouraged mass immigration.

FAIR expressed concern that the government is either not documenting costs correctly, or they are simply refusing to share those costs.

Today, 96 percent of all those who have entered the country illegally in the past year are still in the United States. Some are in detention centers, but many more have been farmed out to communities all over the nation where they live, still illegally, subsidized by taxpayers.

Food, shelter, healthcare and education are all provided by the federal government, that is to say, they are provided by you, the taxpayer.

This would not be a problem if you, as a taxpayer wanted to authorize this kind of charity. It's a noble way to be. However, this is not what taxpayers want. Nor do taxpayers want to authorize a blank check to the federal government for the care and housing of endless streams of illegal immigrants who have little regard for the rule of law.

The American people are being fleeced by both Republicans and Democrats. Our nation's laws and policies are jokes to the international community. Most importantly, the American people are being disrespected by our political class and the heads of various agencies who have sworn to be responsible with the American trust. In fact, this disrespect is so extreme, public servants don't even feel that have to follow the law and reply to requests about how they spend our tax dollars.

How much longer do you want to abide this?

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