If you listen to, and believe the news, “illegal aliens” are rampaging through our cities and causing all kinds of havoc. Every day, you see headlines about raids of businesses, across the economic spectrum. All this to arrest criminals who are contributing nothing to the economy of the United States, according to Donald Trump. Yet somehow these same people are also consuming resources that should go to the ‘hard working citizens’ of this country. They are literally arresting people who are actively employed, contributing to the success of this country, and in most cases will never see any of the benefits that they are paying in to.
The problem with these raids, at least as they have been reported, is one simple fact: There are no repurcusions for the employers. Is it any wonder why undocumented people come to the United States? There are plenty of businesses willing to hire undocumented people. And so the rewards out-weigh the risks of traveling, the risks of being caught, the risks of being deported.
I'm not saying that a business who has done everything it can to verify that an employee is authorized to work in this country should be held accountable. It is the companies that knowingly employ undocumented people that are the real issue here.
In Florida, where over 100 people were detained and arrested from a job site of one company, the law on the books is quite tough when it comes to holding businesses accountable. However, in reality most business owners face a maximum of a $500 fee, and / or potentially 60 days in jail. Anyone who pays attention to how those and / or laws go knows that the only time jail time is ever mentioned is when the business owner can’t pay the fine in question. Without penalties that cost a business more than the savings the company gets employing undocumented people, this cycle will never end.
By closing the loop, and enforcing lawful accountability on businesses that knowingly hire undocumented workers, it would encourage a higher focus on legal immigration for those coming here.
It's all fine well and good to chase down and deport undocumented immigrants, provided that they each receive due process under the laws of this country. But without actual enforcement of punishments against the companies that hire these people, any supposed goal of reducing undocumented immigration is a little like pissing in the wind.
Why are these people going after the undocumented, and not the businesses that are employing them?
