If they are so great for an economy send them back to their own countries and let them be great there.– Ed
Legalizing the status of the roughly 12 million undocumentedimmigrants (It’s more like 30 million. –Ed) living in America would create jobs, increase wages andboost the sagging U.S. economy, according to a study released Thursday.
“Immigration has a positive effect on the economy,” Hinojosa-Ojeda[UCLA associate professor Raul Hinojosa-Ojeda, the study’s author] toldreporters, saying legalizing undocumented immigrants already in theUnited States could add $1.5 trillion to the gross domestic productover the next 10 years.
Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, disagreed with the study’s conclusions,saying, “Illegal immigrants take jobs from American workers. With 15million Americans out of work, it’s hard to believe that anyone wouldgive amnesty to 12 million illegal immigrants.”
The study was released by the Center for American Progress and theImmigration Policy Center, groups that back legalization proposals. (1)
(1) Under a new accord taking effect on Jan.1, the Center for American Progress will fold a progressive AmericanJewish nonprofit organization, the Israel Policy Forum, into its Mideast studies shop.
A letter sent today from Rudy DeLeon, a former senior Pentagonofficial who serves as CAP’s foreign policy chief, to the Israel PolicyForum’s leaders explained the merger would support the Obamaadministration’s flagging efforts to restart Israeli-Palestiniannegotiations for Palestinian statehood.
“Uniting our efforts under thebanner of Middle East Progress would leverage our ability to supportU.S. policy, bring pragmatic voices into the debate and develop publicsupport for sustained U.S. peacemaking efforts in the region,” DeLeonwrote. Middle East Progress plans to launch “events, publications andcommunications, trips to the region, and outreach” over the next year,and the Center for American Progress has “committed one third” of thebolstered organization’s budget.
An email from IPF’s Nick Bunzl to the organization’s supporterscontaining a copy of DeLeon’s letter stated, “The IPF team is veryexcited to be joining these and our other new colleagues in our sharedmission ‘of supporting a comprehensive Middle East peace, including atwo-state solution with a strong Israel and a viable Palestinianstate.’”