Letters to the Editor
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Placating the American (GOP, Democratic, Progressive, Conservative, Libertarian) base
If you hadn't noticed it yet, a huge majority of Americans, coming from across the entire political spectrum, are opposed to the entry of illegal aliens into the United States. the myth promulgated by articles like this one is that intolerance for massive illegal immigration is a defining characteristic of gun-totin' redneck Republicans. Not so! And for very good reasons, which boil down to three major issues: the depression of wages and opportunities for native-born and legal immigrant Americans, the additional strain and expense illegals put on schools, hospitals, police, and other social services, and the problems we all face due to higher population density: water, food, pollution, and wilderness and resource protection.
The only people benefiting from the current arrangement, aside from the illegals themselves, are the corporations, George W. Bush's "base". President Bush keeps warning about a labor shortage if the illegal immigration flood is staunched. Most working Americans would welcome this as an opportunity for wage increases and promotion.
Salon writers need to recognize that the objection to illegal immigration characterizes their mostly Democratic readers just as much as it characterizes redneck Republicans.