Of course the Bill did not contain all of the requirements for amnesty asked in the question. And furthermore, even what provisions were in there would likely not be enforced just like or past immigration policies.

As for the point system, we continually lose out on top talent from around the globe because it is a lottery to get into the US rather than a merit system as in almost all other industrialized countries.

Amplifying the previous comment, I demolish their poll here. Does MoJo think its readers are fools?

Polls mean nothing. Look at the 2004 election. The polls were way off. Depending on how the question is asked, a pollster will get the desired result, in this case, for the big capitalists. Wall Street wants cheap labor. That way, they keep your wage down, because there are millions at the border that will do your job for a cheaper price, so stop asking for a wage increase. If you complain too much, we will ship your job overseas where they have no environmental and labor laws.

Now this is sad. MoJo has edited my comment to remove the link which shows how the poll is lying to you. What else is MoJo trying to hide from you?

[moderator's note: the settings for all blogs at motherjones.com automatically strip all html from comments in order to block spam - if you wish to refer to another web site, do not format it as an href]

Now that link didn't show up after I posted it, so type this in: tinyurl.com/2hymmz

The Rasmussen poll(6/11-12) that just came out states: "Sixty-nine percent (69%) of voters would favor an approach that focuses exclusively on “exclusively on securing the border and reducing illegal immigration.” Support for the enforcement only approach comes from 84% of Republicans, 55% of Democrats, and 69% of those not affiliated with either major party."

Who are we kidding here? The Los Angeles Times has lost over half a million subscribers just because of this kind of reporting. The majority of Americans are not in favor of amnesty, which is just what President Bush's bill is all about no matter how he tries to mince his words. And since when are illegal immigrants going to respect the rest of our laws when they can break them at will and have the President endorse that kind of behavior? Americans welcome legitimate immigrants willing to become citizens just as our constitution prescribes. We don't need another "bill" to help renegades enter our country through a wide open border. Makes me wonder how sincere all this talk about terrorism really is coming from that efficiently run Homeland Security Department. Remember Katrina? How about 9/11? Apparently, none of that has brought the President to declare any urgency protecting our Southern Border. The Terrorist Are Coming!!! The Terrorists Are Coming!!!

The war on terror is a sham. Look at the real actions. The borders are not protected. A suitcase nuke could come in on a donkey. 9/11/01 was just some gangsters who were allowed to fly the planes into the buildings and the destruction was more than what the CIA estimated. 9/11/01 was just like Pearl Harbor and Tonkin Gulf, a set up to get us into a bigger war.

I wouldn't mind so much about the amnesty if we were just being honest about it. At the same time I think we are lying to ourselves about border security. Why do we continue to pay the Border Patrol if we don't care who crosses it. I no longer care.

The American capitalists want a limitless supply of low-wage immigrant labor and an end to penalties for hiring illegals. They want the freedom to shut factories here and move them to nations where wages are low, benefits nonexistent and regulations lax. They want to be able to move products back to the United States free of charge. They want to be rid of their American workers, but keep their American consumers.
They want to be able to go out to Asia and hire bright kids and bring them to the United States to replace middle-age U.S. workers who cost too much. They want to be able to outsource their white-collar jobs to India at a fraction of the wages they pay Americans. Do you want this too?

Hurray for Jerry! Hurray for Doug! Hurray for all 'thinking' Americans who want to take back control of this country for AMERICANS! Hello! I didn't fight in Vietnam, and my family didn't fight in WWII for a 'diverse socity' so everyone in the world could come here and enjoy this beautiful country! NO MORE IMMIGRATION, legal or not. Who needs 'em? Personally, I think Mexicans, for the most part, are hard-working, God-fearing people - and some of them should be allowed to stay. But 12 million? Only if they can stay at your house!

Has an environmental impact study been done to determine the effect of adding a nearly infinite number of poor uneducated people to our population?

There have been several studies done regarding the economic impact unchecked immigration will have on this country. I can't quote you any specific studies but a keyword search will allow you to find resources that itemize what effects immigration has had and will continue to have over the next several years. The findings are not very positive. You can also find several books on Amazon that address this issue.

If you think Congress is totally ignorant regarding these long-lasting effects, do not be mislead. Its a "pick & choose" form of governing. Remember its politics. I believe we are running on a false economy and Washington will do anything possible to keep the numbers where they would like them to be. The New York Stock Exchange has gone the way of the computer. Remember those guys in that room screaming and signaling deals on the floor? No more. Its now controlled by computer. My question is why, and whose controlling the computer? Something is very wrong with this picture.

All in all, I believe that everything is tied in together now and all in the name of globalization. I don't think its working very well for the American people...pssst...just don't tell anyone. Let's put on a happy face just like today's journalism.

I don't care what a poll says. Everyone I know is opposed to people swarming across the Rio Grande and then being given a free pass. British, French, Italians, Japanese, Egyptians et al. are all waiting patiently to get here by applying through appropriate channels through US Embassies and Consulates. Mexicans should be going through the same process. And what is the big deal about having educational and professional qualifacations taken into consideration when considering an application for immigration? All other countries do this! I am about as Liberal as you can get in this country and not get locked up, and I bitterly resent the presumption that I am a racist anti-immigrant know nothing because I oppose unrestricted, unregulated immigration through our southern borders. It is sickening to hear Ted Kennedy and Charles Schumer from the liberal, union friendly states of Massachusetts and New York respectively shilling for the corporations who are running the show in Washington. This is all about corporations wanting to keep wages and benefits low and it has become the de facto policy of the US government. They have put in requirements and penalties for the illegals, but these will not be enforced and everyone knows it. They will not secure the southern border, so once we have been fooled into okaying this immigration reform, we can keep a new supply of illegals coming. How stupid do they think we are? Pretty damn stupid I guess.

The resurrected Amnesty Bill went down in flames today. It was a combination of labor(led by Sen Boxer) and the Republican nationalists that shot it down. Word on the street is that the Republican nationalists will throw Bush out of the party. Things are starting to unravel for Bush with his base wanting to throw him out. "Lock and load".