Thirty Percent!
Think what it costs to house and feed them.
Not to mention the fact that obviously, that means they're doing a lot of crimes here.
Because they're in jail not for their immigration status, but for breaking other laws.
Which isn't all that surprising, because they're already lawa-breakers to begin with by definition.
People who tend to break some laws tend to break others. That's not surprising.
Look at that figure again, and consider that as large as the illegal alien population here is, it isn't 30% of the country. That means illegal aliens, as a class, are WAY more prone to creating crimes here than the general populace.
These numbers STRONGLY suggest that the view that they are just "otherwise" law-abiding people who are looking for a job is a myth. Their presence increases the crime rate, and imposes additional social costs via the prison burden.
And now I also read this depressing story of how the flood of illegals is costing us all, and gumming up the works of our healthcare and budgetary systems:
US to Pay Hospitals for Illegals' CareIt sounds to me more like he was being resignedly sarcastic than actually wildly enthusiastic about the plan.
WASHINGTON - Health care providers can charge the government for emergency care provided to illegal aliens beginning Tuesday.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued final guidance Monday that sets up a system for reimbursement. Lawmakers set aside $1 billion over four years for the program, created by Medicare legislation passed in 2003.
...
One group that advocates stricter immigration policies said the government's reimbursement of hospitals was the right thing to do.
"It seems to me that if the federal government has abdicated its responsibility for immigration enforcement, then it's responsible for making those jurisdictions whole," said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, a think tank based in Washington.
This is just wrong. Enforce the immigration laws and keep out this criminal element that's bleeding us dry!
Instead, we make it easier for them.
Gosh!
