If you are looking for small-minded thinking and a laughable lack of common sense, Kansas Senators seldom disappoint.
I got this email today regarding a Kansas Senate vote on the issue of Illegal Immigration. It was from Donald Betts (never heard of him). Apparently he is a Kansas Senator from Wichita. It is usually hard for me to open and read these emails, because I seldom agree with the excuses they tend to offer for the lack of intelligent leadership in the State. Reluctantly, because this is such an important topic to all communities, I opened it anyway.
A snippet:
Senate Bill 458, which was approved by members of both parties will enact the Kansas Illegal Immigration Relief Act. The Act includes several initiatives to help protect employees, businesses, law enforcement, and those who have been exploited or abused.”
This produces an initial titter at the thought that businesses and law enforcement might be lumped into a category of those who need “protection” under the law regarding this issue. Businesses and law enforcement --victimized by illegal immigration?! My, my.
“An amendment introduced by Senator Phil Journey would have closed the doors of local businesses found to have hired illegal employees. Under the amendment, a business that has been found to knowingly hire illegal workers three times would permanently lose their license/s and status as a corporation.
The amendment failed 27-12 on a roll call vote. I agree that fines and restrictions for businesses that knowingly break state laws should be tightened, but such a provision would hurt the business economy and our ability to attract new businesses to Kansas.”
God help us!!!! What kind of fuzzy-headed logic is this? (And this is a Democrat?!) This sounds like the parents who have a party in their basement that serves booze to minors—hey they’re going to do it anyway, let’s make it safe for them to do it where we can see them. The Kansas Senate is serving up the illegal immigrant to Kansas businesses with the logic that they’re going to do it anyway, so they may as well do it here.
This amounts to tacit approval by the Kansas legislature by inferring that if we passed this law, business in Kansas would come to a standstill and no new business would want to relocate here. If this is truly the case, it serves as PROOF that the real problem behind the whole illegal immigration crisis is business itself. Businesses that lure illegals to come to Kansas to work. It amounts to collusion with corporate interests that are using illegal immigrants to drive down the wage for all Kansas workers.
“Another amendment would have denied all state and local benefits to illegal aliens, including retirement benefits, welfare, heath care, disability benefits, housing, post-secondary education, food assistance, and unemployment benefits, among others. Because state agencies already have citizenship requirements in place, the amendment was found to be unnecessary and failed on a 12 to 26 vote.”
Okay, so this sounds like something sensible (as such totally out of character for the Kansas legislature). I must give credit where it is due. This is the kind of thing that the fear-mongerers are always harping on; welfare for illegals. They love to make it look like governments LOVE to give money away to lazy immigrants. This is proof that it simply is not true; illegals are not offered government assistance. It is brave of the legislature to vote against this amendment, because you can just bet it will be used against them future misleading campaign literature. And just when you think that the Senate has become a reasonable body…
“A controversial amendment introduced by Senator Karin Brownlee will fine labor unions $2,000 for each membership due collected from an illegal immigrant. Several Senators spoke out against the amendment, citing that fines were much harsher for unions (which members join voluntarily) than for large corporations. Unions also have no reasonable means of verifying the residence of members, and therefore, won’t have a way to prevent members from lying about their citizenship status. The amendment was narrowly passed on a 19 to 18 vote.”
Hello Whack-A-Doos! I just knew they couldn’t be sensible for long. Kansas is SUCH a big UNION state, anyway. This amendment is going to affect REAL CHANGE and protect Kansas workers from those terrible nasty unions that are…what?? Protecting the immigrant worker right alongside the naturalized worker? Ohhhhh, those vicious unions!! This will teach them to protect worker’s rights! Unions are really the heart of this whole immigration issue from which we need relief.
Congratulations Karin Brownlee; you win the knee-jerk moron of the month award! And let the Kansas Senate share the glory, since they didn’t have the sense God gave a worm to realize that this is a WORTHLESS law that unjustly penalizes what few unions may exist in Kansas (the Right-To-Work-For-Peanuts State).
“The House of Representatives will debate the immigration issue today. The Senate will then have the option of concurring with the House’s version of the bill, or can choose to appoint a conference committee to iron out a compromise bill.
Should a conference committee be appointed, it is likely that we will have yet another immigration debate before a final bill is sent to the governor for approval.”
Which leaves us open for future legislative idiocy. Great. Kansas: As Dumb As You Think Sphere: Related Content
