LEAVWORLD: GRAFFITI POLITTI

I haven't read the Senate immigration reform bill yet, and I doubt I ever will. I have heard, and read various accounts about it's content, however, and there is some historical context that should be considered. U.S. immigration policy changed in the 1960's, with the Hart-Celler Act of 1965 . It is interesting to note that this "reform" was enacted one year after the Bracero Program ended, in 1964. That program used Mexicans to replace Americans in the agriculture business. John H. Fund notes that the "Bracero guest-worker program reduced arrests of illegal aliens at the border from over a million in 1954 to only 45,000 by 1959. The number of arrests remained under 100,000 a year until 1964, when President Lyndon Johnson ended the program under pressure from labor unions." Hart-Celler liberalized "family reunification" visa rules, which allowed what's known as "chain immigration," or newly naturalized citizens using their statu...

Sometimes I wonder about the French. Are they as "anti-US" as they are portrayed in the western (especially French and US) media? Apparently not. The people of France have elected Nicolas Sarkozy, a child of a Hungarian immigrant. He has been labeled " l'Americain " and " le copain de George W. Bush " by his Socialist opponents. His message was embraced by the French voters, though it was pro-US, overall. Even his disagreements with US policy are of a constructive nature. There is a French legislative election coming up, which will determine how much in accord they will be with his policies. His election is being well-received in the US, and the UK. Surprisingly, this gives him political capital at home in France. The French may think they gave the Socialists enough of a "slap" by electing Sarkozy to elect a leftist legislature. As I said, I wonder about the French. There are many aspects of Sarkozy's victory that resonate to US conservat...

NY Gov. Spitzer " Becomes First Governor in Nation to Introduce Same-Sex Marriage Bill," according to this latest email I got from the NYCLU: With the support of the Civil Liberties Union and an array of other progressive organizations, Gov. Spitzer introduced a bill to allow same-sex couples equal access to marriage. In response to the governor's April 27 announcement, Empire State Pride Agenda Executive Director Alan Van Capelle said: "Governor Spitzer stands with scores of state senators and assembly members who support marriage equality. He also stands with hundreds of leaders of faith from across the state and hundreds of thousands of union members from some of the state’s largest labor federations on this issue of fairness and equality. The state legislature now needs to get behind the majority of New Yorkers who believe it’s time to act to end discrimination against loving same-sex couples and our families." Unfortunately for the NYCLU, the numbers just a...