Something has been bothering me about the whole ICE situation in the US, and I think I just realized what it is.
1. Nobody outside of some right wing fanatics actually WANTS masked secret police running around snatching people off the street, taking them to secret jails, and then sending them God only knows where without so much as a lawyer.
2. Nobody outside of some left wing fanatics wants to live in a country where there's no border, no border enforcement, and all of the worst violent criminals on the planet are free to come and wreak havoc with impunity.
3. At present, there's already double-digit millions of illegals in the US, enough that trying to physically pick them up and deport them one-by-one is impractical. But to do so and also give each one a fair hearing with a lawyer and other things we've come to expect - that's laughably unrealistic.
But ICE is trying to do just that. And they claim that due process is unrealistic, but it's only because they're pursuing a strategy which MAKES it unrealistic.
If instead of trying to physically grab and deport every illegal, they would just assess fines for people employing or housing them, the whole job could be done with a few thousand agents.
And they could AFFORD to give every defendant full due process, with lawyers and appeals and everything, because enforcement would be RARE.
> Hello, this is officer Smith from the ICE, we need to inspect your job site.
> We're not going to arrest or deport you, we just need to ask you a few questions.
> We have observed $PERSON on your job site and we believe them to be illegal, you have 90 days to submit evidence of their status or you will be fined. Because you are a small business, the fine will be $5000, but the fines for subsequent infractions will escalate. You can pay or else appeal the matter in court.
This would be humane and also effective, what ICE is doing now is neither.
1. Nobody outside of some right wing fanatics actually WANTS masked secret police running around snatching people off the street, taking them to secret jails, and then sending them God only knows where without so much as a lawyer.
2. Nobody outside of some left wing fanatics wants to live in a country where there's no border, no border enforcement, and all of the worst violent criminals on the planet are free to come and wreak havoc with impunity.
3. At present, there's already double-digit millions of illegals in the US, enough that trying to physically pick them up and deport them one-by-one is impractical. But to do so and also give each one a fair hearing with a lawyer and other things we've come to expect - that's laughably unrealistic.
But ICE is trying to do just that. And they claim that due process is unrealistic, but it's only because they're pursuing a strategy which MAKES it unrealistic.
If instead of trying to physically grab and deport every illegal, they would just assess fines for people employing or housing them, the whole job could be done with a few thousand agents.
And they could AFFORD to give every defendant full due process, with lawyers and appeals and everything, because enforcement would be RARE.
> Hello, this is officer Smith from the ICE, we need to inspect your job site.
> We're not going to arrest or deport you, we just need to ask you a few questions.
> We have observed $PERSON on your job site and we believe them to be illegal, you have 90 days to submit evidence of their status or you will be fined. Because you are a small business, the fine will be $5000, but the fines for subsequent infractions will escalate. You can pay or else appeal the matter in court.
This would be humane and also effective, what ICE is doing now is neither.
