Texas politics: GOP statement on border security and illegal immigration

Sun Jun 4 12:56:16 UTC 2006

Blogging elections and the Capitol with the Chronicle's Austin bureau
June 02, 2006

Texas GOP platform language

For those who want to read it, here's the proposed Texas Republican Party
platform language on border security and illegal immigration. A vote on
the language will occur Saturday. Border Security - We agree with the
overwhelming majority of the American people who support "order on the
border" as the primary principle in tackling the complex issues created by
illegal immigration. The Party believes that all necessary physical,
financial, legal, and technological means must be deployed immediately to
stop the flow of illegal aliens, organized crime and potential terrorists
across our borders.

The Texas Office of Homeland Security and Federal Drug Enforcement
officials report Texas has become the number one drug trans-shipment
center in the nation and that powerful and ruthless Mexican organized
crime groups now dominate the lucrative US drug and human smuggling
market. In at least one documented instance the Mexican military entered
Texas in support of organized drug trafficking operations. Therefore, we
urge immediate and substantial increase of staffing and funding of the
United States Border Patrol to secure our borders and protect our
citizens. The Party encourages the expansion of Operations Strong Safety
and Linebacker to reduce crime and increase security along the Texas
border, and Operation Rio Grande which increases and coordinates law
enforcement assets along the forty-five border counties.

The Party further urges the President to: 1) build a physical barrier
along the entire length of our country's border with Mexico, beginning
with urban interface locations and appropriate monitoring 2) deploy the
Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (I.C.E.) within the U.S. to
locate and secure all illegal aliens who have previously entered our
country and expedite their return to their source country and 3) expand
the use of the National Guard to secure our border. Should the federal
government fail to uphold its constitutionally mandated obligation to
protect the border of Texas, we call upon the Governor and Legislature of
Texas to take action.

Homeland Security - The Party urges the - Homeland Security Department to:
1. revitalize and adequately fund our national intelligence gathering
capabilities;
2. continue to enhance the coordination of information and intelligence
between various local, state, and federal agencies;
3. pass the information on to the local or state agency(s) to prepare to
deter and defend against a risk once identified;
4. not violate the constitutional rights of the citizens of the United
States;
5. provide for the adequate protection of high profile targets, such as
refineries, nuclear power plants and national monuments;
6. enhance the security in use at our airports, navigable ports of entry,
and other transportation terminals to prevent the use of transportation
vehicles as a weapon against the United States;
7. use random selection and terrorist profiling as a criteria for
determining persons to be searched at U.S. airports; and
8. establish and maintain the presence of armed guards and armed pilots on
all commercial aircraft and the immediate authorization of the U.S. Navy
and Coast Guard to board and search all vessels entering U.S. waters from
foreign ports. We urge Congress to order the immediate training of airline
pilots by qualified firearms instructors at reasonable fees for the
protection of their aircraft against terrorist attack.
9. continue to use: Criminal Law Enforcement Investigators, Texas Highway
Patrol strike teams, SWAT teams, aviation assets, Texas Department of
Transportation, Texas Department of Criminal Justice tracking teams, Texas
Rangers, Department of Public Safety strike teams, Game Wardens, local law
enforcement, Civil Air Patrol wherever needed to conduct air and ground
operations in support of Homeland Security; We commend Governor Perry for
his initiative in utilizing these resources.
10. thoroughly inspect the contents of vehicles and containers coming
across our borders, using rapid and accurate technology.

Legal Immigration - The Party believes that America has greatly benefited
from immigrants who have legally come to this country to work and begin a
new life reflecting American values and traditions.

We support:
1. systematic assimilation of legal immigrants into the American culture;
baseline requirements for citizenship to include proficiency in the
English language, study of American history and of the American form of
government;

2. development of a practical, limited, and temporary worker program that
does not serve as an automatic path to citizenship;

3. firm and consistent enforcement of all existing immigration laws;

4. an immediate end to the practice of "chain migration";

5. aggressive locating and deporting of aliens who have overstayed their
visas;

6. establishing immigration quotas at levels that are sufficient to meet
America's needs;

7.

8. An immediate end to the practice of allowing aliens "adjust status" by
requiring them to "adjust" in the U.S. Embassy of their home country; and
further, a waiver of the unlawful presence inadmissibility for those
illegal aliens who register on their return trip to their home country
while they legally wait for an immigrant visa.the cessation of the
issuance of visas to individuals from foreign countries that sponsor
terrorism;

9. screening potential immigrants for communicable diseases;

10. witholding federal funds from universities that give lower in-state
tuition rates to immigrants on student visas, or refuse to cooperate with
the foreign student tracking system;

11. designating Non-Citizens as such on their driver's license to prevent
voter fraud; further, to require that driver's licenses expire on the same
date of any visa;

12. requiring naturalized citizens to renounce their native citizenship
and surrender their foreign passport; and

13. a tamper-proof identification and tracking system for all aliens, i.e.
non-citizens and their dependents that would protect Hispanic, and other
naturalized US citizens from job discrimination and unburden American
businesses from the job of verification.

Illegal Immigration - No amnesty! No how. No way.
With growing impatience, the American people in overwhelming numbers have
asked our government to secure our borders. They now demand it and we as a
party agree with the American people. Illegal aliens have, by definition,
committed a criminal act. The Party opposes illegal immigration, amnesty
in any form, or legal status for illegal immigrants. The American people
remember the broken promises of 1986 and will not be misled again.
We support:
1. an immediate end to the current "catch and release" policy of Homeland
Security;
2. stiffer fines, criminal penalties, and an aggressive enforcement policy
for those who knowingly employ illegal workers; and
3. expeditious hearings on deporting non-violent illegal immigrants held
in prisons or jails;
4. suspending automatic U.S. citizenship to children born to illegal
immigrant parents;
5. elimination of federal funding to cities that have "sanctuary" laws
prohibiting local police from identifying and reporting illegal immigrants
to federal authorities;
6. empowering state and local law enforcement agencies with the authority,
responsibility and resources needed to detain illegal immigrants within
the course of their regular duties;
7. the rejection of non-verifiable foreign-issued cards, such as matricula
consular as valid identification for official documentation purposes;
8. investigation and strict prosecution of agencies, businesses or persons
involved in the production, distribution or acceptance of phony
identification documents;
9. elimination of day labor work centers;
10. elimination of all laws requiring hospitals to give non-emergency
medical care to illegal immigrants;
11. elimination of social security benefits or government funding to
illegal immigrants for education, housing and business loans;
12. legislation to prevent any foreign country and/or its citizens from
using the judicial system of the United States to gain entrance to the
U.S.;
13. strong document verification prior to the issuance of a Texas drivers
license to anyone;
14. the withholding of federal highway funds from any state that issues
drivers licenses to illegal aliens;
15. aggressive prosecution of persons involved in smuggling humans across
our borders.

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