Defenders of Illegal Immigrants Need to Refer to Law of the Land

In response to the controversy concerning the cost of providing services to illegal aliens and its toll on the nation’s budget: Once again, this issue has unleashed an outcry from immigrant groups who claim that such actions discriminate against immigrants.

These groups further suggest that such measures are racist and a product of right-wingers in need of a scapegoat during these difficult financial times.

Due to the experience of my own immigrant family, I sympathize with the plight of those hoping for a better life. However, I believe the issue of immigrants’ rights needs to be analyzed without resorting to labels of racism.

First, the budget crisis facing our state and nation is a reality that can no longer be ignored.

Because budget cuts are inevitable, we must analyze the areas of spending to determine the best way of slicing a smaller pie. A perfectly logical question is who is getting what and at what price to the taxpayer. The immigrant rights groups’ immediate response is that such analyzing discriminates again aliens, both legal and illegal.

The key word, of course, is legal or illegal . Being in the United States illegally is breaking the law. Immigrant rights activists erroneously assume that illegals have the same right to the social services of this country as citizens.

It would be ridiculous for an American to slip into Canada, Mexico, France or wherever and expect free medical services and food stamps. Yet this is what is happening in the United States.

The immigrant rights groups argue that undocumented workers pay taxes and contribute to the economy. If one analyzed the ratio of how much is contributed by the low wages of illegals compared with how much is actually being paid in terms of welfare, Medicare and student aid programs, the results would be startling.

In a system already struggling with the cost of health care, it is incomprehensible that doctors and hospitals must care for illegals while the majority of Americans are without medical coverage of any kind.

Higher education has been dealt a blow with tuition increases, yet illegal students are protesting against the possibility of paying out-of-state rates.

Immigrant rights advocates must realize that laws exist for a reason. If illegals wish to come to the United States, they should do so in the same manner as those on the waiting list. By defending the rights of illegals, we discriminate against the rights of not only citizens, but those who wish to come to the United States legitimately.

ELIZABETH NGUYEN, Irvine