Reply #76: Anchor Babies are US Citizens [View All]

[Theodolite]

Few replies have touched on what I consider to be the most important aspect of the posters question. The children of illegal immigrants are US citizens, they cannot be deported. I saw one figure that 40% of the undocumented population are parents of legal US citizens. If there are 12 million, then almost 5 million are parents. I don't think we could easily deport the parents, it would just be too ugly and who would care for these children. Thus the 5 million parents have a very good reason to stay.

That leaves 7 million to deport. If a mass deportation would appear to be coming ( I don't think it will happen) as many of the 7 million as possible would become expecting parents. We could see 1.5 million+ new anchor babies being born in a year to prevent their parents deportation. I saw a figure claiming that currently there are a little under 400,000 new US citizens being born annually to undocs. I'm all for granting full amnesty to nearly all who are currently here. It is the next 20 to 50 million that want to come that worry me.

If there was an effort for mass deportation, I think we would only be able to remove several hundred thousand a year. After a year or two the effort would be seen as foolhardy and unproductive. It would be abandoned. I don't mean to use the term anchor babies derisively.