Illegal Immigration Declines As Economy Falters

[Purveyor]

(10-02) 07:57 PDT WASHINGTON, (AP) --

Illegal immigration, which has sparked political and social turmoil in communities across the nation, is on the wane, according to an independent report released Thursday.

The number of illegal immigrants entering the United States has slowed significantly the past few years, falling below the number of those entering the country legally, according to the report by the Pew Hispanic Center, a Washington think tank.

The report estimates there were 11.9 million illegal immigrants in the U.S. as of March. That would be a decline of 500,000 from the center's estimate a year ago. However, the change was not statistically significant because of the large margins of error.

The Pew study does not address why the decrease occurred, but other researchers cite the nation's struggling economy and stepped up enforcement of immigration laws.

"The decline in job prospects in construction, service and other low-skilled jobs are communicated through extended networks of would-be movers from Mexico and Latin America," said William Frey, a demographer at the Brookings Institution, another Washington think tank. "It also may propel more return migration."

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AP: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/10/02/national/w075732D19.DTL

[ingac70]

1. Well, the rabid repukes got what they wanted...

No illegal immigrants around to "take our jobs", because they aren't any jobs left to take.

[lib2DaBone]

3. Eggs act ly.. there are no jobs so they all went back to Matamoris.

The Repukes have done their damage. It was never about the "War on 'Terra" or open borders. It was about driving the cost of labor down and putting the bill for all the illegal aliens on the back of the taxpayers. I am in Florida. I saw it first hand. As soon as the jobs dried up you could see the cars heading back towards the Mexican Border. (Literally) Now that Bush got his way (as always) he's going to grab an extra $700 Billion in cash and split for Paraguay. God, the American people are as dumb as a 'Box of Rocks'.

[demnan]

2. Yes and they drove them out of Prince William County in VA

and now we've lost 3 major grocery stores and the place looks like a ghost town.