Everyone knows that the census occurs every ten years, and thus, is already underway for 2010. Former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio has called for the census to exclude illegal immigrants as part of the population. His opponent for the Republican nominee for the US Senate election, Florida Governor Charlie Crist, has called that assertion "absurd".
"The notion that you wouldn't want to accept federal funding to make a political point is absurd," Crist said.
The point Crist is making is that a candidate can be tough on immigration while still receiving funds that, as Crist sees it, are deserved because, whether or not they are legal residents, they are part of the population, and the state should be funded accordingly.
On his website, Rubio has outlined his views on immigration:
"“Legal immigration has been a great source of strength and prosperity for America, but I believe illegal immigration threatens the foundation of this system. If I had been in the Senate at the time, I would have opposed the McCain-Kennedy bill. I believe we must fix our immigration system by first securing the border, fixing the visa and entry process and opposing amnesty in any reform.”
Seemingly, Rubio would have no problem with including illegal immigrants in the population count; at least then the State would not be worse off as a result of illegal immigration, by Rubio's standard.
As it is, the Census currently does include illegal immigrants, and as the counting is already underway, it seems as though this discussion is moot, however, from Crist's perspective, it says a lot about his willingness to support Florida to send an unnecessary political message.
This is just the latest in a series of debates between the candidates. A battle still raging is over whether or not the stimulus has been successful, and whether or not this makes Crist less of a Conservative for having supported it, despite having rejected a large part of the funds allotted for Florida. Florida accepted only 6.7 percent of the funds allocated to Florida, from a bill that was not adequately funded to begin with.
Rubio maintains that Congress should've passed "across the board tax cuts." However, it is still hotly debated whether the concessions made to Republicans in the composition of the Recovery bill compromised it's strength.
Comments
amamzingly complex issue well reported by joe marhee.
Yes, it is complex, esp. in South Florida.
No, these illegal parasites shouldn't be counted, and if they are counted, then their information should be used to deport them. And any politician who advocates for an illegal alien more so than an American citizen should be relieved of their American public servant duties.
Hey, it has to be the legal way.
Rubio has my vote.
The Census already counts them, but the point Crist was making (I don't necessarily agree with him) was that Florida should collect the federal funding for supporting people who are here illegally since they are, in fact, residing in Florida. He wasn't advocating for immigrant rights or anything, he was taking Rubio to task for excluding them from the count, thus earning Florida less money. Deportation is a Federal issue, and that's something Crist or Rubio could broach as a US Senator, especially if the information on these individuals is available via census.
The only count that should be afforded to illegals is how many are there and how do we get rid of them? To count them for financial gain is just as obstructive as hiring them. If there is not enough money to go around for citizens, why pander to the illegal head count just to get money to continue to coddle them in the American flag? They don't count unless it's to decide how many you can get on a plane to get them back where they belong.
Try living in California where they actually have a loud voice in politics. Every time we try to balance the budget they yell "What about my children?" You're profiling. You're killing children. 80 cents of every Ca. state dollar goes for social programs of which the illegals comprise a huge population who benefit. This has to stop. We're becoming a dumping ground for people who just breed and weed.
Thank you for your comments and you present several cogent points, however, I think it's important to note that the purpose of the Census is to properly account for all residents, legal and illegal, and gather demographic information for the purposes of Congressional representation and other such appropriations.
While I generally agree that including illegal immigrants in the count for the purposes of financial gain is somewhat reprehensible, it could be argued that the federal funds for these people are legitimately needed; You bring up appropriation issues in California, which is what Crist is trying to avoid. If they are accounted for in funding, then legal residents can receive their share of resources rather than having it undercut by a misrepresented population count.
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