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Jonathan Alcorn / Reuters
People line up for assistance with paperwork for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program at the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California, August 15, 2012.
WASHINGTON — More than half of U.S. citizens believe that most or all of the country's 11 million illegal immigrants should be deported, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Wednesday that highlights the difficulties facing lawmakers trying to reform the U.S. immigration system.
The online survey shows resistance to easing immigration laws despite the biggest push for reform in Congress since 2007.
Thirty percent of those polled think that most illegal immigrants, with some exceptions, should be deported, while 23 percent believe all illegal immigrants should be deported.
Only 5 percent believe all illegal immigrants should be allowed to stay in the United States legally, and 31 percent want most illegal immigrants to stay.
These results are in line with other polls in recent years, suggesting that people's views on immigration have not changed dramatically since the immigration debate reignited in Congress last month, according to Ipsos pollster Julia Clark.
"It's not Americans' views that are shifting. It is that the political climate is ripe for this discussion," after the November election when Hispanics voted overwhelmingly in favor of Democratic President Barack Obama, she said.
"Democrats feel that the time is right to capitalize on their wins and Republicans feel that they had a bad blow and are eager to reach out to Hispanics," she added.
Polls show that most Americans back immigration reform, although they often have different ideas of what that means, with some people favoring looser immigration laws while others want to see greater border security.
A group of eight U.S. senators are working on a bipartisan deal to enact immigration reform, the first major attempt since a similar overhaul died in Congress six years ago.
The senators' proposal calls for a full path to citizenship for illegal immigrants once they pay back taxes and a fine and wait in line behind others applying to become Americans.
A plan by Obama has similar provisions, but the senators want any move to relax immigration laws dependant on boosting security on the southern border.
Attitudes toward immigration are polarized by party, according to another the Reuters/Ipsos poll. Seventy-five percent of Republicans think all or most immigrants should be deported, compared to 40 percent of Democrats who think the same.
Republican Senator John McCain, one of the eight senators in the group, had his own encounter with citizens angered by illegal immigration on Tuesday when residents of his state of Arizona complained bitterly at a town hall meeting about the lack of security on the border with Mexico.
One man asked why troops had not been deployed to the border.
"Why didn't the army go down there and stop them? Because the only thing that stops them I'm afraid to say, and it's too damn bad, is a gun," the man said.
Another resident, Keith Smith, got into a testy exchange with McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential candidate whose views on immigration have fluctuated over the years.
"Cut off their welfare and all their stuff and they'll go back," Smith said, referring to undocumented workers.
McCain had been trying to explain his position: "You're not telling these people the truth. They mow our lawns, they care for our babies, they clean ... that's what those people do," he said.
The Arizona lawmaker, whose position on immigration hardened during the 2010 midterm elections before softening again, is a key part of the Republican side of the senators' bipartisan immigration effort.
Wednesday's Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted Friday through Tuesday and surveyed 1,443 Americans over the age of 18.
The precision of the Reuters/Ipsos online poll is measured using a credibility interval. In this survey, the poll has a credibility interval of plus or minus 2.9 percentage points.
Additional reporting by Tim Gaynor in Phoenix
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Hey setterspeach do you mean my retirement pay for 29 years as a military officer? Ya tea bagger fatasses like you would certainly not like to pay taxes for that. Or my social security when I turn 65.
The borders should always be open to our neighboring countries. US citizenship should only be offered and approved after the applicant has met rigid standards. The US does not owe citizenship to citizens of other countries. Period.
Only people who do not value US sovereignty will shout that US citizenship should be freely available for the asking. Unfortunately, there are a lot of those sorts in the US, a number of whom are US citizens. To encourage citizenship approval for foreigners in anticipation of winning their votes is what should be considered a criminal and traitorous act.
There is nothing wrong with being proud of US citizenship. There is something wrong with diluting our citizenship with individuals whose loyalties lie in other countries.
In the past the US has been generous in its hand outs to the needy in all foreign countries. More recently, because we are financially bankrupt, greatly due to the huge numbers of illegals in the US and all that that brings in expenses to the government, the US is finding it necessary to borrow money to fund foreign aid. This is ludicrous at best. Another statement of how poorly the US government functions.
This is the case..... America was founded on immigrants! legal immigrants.... I have met many people as I have travelled around the world..... everyone wants to come to America but can't come legally.. it is almost impossible... I wonder how the US survived all this time without bringing in illegals..... the world is beautiful, people should work towards making their own country a paradise......
Republican and democrat politicians are to blame. 40 years of this problem and no solutions. The fence is only partially built. Thousand years ago China built the Great Wall. We protect S Korea on the 38Th parallel with a border zone that a mosquito could barely get through. And us? We get nothing, what a bunch of morons we continually elect. Votes do matter.
this poll must be wrong because barry told us that everyone wants the illegals here and are even willing to pay more to cover them with free medical care, whos telling the truth ?
Nice catch. The idea is to bury the facts regarding every issue in BS thereby rendering the US citizenry both stupid and ignorant.
"The Obama administration ultimately set a record for deportations in the fiscal year that ended in September, expelling 409,849 people, the most in ICE’s history."
ajc.com/news/news/feds-considered-broad-sweeps-to-boost-deportation-/nWTGF/
just execute them and dump the bodies in the desert...dead illegals do not slither back across the border
Yea!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Kick them all out now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Where was the media before the election? They lied about how many wanted hispanics to stay. They lied about us wanting to tax the rich more, they lied about the 51% that voted for Obama. The media is under the control of Obama and they lie for this man. Just like he blames the Reps. for the up coming seq. It was Obama who wouldnt listen to the panel of 3 Dems and 3 Reps. that he asked to come up with a plan.. He refused to listen to them and that is why we are here now.. He keeps saying it is the Reps.. It is him.. He hasnt met with congress for a year.. He would rather golf or hang out with the hollywood crowd or do anything other than work as President.. The media better start telling the truth.
Are you really this stupid? Or just totally brainwashed by the right wing propaganda machine. Because I hate to rain on your media/President Obama bashing parade, but our media is ONE HUNDRED PERCENT corporate controlled. In fact, 6 corporations at this moment control an incredible NINETY PERCENT of media in America. And that media DEFINTELY leans conservative, not liberal. Not in entertainment, but in news reporting and how stories are reported, there is zero doubt that our media perfectly fits the following quote from the late Australian Social Scientist Alex Carey:
"The 20th century is marked by three historic developments: the growth of democracy via the expansion of the franchise, the growth of corporations, and the growth of propaganda to protect corporations from
democracy".
We, the citizens of the United States of America, have lost our country and our rights to crooked politicians and lobyists and big business.
The illegals have more rights and protection that you or I. The crooks are geting rich off them and they will never vote to expell them or refuse them citizenship.
The voters are stupid. They keep the same idiots in, election after election. We say that there should be term limits and the crooks in Wash. respond that there are term limits at the polls. They know the stupid voters will re-elect them so they refuse to pass a term limit bill.
We are stupid.
Thats right leon
Start by telling the media to stop telling the voters that they are "throwing away their vote by voting 3rd or 4th party" also enough with the voter poles. Just turn off the bla,bla,bla media.VOTE.
The entire congress, senate, and executive branches need to go and read a little bit of history and maybe they will start to understand what "for the people" or "by the people" means, but until people stop voting the same idiots back into office, nothing will change !! That is the true definition of insanity....keep doing the same thing and expect different results !!
You appear to not know the difference between a democratic republic and a democracy. The US is the former.
The majority of Americans think Obama is an idiot yet hold jobs and didn't bother to vote. Voting is so much easier when your entire schedule for a month is highlighted by picking up a goverment check!! Illegals will lock down the Latino vote for the Dems.
The "majority" of Americans DEFINITELY do not think President Obama is an "idiot". In fact, they DEFINITELY realize that considering the mess he was handed, the TOTALLY OBSTRUCTIONIST Republicans in Congress and the fact there is ZERO doubt that racism DEFINITELY is at play here, he has shown himself to be VERY SMART and overall, an EXCELLENT president. And please do not for one moment think I support everything he does. In fact, far from it. And I have been critical of him many times on this forum and privately. But that does not change the fact that any objective observer would say that overall his positives DEFINITELY outweigh his negatives.
And the reason I know this is because I have studied this presidency at length and from your comment I am 100% positive that you DEFINITELY have not.
I will be the first one to say that there is a certain element of America whose distaste of Obama is racially driven. I am not one of them, I am a real conservative who believes his agenda is really destroying the middle class. If you have studied his presidency at length than you are aware of the 8.5 million jobs that have been lost during his tenure and I fail to see how letting in 11.5 million ILLEGAL ALIENS will speed this country economic recovery.
We talk about making criminals out of Americans that own guns but it is OK to break the law and sneak into this country... Deport them all...
Pathetic...
Really? Please show me ANYWHERE where ANYBODY has said they are "about making criminals out of Americans how own guns". There may be laws passed eventually that limit the types of guns/clips/magazines and ammunition Americans will be allowed to purchase, but the people who already own those guns/clips/magazines and ammuniton will undoubtedly be allowed to keep them. Based on grand fathering in the law.
I'm an American, no one asked my opinion nor have I seen an opinion poll, this is BS
from the sound of your name you have not been here long enogh for any one to care what you think
Deport them all! They are law breakers. You think that they will behave themselves if you they are granted citizenship? NO! Once a law breaker always a law breaker.
[Wednesday's Reuters/Ipsos poll... surveyed 1,443 Americans over the age of 18. ]
SPIT TAKE
Damn Straight, Deport'um or declair open season...
http://www.usillegalaliens.com/impacts_of_illegal_immigration_crime_summary.html
We in America are a proud bunch. No one can say they have better wet back meskins them usuns. Beans & Rice ala meskin and chink surprise. mmm some green onions and hot sauce ..
And we get the bill.
Chestypuller--if all "scum" should be deported, you'd top my list. Try buying a brain you idiot.
bleed you lib bleed
Deport them all now! Put ICE back on track instead of worrying about counterfeit Nikes. The Illegals cost us more than someone making fake name brand items. You don't have to buy junk but our tax dollars are used to give free entitlements to those who do nothing to benefit the nation or pay their way like the rest of America has to do. They run around without insurance on their cars, injure people in accidents and flee the scene leaving your insurance to pay for the damage and your insurance rates go up. Wonder why medical costs so high? All the freebees for the Illegals who are treated but don't pay their bills again leaving the cost on us. Oh how about the earned income credit? Claiming kids who don't live here or are someone else's to get tax refunds not due them nor that they paid into, but the enforcement arm of the IRS does nothing about it, even after it being brought to their attention by the audit arm of the IRS! Obama is a scumbag, his supporters are the same and he continues to prove it day after day and just how stupid his cohorts are for believing in him. There's a reason there were two million, seven hundred and eighty thousand transfers of tactical weapons during the month of December and liking or supporting Obama isn't one of them. His attack on Second Amendment rights is traitorous and he should be charged and tried for it.
if you can prove that you have been here since you were born than let them stay, but for those who came over from 5+ on make them go back, they SHOULD know their native language.
Ride them to the border on a rail!
ILLEGAL ALIENS not immigrants.
What part of the word ILLEGAL don't you understand. Something or someone that is illegal means you can't do that. Ship them back to Mexico. They are getting the same benefits that citizens , that's people who are legal and pay taxes. get. They don't deserve the same benefits we American citizens have. If that were the case why don't we simply renounce our citizenship and collect the benefits that the government gives us without bothering to pay taxes.
[What part of the word ILLEGAL don't you understand.(?)]
Let's see some video of your driving, please...
Serious question for those who want to round up all illegals and send them home: How are you going to accomplish this? And what of your rights are you willing to compromise to achieve that end? And how much are you willing to pay to achieve that end?
I don't think there is a perfect answer to your question. There is about 800,000 law enforcement officials in america now () who could help us with the problem. On top of that, we could hire ex military, police, and even (maybe) certain citizens to assist with the task. I'm sure there is a statistician out there who could calculate "basically" what resources would be needed and how long it would take to irradicate "most" of the illegals that are here.
Look and read you politicians, the majority of post on here say push them back, now. Maybe it is time to start another political party, because our spineless politicians will not stand up, they only want to be reelected no matter what the cost. If you don't think that the illegals will start their on party ASAP, probably a branch of one of the three major political parties in Mexico, PRI (Institutional Revolutionary Party), PRD (Party of the Democratic Revolution), or PAN (National Action Party) seem to have a lot of revolutionary themes in their names, makes you wonder. These political parties already tell the Mexicans that can vote how to vote in our country, not theirs. (I.E. anchor babies that have reached 18 years old, etc. )Legalize another 11,000,000 plus ,and you see where this is going, but all of the spineless politicians, and their big business partners just want to line their pockets. We were lied to in 1986 on the first amnesty about how this would fix the program (3,000,000 to 4,000,000 illegals at that time) , it only caused a massive influx of additional illegals, and do you really believe this will not happen again.....