Um....Lindsey Graham is a dude, Charles.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindsey_Gra…

Haha. Type your shit into a search engine before you publish the shit. Shit.

Given that there are almost no details on the plan available except some general (decent sounding, for a "bi-partisan" plan) ideas, and a REPUBLICAN is explicitly talking about not pushing idiocy like deportations...

...and it's stupid? I'm as liberal as anyone and an immigrant myself from the 70s, and that sounds like an actually decent starting point*. What's wrong with it?

* Explicitly as a starting point

something i've never understood about the immigration issue - why is it important to put illegal immigrants to the "back of the line" when it comes to immigration reform? i mean, i understand the theory - give the priority to the people who are "doing it right" by applying and appealing their rejections before actually coming to the united states. it's what nice guys do, let the rule follower go before the rule breaker. but that's theory. in reality we have anywhere between 10-15 million undocumented workers in this country. and that's what they are, by the way, WORKERS. putting them to the "back of the line" isn't reform at all. it's status quo. they remain in danger of life-ruining and family-separating detainment and deportation while working and paying taxes and buying the shit that stimulates our shitty economy. seems to me that finding a way to get these folks documented should be the FIRST priority. but maybe i'm bonkers. can anyone explain this to me?

@6 Unless that documentation came with legally-enshrined protections that you--as an undocumented worker--wouldn't be detained or deported, why would you even want to participate in such a thing?

@7 that's what i was talking about - essentially creating a program whereby illegal immigrants can become legal without having to leave the country, or other unduly burdensome requirements. something along the lines of what the US did for tax-evading millionaires with swiss bank accounts a few months ago. in exhange for turning themselves in to the IRS, they only had to pay back taxes on all that money instead of having to pay back taxes AND huge penalties and fines. it saved the rich people a lot of money, and it saved the government a TON of money by not having to go after these folks. similar to that plan, in exchange for a guarantee against deportation or detainment, illegal immigrants could turn themselves in and agree to pay any back taxes owed, get set up for residency papers, things like that.

@8,

Yes, but, you see, that shit makes sense. The government could make it easier for undocumented workers to get work visas, which are temporary by definition. But instead they're going to dick around (and waste a lot of money) trying to set up a separate program.