How Your Senators Voted on Legal Immigration Reform S.744 and Why the GOP Should Be Concerned

The below map shows how your United States Senators voted with regard to fixing our broken immigration system.  It is the responsibility of our federal government to work on immigration laws since immigration is protected under the Supremacy Clause of our United States Constitution.  Of the federal lawmakers attempting to fix our broken immigration system, all 54 Democratic and Independent Senators voted in favor of reform.  14 Republican Senators voted for legal immigration reform, with a remainder of 32 Republicans who voted against the measure.

In the below map, the green colored states indicate both senators voted “yes” for legal immigration reform. The purple colored states indicate one senator voted “yes” for legal immigration reform, while one voted “no” and against legal immigration reform. The red colored states indicate both senators (both members of the Republican Party) voted against legal immigration reform.

(Double Click to Enlarge)

It is important to note what the pulse of our Nation is regarding the immigration issue.  A new Pew Poll states  71% Americans say immigrants would benefit our economy and should be allowed to stay in the Country.  Indeed the CBO Budget report was a game changer during the immigration debate when the report indicated S. 744 would boost economic output.  The CBO and Joint Committee on Taxation report says the Senate’s bill would increase real GDP by 3.3% in 2023, and 5.4% in 2033, a real increase of roughly $700 billion in 2023 and $1.4 trillion in 2033

Approximately 500,000 new Latin coming of age voters every single year now.

As a former life long registered Republican voter and activist for the GOP, the anti-immigrant sentiment (reminiscent of Dixiecrat rhetoric during the Civil Rights era) was the main reason I left the GOP.  The dehumanizing and discriminatory slurs like “wetback” used by GOP officials enabled me to be a permanent independent registered swing voter.  I voted for the former President George W. Bush, and fought hard in 2006 and 2007 in support of his immigration reform plan — to no avail.

After the restrictionist Republicans and their mutiny of the Bush administration when comprehensive immigration reform failed 6 years ago,  I wrote 5 predictions on June 28, 2007, where all 5 came true:

1.  Millions will continue to live in the shadows of society.
2.  Businesses will be put out of business affecting their local/state communities [in light of restrictionist/protectionist views].
3.  Prices of goods and services will increase as a result labor scarcity.
4.  The Republican party will lose more of the Latino swing vote (very important these days).
5.  The Libertarian Party will grow to name a few.

I have additional predictions I want to make with regard to the 2016 Presidential election cycle:

1.  If House Speak John Boehner and House Republicans do not advance the bipartisan legal immigration reform plan approved by the Senate recently, the Republican Party will suffer with their new voter outreach in future decades.

2.  Independent registered voters will continue to be on the rise becoming more influential swing voters.

3.  The majority of the Republican Representatives will be held fiscally responsible for their lack of foresight in taking care of our baby boomer elderly and the economic direction of our United States economy.  Baby boomer Social Security benefits and other health benefits account for almost 60% of our tax revenues.   According to the CATO Institute: “Life expectancy is increasing, while birth rates are declining. As recently as 1950, there were 16 workers for every Social Security beneficiary.  Today there are only 3.3. By 2030, there will be fewer than two. The Social Security pyramid is unsustainable.”  Republican Senator Lindsey Graham understands the much needed new tax payers that will sustain our American economy.  Graham said, “We will be cutting our throat economically if we don’t improve our immigration system to have more legal immigration.”

4.

The clock is ticking…

Meanwhile, here is the complete yea / nay vote list for S. 744 (Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act )