208 Republicans vote against easier path for citizenship for immigrants who served in the military

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

 

Military Service as path to US citizenship goes back to the founding. It was made more difficult in the last Administration due to Stephen Miller's soulless darkness. An abridged history

Immigrants in the Military: 5 Things To Know - FWD.us

 

On day of his funeral, Jerseyan slain in Iraq gains U.S. citizenship

Courtesy of the Star-Ledger

Private First Class Min Soo Choi wanted desperately to be an American citizen.

Yesterday, the 21-year-old South Korean native from River Vale received his wish, becoming the first New Jersey soldier to receive citizenship posthumously since the Iraq war began two years ago.

“He had only been in this country for a short while,” Senator Frank Lautenberg said during a funeral service attended by hundreds of people at Pascack Valley High School in Hillsdale. “But we all know you loved America.”

Min S. Choi - Private First Class, United States Army

 

My grandfather came to the US from Ukraine because the US was offering citizenship for fighting in WWI. I never got to meet him, but I like to think that he, my father (a Korean War veteran), and I (not a veteran, but someone who tries to abide the laws and be a good person) have been good citizens for this country because of that exchange.

 

While the Republicans are almost certainly motivated by animus, I'm also not sure why offering citizenship or other inducements to people willing to fight our imperial wars is a good thing to celebrate either. Its a pretty massive country and there's probably reasons they need non-citizens to join, the most basic being that we need a lot of people given our many military commitments and being in the military sucks and might get you killed, so many people with better options avoid service for those pretty obvious reasons.

 

I highly doubt that most who enlist are motivated by Imperial ambition. There are a lot of legitimate reasons to critique our various decisions to go to war, but those decisions should not be laid at the feet of those in the front fighting them.

If your point is that the ready availability of manpower from immigrants who seek citizenship make it easier to make that decision, often wrongly, so be it. I understand your point, but I still think that on balance, I want to offer citizenship to anyone who serves honorably

 

Ironic.

 

The fact is that almost anyone with better options is going to choose not to volunteer for the military for pretty obvious reasons. The people that do think service can do something for them, because there isnt anything else that will. The disgusting people talking about how loan forgiveness or free tuition would be a problem for the military are 100% correct. Our volunteer military needs people on the margins or feeling financial pressure!

 

I dont understand why we cant just make it automatic citizenship if you serve. Same as being born on our soil.

Any effort to delay citizenship or deport veterans is flat out wrong and an embarrassment to those doing it

 

Lol... I will not play your games. We have more than enough people coming into our country LEGALLY.

 

Actually, thanks to Trump's immigration policies, reducing the number of legal immigrants who can enter, we don't have enough coming in. We were about 2 million legal immigrants short this year, at a time with massive labor shortages. Net immigration is at the lowest level its been in years, and while immigration isn't the only answer to our inflation woes, it should be part of the answer. Labor, like any commodity, will see price increases when supply is lowered and demand remains constant.

 

Beautiful family story. Both inspiring and also not unusual in these United States, which is the source of our strength, in my opinion. Obviously I don't know your family history. But the odds are strong that your grandfather came here without much, and two generations later, his grandson is a professor. I think that's your profession from your prior posts. Forgive me if I am misremembering.

These stories throughout our history are a great source of our strength. Those that yearn for freedom and endure great hardship to travel across the sea. Or even north across the border. What better vetting process do you need? How much all of us have benefited from the contributions of immigrants from all nations who wanted to be Americans so bad that they sacrificed and came here.

My feelings on the subject are primarily out of a sense of morality. But even if one were purely cynical, and just sought American greatness, open immigration is a great strategy to achieve it.

 

I read your post to mean that you would not want someone to be able to legally emigrate to this country if he were to try to make a living by raising chickens in his backyard. I am simply asking you if that is, in effect, what you said. If you choose not to answer, so be it.

 

It is absolutely true that we prey on lack of meaningful opportunity for many to meet recruitment goals. But that's an indictment of larger society, not the military. I'm glad that for those that have limited opportunity, the military has proven to be one of the more reliable ladders out of poverty. That still makes military service a net positive, not a negative. I wish we were more enthusiastic about expanding opportunity overall. But I don't see the fact that so many resort to military service as the best option as a reason to deny that avenue

 

Did anyone read the bill? Or the article? Likely to affect a couple hundred people. Before we trash everyone against it lets look at the whole bill and all the poison [pills added by one side or the other so they can grandstand with articles like this one.

 

IMO any immigrant veteran who has honorably served a tour in a combat zone, any wounded vet, or any veteran who has served 4 years and was honorably discharged has done more for our country than most and should be granted automatic citizenship without delay or hinderance along with any immediate family members. I also believe any immigrant who otherwise meets our military qualifications should be able to enlist as a path to citizenship and be granted admission to the country and a green card (along with their immediate family) for the duration of their military service, with citizenship granted upon honorable discharge, service in a combat zone, discharge as a wounded vet.

 

"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore."

My great grandparents were servants and menial laborers that came to this country. My grandparents were born and raised here and ended up middle class. Their kids ended up upper-middle to upper class, with important and unique skill sets developed by college educations and became leaders in their respective careers. That is how immigration built this country and why the limitations of it are slowly starving it.

 

at least those who serve and are honorably discharged or satisfy their first 4 years of service honorably. I would want some qualifiers so it didn't become a golden ticket even if you get booted for some reason

 

Great story.

It always amuses me that a lot of people whose only qualification to be a citizen are that their parents had sex look down upon people who sacrifice and risk everything to be part of the American dream.