Amnesties for illegal aliens always end up also being amnesties for unscrupulous business owners who employ illegal aliens. President Obama's controversial use of deferred action for up to two million illegal aliens will result not only in the aliens getting a reprieve from deportation and a pass for past illegal acts, it will also have the effect of rewarding businesses that engaged in illegal hiring practices by legalizing their illegal workforce.
The latest concern of some pro-amnesty groups, however, is that deferred action applicants will be using employment documents to prove their eligibility, effectively implicating their current and/or former bosses as employers of illegal aliens.
And now groups supporting the president's plan are arguing that it is important for businesses that have engaged in illegal hiring practices to receive some sort of guarantee that they will not be investigated. The Migration Policy Institute (MPI) writes:
Since 58 percent of potential applicants are currently employed, employer documentation will be vital in establishing eligibility for many applicants. But employers may be reluctant to provide documentation if they suspect that the information may subject them to investigations and sanctions for hiring unauthorized workers. Their fear could be partially addressed if the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a specific policy statement that any information presented by a DACA applicant will, by itself, not trigger an employer sanctions investigation. So far, no such proposal has been advanced.
MPI is seeking protection for lawbreaking businesses. It is no surprise why so-called immigrant-rights groups receive millions in donations from Big Business. The mass-immigration lobby is often appropriately referred to as the "cheap-labor lobby".
MPI's posturing is problematic not just for those who want businesses held accountable, but also for those who want restitution for ID fraud. The Migration Policy Institute notes that nearly 60 percent of deferred action applicants are currently holding jobs illegally. It is likely that most of these individuals are using fraudulent IDs to obtain work. While some of the IDs include fake Social Security numbers, it remains unclear how many of these identification documents contain real numbers and names belonging to legal residents and U.S. citizens. How many people have been victimized by this lawlessness? The Migration Policy Institute does not appear interested in this topic, and the Obama administration is giving these criminal acts a pass.
The lawbreakers who are rewarded with deferred action will likely never be held accountable for the pain and financial ruin they have caused for thousands of Americans. In many instances, it is likely that the victims are young children — actual young children and infants, unlike the deferred action applicants who, despite media mythmaking, are overwhelmingly adults. Young American children are targeted because Americans receive a Social Security number at birth, but usually do not make use of the number until their first jobs sometime in their teens, meaning there is over a decade where fraudulent use will go unnoticed. It is not until the American grows up, gets a paper route, fills out his first I-9 Form, and receives a letter from the IRS telling him that he owes taxes for jobs he never held that it becomes apparent his identity has been compromised.
If the Obama administration cared about protecting U.S. citizens, it would demand that the employers of these illegal alien applicants hand over all documents relating to the applicant's employment. DHS would then investigate the Social Security numbers and names used in fraudulently acquiring the jobs and then contact any legal residents associated with the information. Americans struggling to resolve their identity and credit would benefit greatly. Unfortunately, the Obama administration does not consider ID theft a "serious crime" and therefore a background in ID theft will not stop illegal aliens from benefiting under the president's plan. American victims are not even on the White House's radar.
But the Federal Trade Commission calls ID theft "a serious crime that can wreak havoc with your finances, credit history, and reputation", noting that it can "take time, money, and patience to resolve", while the Internal Revenue Service states it "takes this issue very seriously". Too bad for Americans that the White House is not taking ID fraud seriously.
UPDATE: See "The Obama Administration Promises to Ignore SSN Fraud, Protect Law-Breaking Businesses"