New Yorkers are increasingly concerned about illegal immigration

J. Jioni Palmer:

As Seaford Republican Peter King prepared to address a group of mostly elderly Coast Guard veterans last week, he was ready to be peppered with questions regarding Social Security.

There were queries about the war in Iraq, veterans' benefits and homeland security, but one of the most heated debates in Washington - what to do with the federally guaranteed pension program - wasn't mentioned even once by the two dozen people at Tuesday's meeting. Instead, concern over illegal immigration almost drowned out every other subject.

"We have a huge influx of immigrants. What about quotas?" asked Fred Jakob of Albertson.

The problem isn't immigration quotas, which are "more restrictive and regulated like never before," but lax border control, King said.

Why don't the police just arrest undocumented immigrants and deport them to their home countries, one participant asked.

"If they are found to be undocumented in this country isn't that a crime in itself?" asked another.

With Congress taking a one-week pause last week after a marathon-like session that began with the Terri Schiavo imbroglio and ended a week ago with a controversial House vote on stem-cell research and a Senate showdown over judicial nominations, most local lawmakers were taking it easy.

The few legislators who opted to attend civic and community meetings got an earful from their constituents. And more often than not, what they heard had to do with immigration and border security.

Day laborers who congregate on street corners looking for work and overcrowded living conditions in homes meant for single families have stirred unrest in communities from East Hampton to Farmingville to Freeport to Glen Cove.

Increasingly, King said, he hears from constituents concerned about stemming illegal immigration. The subject comes up in forums at civic centers, chats with spectators at the West Islip Memorial Day parade and in the pews of his parish church, he said.

"Last Sunday this woman turns to me and says, 'Glad to see you in church, congressman, but close our borders,'" said King, a six-term House member.

Likewise, Democrat Tim Bishop of Southampton attended town-hall meetings from Mastic to Kings Park to Selden, and discussions often developed about how immigration affects jobs, social services and the quality of the life in neighborhoods.

"It depends on where you go, but it's an issue that arises at virtually every town hall meeting I have, to varying levels of intensity," said Bishop, who was often on the receiving end of barbs about the federal government failing to address the issue.

"Why are the politicians so afraid to do anything?" asked Maria Salvi, of Farmingville, who immigrated legally. "What's the problem? I can pick out who they are. Give me the job. I'll send them back to Mexico."

Bishop did his best to empathize with the woman - who was applauded by the crowd of nearly 100 at the Selden firehouse - while expressing support for legislation pending in Congress that he said balances border security with the need to deal with worker shortages.

"This is the most difficult, most complex, most emotional issue I have had put before me," Bishop told the woman at the firehouse. "We have to put whatever mechanisms in place to make it damn near impossible to enter the country illegally."

But Norman Kuerner of Farmingville, said, "That's a typical politician's answer."

Despite the fervency and frequency immigration was mentioned in meetings with Bishop and King, nationally the subject lags the war with Iraq, the economy and other issues in surveys of voters' top concerns, said Carroll Doherty, editor of the Pew Research Center. He said it's "one of those second-tier issues that's really important to watch."

Doherty said a March analysis revealed opposition to immigration was highest among lower-income Americans.

"There's a real undercurrent of concern over immigrants' impact on jobs at a time of uneven job growth," he said, adding that probably will grow if the economy worsens.

Let us hope that this scares some of the politicians in Washington into doing something about this growing problem.