The U.S. is having ( what my mother called ) a "sinking spell." Our mighty eagle is struggling to stay aloft. To heal this ailing bird, requires a dose of commonsense. At a time when unemployment is very high and the cost of illegal immigration is on the rise, I suggest we concentrate on removing the millions of illegal ones that are here, reducing the burden they impose on all U.S. citizens.

Adding each day to its complement, our nation embraces many races and cultures that legally immigrate to this land from all parts of the world and from that we enjoy our great diversity. However, I firmly believe that illegal immigration has for a long time, drained the resources of this country. The authority of law must take more forceful action to halt this behavior.

The price we pay for feeding, housing, educating, and providing medical care to millions of illegal immigrants, not to mention the cost of incarcerating their felons, is causing a drain on our economy. If each state would conduct a campaign by billboard, radio and TV that reminded the public each day of the cost of these accommodations, I'm sure we'd all be shocked. Could this stir up an outrage that demands a stricter law?

We allow birthright citizenship, which allows children born in the U.S. ( to parents not legally here ) to automatically become a citizen. This gives a solid anchor to thousands of illegal immigrants that take advantage of this law every year. This must stop.

The answer seems so very clear. There are (at this time) four Immigration Bills: H.R.878; H.R.2305; H.R.1868; H.R.2406; plus The Save Act (Secure America through Verification and Enforcement) the last one being sponsored by former Vol's Quarterback, Rep. Heath Shuler from North Carolina.

All of these proposals, in some way, address the burden that these interlopers have placed on our nation, and if given enough support to become law, the money we spend providing for these trespassers can be put to a better use.

I urge everyone that cares to become familiar with the above proposals and if you agree with their purpose, please contact your representatives and urge them to either back them as they are or improve them to the point of acceptance.

If reason instructs the wise, logic demands that we take action before illegal immigration bankrupts this nation.

To give the rugged American eagle a chance to stay aloft, we must remove those that threaten to bring her down.

If we slash the cost (even by half) of accommodating the interlopers, it would provide a financial boast to our ailing economy, restoring our hope for betterment --- by way of honest effort. If we do not stop this wasteful spending on those that have no legal right to be here, we will become a nation of the very rich and the very poor, erasing all traces of "The Middle Class," destroying the American Dream.

James A Bolt
Hixson