Immigrant Song and Dance Routine

We're supposed to believe that a deal has been reached on a comprehensive immigration package. Lovely.

What exactly are we talking about here? Has anyone read the legislation, which is rumored to be anywhere from 600 to 1,000 pages in length? I doubt anyone has read it, and yet this is supposed to be fast-tracked? Why?

Thus far, this is what media reports suggest forms the basis of the plan:

The proposed agreement would allow illegal immigrants to come forward and obtain a "Z visa" and - after paying fees and a $5,000 fine - ultimately get on track for permanent residency, which could take between eight and 13 years. Heads of households would have to return to their home countries first.

They could come forward right away to claim a probationary card that would let them live and work legally in the U.S., but could not begin the path to permanent residency or citizenship until border security improvements and the high-tech worker identification program were completed.

A new crop of low-skilled guest workers would have to return home after stints of two years. They could renew their visas twice, but would be required to leave for a year in between each time. If they wanted to stay in the U.S. permanently, they would have to apply under the point system for a limited pool of green cards.

The program drew fire from liberal groups that said it was unworkable. They had joined Democrats in pressing instead for guest workers to be permitted to stay and work indefinitely in the U.S., and ultimately earn the chance to stay.

Sen. Kennedy says it's "the best possible chance we will have in years to secure our borders and bring millions of people out of the shadows and into the sunshine of America." Isn't that what he said the last time there was an amnesty, and nothing actually improved? Illegal immigration didn't stop and no one actually enforced the laws that were on the books. In fact, the numbers actually accelerated since the last amnesty program.

What are we talking about here? Border control and immigration is a national security issue. Open borders types don't like to hear it, but terrorists can and do cross borders illegally.

The Duka brothers, who are currently being held in the Fort Dix terror plot, illegally entered the US across the US-Mexico border, and have resided in the US for 16 years. No one at INS or DHS ever stopped to pick them up despite the fact that they were illegal aliens and had been picked up for various infractions over the years.

The politicians, most of whom haven't even read this stuff, are busy spinning furiously. Pelosi is seriously concerned. Romney opposes it.

How can anyone take a position unless they know what's in there? How can anyone take national security seriously if they're not going to focus on the two-fold problems of controlling the border and dealing with those illegal aliens who are already in the US.

We don't even know who's here, but we're supposed to believe that the same government agencies that have done such a poor job in the past will manage to get the job right this time? I don't buy into it.

Then, there's the question of funding for all this and dealing with the bureaucratic nightmare. Processing millions of cases takes time and money, and I doubt that the job can be done right, even if we're to believe that all the illegal aliens that are here actually adhere to the new rules, whatever they may end up being.

I'm still undecided where I stand on this issue, but I want to know more about the actual language of the bill, and not just rely on news reports that are spun furiously to further someone else's agenda.

UPDATE:
You think your elected leaders read the bills they vote on? Think again. They're not even going to have the bill in hand to read before they vote on it. And that means you're not going to be able to read it either until it's a done deal. How exactly is this happening and why does everyone think that a deal must be done in this fashion at this time? It helps no one.