UNVERIFIED CORRESPONDANCE REGARDING ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

****************************************** ****************************************** Greetings and Salutations to All my Kith and Kin and All the Ships in Outer Space: Please scroll down the page to read two (02) alleged letters regarding the issue of illegal immigration.  CAVEAT: While they appear to be authentic, and have been seen posted on numerous Internet web sites, I am personally unable to verify (to my own satisfaction) that this is not merely an elaborately contrived Internet hoax or an urban legend. For instance, in the alleged response from Senator Harkin, note the humorous fake street address for the recipient. Also, note that there is no date listed on either of these two (02) letters. Thus, you'll have to do your own research to verify the authenticity, or lack of it, for the correspondance in question.  IF these letters are proven to be authentic, then, in my opinion, we have an imminent national security problem being exacerbated by treasonous acts being perpetrated by our own elected representatives and the appointed career federal bureaucrats, who willingly renounce and betray their sacred sworn oath to uphold, enforce, protect, and defend our divinely inspired Constitution of the United States of America. In addition to the acts of high treason currently menacing our national security being committed by elected and/or appointed federal officials, I am particularly saddened and confused that the apparent currently publicized policies and practice of my chosen faith, The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-day Saints (i.e., the "Mormon" church) are to actively endorse, encourage, support, reward, aid, and abet the crime of illegal immigration, which, due directly to its ongoing massive destruction of our national economy, is tantamount to treason against our own dearly beloved United States of America. Is there a local news reporter in Burlington, Iowa who is willing to investigate the source and validity of the correspondance?  Thank you. John Robert Mallernee  Armed Forces Retirement Home  1800 Beach Drive, Unit 311  Gulfport, Mississippi  39507  _______________________________ The Honorable Tom Harkin 731 Hart Senate Office Building Washington DC, 20510 Phone (202) 224 3254  Dear Senator Harkin, As a native Iowan and excellent customer of the Internal Revenue Service, I am writing to ask for your assistance. I have contacted the Department of Homeland Security in an effort to determine the process for becoming an illegal alien and they referred me to you. My primary reason for wishing to change my status from U.S. Citizen to illegal alien stems from the bill which was recently passed by the Senate and for which you voted. If my understanding of this bill's provisions is accurate, as an illegal alien who has been in the United States for five years, all I need to do to become a citizen is to pay a $2,000 fine and income taxes for three of the last five years. I know a good deal when I see one and I am anxious to get the process started before everyone figures it out. Simply put, those of us who have been here legally have had to pay taxes every year so I'm excited about the prospect of avoiding two years of taxes in return for paying a $2,000 fine. Is there any way that I can apply to be illegal retroactively? This would yield an excellent result for me and my family because we paid heavy taxes in 2004 and 2005. Additionally, as an illegal alien I could begin using the local emergency room as my primary health care provider. Once I have stopped paying premiums for medical insurance, my accountant figures I could save almost $10,000 a year. Another benefit in gaining illegal status would be that my daughter would receive preferential treatment relative to her law school applications, as well as "in-state" tuition rates for many colleges throughout the United States for my son. Lastly, I understand that illegal status would relieve me of the burden of renewing my driver's license and making those burdensome car insurance premiums. This is very important to me given that I still have college age children driving my car. If you would provide me with an outline of the process to become illegal (retroactively if possible) and copies of the necessary forms, I would be most appreciative. Thank you for your assistance. Your Loyal Constituent, Donald Ruppert Burlington, IA Get your Forms (NOW)!! Call your Internal Revenue Service 1-800-829-1040. Please pass this on to your friends so they can save on this great offer!!!! _______________________________ Mr. Donald Rupert 2817 Shameonu Burlington, IA 00000 Dear Donald: Thank you for contacting me. I am always glad to hear from you. I appreciate your views on the need to reform our immigration laws. As you may know, the Senate recently debated a comprehensive immigration bill that was the product of long bipartisan negotiations. After two weeks of consideration, the bill failed to garner enough votes to pass a procedural hurdle and the decision was made to pull the bill from further debate. However, negotiations between the managers of the bill and the President has resulted in a deal to possibly bring the legislation back to the Senate floor for consideration prior to the Fourth of July recess. Please rest assured that I will keep your input in mind if we again take up this bill for consideration. Illegal immigration has reached crisis proportions in the United States, with an estimated 12 million undocumented people now living in our country. American taxpayers are increasingly upset by workers and employers who operate off the books and outside the law. Furthermore, American workers, wanting only a level playing field, are justifiably angry when fair wages are hard to come by because some employers prefer easy-to-exploit immigrant workers. In a post 9/11 world, our broken immigration system also poses a serious threat to our national security. Although most of those crossing our borders illegally are coming to America to work hard and feed their families, illegal immigration fosters a black market in fake documents and criminal smuggling that one day may be exploited by those seeking to attack our nation. For these reasons, I understand why local communities are frustrated with the status quo. While the recent Senate immigration reform bill was not perfect, I believe that it is past time for Congress and the Bush Administration to get serious about fixing the nation's immigration system. I continue to believe that the way to solve the illegal immigration crisis is to enact comprehensive immigration reform that is tough, fair to American taxpayers, and practical. Increased border security and enforcement are integral elements of fixing our broken immigration system. The U.S. government has a right and a duty to control our borders. To harden the border, I believe we need the right combination of agents, technology and infrastructure. Furthermore, we need to need to get tougher on those employers who knowingly hire undocumented workers, perpetuating the flow of illegal immigrants across the border. While I have always supported measures to strengthen our borders, I do not believe that this approach alone will solve our broken system. Only a broad approach to immigration reform will have a true impact on the crisis. Without granting automatic citizenship, we need a practical solution that brings the 12 million people who are here undocumented out of the shadows. It is neither desirable nor practical to deport them or to try to force them out over time. The Center for American Progress recently estimated that deporting these 12 million people would cost $206 billion over 5 years, which is more than the entire budget of the Department of Homeland Security. The only practical solution is a legislative strategy that gets tough on illegal immigration so that it is stopped in the future, and sets up a program by which those currently here illegally are given one chance to come forward, register with the government, submit to security and health screening, pay a fine as restitution for having been in the U.S. illegally, learn English, maintain a clean criminal and work record and get to the back of the line for permanent visas. I will continue to work to strengthen our borders, hold employers accountable that hire illegal immigrants, and deal with the 12 million undocumented individuals in our country in a way that is practical and fair to American taxpayers and workers. Again, thanks for sharing your views with me. Please don't hesitate to let me know how you feel on any issue that concerns you. Sincerely, Tom Harkin United States Senator _______________________________ ****************************************** ******************************************