They would not have to removed by force. Simple steps that would be very cheap to secure our society:

1 - strong punishment and fines for any business that employs illegals - proceeds to go to the border patrol fund

2 - valid US identification required to open and maintain any account at any financial institution

3 - valid US citizenship or legal residence documents required for all drivers licenses

4 - valid US identification for any public service - medical, educational, welfare - all

5 - remove the anchor baby concept

6 - confiscation of all assets of anyone helping or harboring illegal aliens, with proceeds to go into the border patrol fund

Easy huh? And didn't cost the tax payers much at all. On the otherhand, keeping illegal aliens here, now how much does THAT cost us?

Honestly, concerning the decision to round 'em up and deport every single one of 'em...how much they're a drain on our society's economic resources is irrelevant to me. THAT's just the icing on the argument of whether or not we SHOULD deport 'em when arguing with idiots that don't mind an invasion of 10 MILLION criminals.

I don't care what the cost is...round 'em up and ship 'em out. There needn't be a trial...just establish that they're here illegally and send 'em over the border or fly 'em home. Put 'em on a boat, I don't care. Whichever mode of transportation is deemed necessary.

Hell, even looking at the "study's" numbers....I can hack out "extra beds" because they can sleep on the ground just like our soldiers do. I can hack our $4 billion for "border patrol" because this money is already budgeted and needn't be part of "extra spending". Detention? Why are we "detaining" ANYONE when we should be DEPORTING THEM? "Apprehending them" for $28 billion? Come on now, we already have people on payrolls across the country whose job it ALREADY is to apprehend them...a job that they just do not do. Maybe setting up EXTRA jobs for these matters will be needed...but $28 billion per year? That's 560,000 jobs at $50K per year. So...hire an additional 560,000 people and give 'em each a quota of 18 ILLEGAL aliens to apprehend in a month. Fire anyone that can't get the quota and pass on theirs (and their salaries) to those that CAN.

Raise the price of my produce.....I grow most of my own anyway.

This estimate assumes that the illegal immigrants can be located and identified. There is no difference between the appearance of many illegal immigrants and many legal immigrants and citizens. So the estimate makes a big assumption here, an incorrect assumption.

You people will NEVER be able to get rid of all of us!!!!!!

Emiliano-

Maybe not, but we can make sure that you can't get a job, or health care, or education at taxpayers expense.

That doesn't leave much to stay for, now does it?

My welcome and thanks to all who have taken the time and trouble to come here legally.

You're welcome, bordergal (I emigrated from the UK in 1993 and am now a dual national).

Emiliano, I'm sure you came here in search of a better life, but doesn't it trouble your conscience at all that by breaking the laws of the country you otherwise seem to admire, you are effectively taking taxpayers' money?

Emiliano....what you fail to understand is that the GOAL is NOT to "get rid of ALL of" you, nimwad. How about just half of you? 3/4?

Seeing a problem and stating (as is done today) "We just can't find 'em all, so why should we bother trying?"...is a losing stance. 10 million and counting...I think we can easily find 8 million of 'em. Go back to the piss-hole you came from you friggin' leech.

Comment on this report online -- to one of the authors.

Online Discussion: Reforming Our Immigration System TODAY: 2-3pm http://www.movingideas.org/chat/Immigration/Immigration.php

Join immigration experts from across the political spectrum for a lively discussion about what's next for U.S. immigration policy and how it could affect your community.

Featuring: * Raj Goyle is a Senior Policy Analyst for Domestic Policy at the Center for American Progress. * Mark Krikorian is Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies. * Michele Waslin, Ph.D., is the Director of Immigration Policy Research at the National Council of La Raza (NCLR).

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While I do support the goal of removing illegal aliens, it is not correct to say that any savings realised from removing them will be permanent. Even if you could reach a magical point when there was not a single illegal alien in this country, we would almost immediately have a new batch. Many illegal aliens come here legally and simply overstay their visas. Others would cross the border with Mexico or Canada, arrive in Florida on a rickety boat or stow away on a ship or plane. The goal of removing illegal aliens is certainly worthy. After all, they are here wrongfully and it isn't fair to those who follow proper channels. But let's not kid ourselves that we can ever get rid of all of them and reap these amazing cost savings.

Again, as allready stated (You don't read much do you Pozzo?) you don't have to get rid of ALL of them for it to have any impact.

In fact, if we get rid of all but 5, getting rid of the last 5 will have very negligible effects.

It's not all or nothing. Getting rid of 'some' will still have cost savings (or cost, this isn't exactly a detailed study, we are truly just guessing here).

Getting rid of 'sanctuary cities' like my own city, not only allowing but mandating that all forms of public agents, be they non-for-profit debt consolidation, or IRS, or public school officials, or emergency services, paramedics and firement, and police, ALL cooperate with NHS, this would go a LONG way to rather quickly deporting the vast majority of 'visa overstayers'.

Applying penalties to officials (and to private and public businesses who hire illegals, usually for the express purpose of avoiding existing payroll laws and engaging in yet more illegal practice themselves) and ACTUALLY enforcing them will go a long way to removing illegal aliens from this country, and discouraging others from coming to begin with by removing incentives to come, and shortening the average time they spend here recieving those incentives.

Many many millions, far more then visa overstayers, can be stopped from coming over by building fences and walls where there are none, repairing and maintaining them where they are derelict, and manning and patrolling the borders.

MJ,

I read plenty. In fact I read this snippet that Aaron wrote :"deporting ALL illegal immigrants may cost $41 billion a year for up to five years, it would subsequently save the U.S. $46 billion a year indefinitely" (emphasis added). That's what I was responsding to. There's no way it would save this amount indefinitely, since we would regain a sizeable illegal immigrant population almost immediately after this hypothetical deportion of all of them. More realistcally, the gains from deporting most of them would not remain at that level for too long. Obviously there are financial benefits and costs to this and both would be rise with the size of the effort. I never claimed that it was all or nothing or that there was no benefit to deporting some of them. My claim was that you couldnt' claim that the maximum benefit would last indefinitely, which I stand by.

MJ, Sarge is right, this illegal immigration problem can be solved without spending extraordinary amounts of money, it's just matter that aouthorities do a good job. Examples: - To fight overstayers: dates of entries get into a HSD database, but dates of departure are rarely registered, the systems can be programmed to issue reports of overstayers and therefore every record in the report is a potential arrest & deportation. - To fight public services missuse: make solicitors extend checks as deposits. (Checks imply that banks are registering residence and therefore IRS can determine the solicitor's status). - Accept foreign driving licenses as valid (for legitimate visitors)so that authorities in America only issue licenses to residents and citizens.

By the way, the cost of shiping alliens back is in most cases paid at allien's expense.

Why would these 3 measures cost $41 billion USD???

Personally i think the fence issue is a waste of time and money; as Pozzo said the problem are mainly overstayers. Besides that, the southern border is already a natural fence, it's a desert and a river. Crossing illegaly from the northern one is comparatively a piece of cake

it's just matter that aouthorities do a good job.

Uh and what you expect them to work for free?

Just like UY to find one phrase he thinks is erroneous and then add nothing to the discussion. Keep up the good work sammich-boy.

Pozzo....of COURSE we cannot get rid of ALL of them...and of COURSE more will try to get back.....but if anyone ever had the balls to attempt to deal with the situation...I'm sure a more stringent border-patrol policy would be used as well. The net gain in deporting as many as we can find and THEN enforcing the border a hell of a lot better than is currently done WOULD give a net savings for as long as that policy is in effect......maybe indefinately, or until the next sack of shit that doesn't care about the problem gets into office and stops the policies.

However, it's all smoke, since not ONE politician will do what's necessary.....not one.

Sadly Sarge, I fear you are correct. There are some [Tancredo for one], that want to do something about it, but are stymied at every turn.