As with Kalin, someone sent an e-mail to Senator Olseen (D-17) stating, "I am writing to let you know that I have signed the Immigration Enforcement Petition. Cities that implement sanctuary policies that prevent police officers from enforcing immigration laws should lose their state funding. I object to having my hard-earned tax dollars go to fund programs for people who are in our country illegally."
Senator Olseen responded to his constituent:
"Thank you for your email regarding immigration enforcement. I appreciate you taking time to share your input on this important issue.
I understand your concern over undocumented immigrants in Minnesota, and I agree there is much room for responsible and effective reform of outdated immigration policies. However, with the recent debate over immigration policy in Minnesota and throughout the country, there has been a significant amount of misinformation distributed. Many people believe undocumented immigrants come to this country only to draw off the social programs states make available to its residents.
Undocumented immigrants do not receive health care benefits and are not eligible for state-funded programs. Only citizens with proper documentation are eligible for such benefits. The only exception is for pregnant women who require pre-natal services. It is important to recognize that, under federal law, the children of these mothers will be U.S. citizens once they are born. By denying pregnant women the vital prenatal care they require, we are risking an entire population of U.S. citizens who could be born with serious health problems because they missed out on important prenatal care.
I understand your frustration with our country’s handling of new immigrants to this country. I, too, believe the system is in desperate need of repair, but any reform must come at the federal level. It is the federal government that is charged with the responsibility of forming immigration policy and effectively enforcing those laws. Immigration enforcement is not the job of local law enforcement. Local peace officers currently have the right to investigate immigration issues as part of other criminal investigations, as they should, but do not have the resources to routinely question citizens about their immigration status.
At the state level, provisions creating tougher penalties for identity theft and fraud, human trafficking, and employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants have been introduced in previous legislative sessions and I will continue to support these proposals if they come before the Senate in 2008.
Additionally, I believe state policy should reflect Minnesota’s values of recognizing hard work, determination, and the goal of citizenship. The best thing we can do as a state is focus on policies that help illegal immigrants work toward citizenship and become contributing members of our society, while also calling on Congress to provide the much-needed reform of federal immigration laws.
Again, thank you for contacting me. If you have further questions on this or any other issue facing the Legislature, please feel free to contact me anytime."
Sincerely,
Rick Olseen
State Senator District 17
Senator Olseen responded to his constituent:
"Thank you for your email regarding immigration enforcement. I appreciate you taking time to share your input on this important issue.
I understand your concern over undocumented immigrants in Minnesota, and I agree there is much room for responsible and effective reform of outdated immigration policies. However, with the recent debate over immigration policy in Minnesota and throughout the country, there has been a significant amount of misinformation distributed. Many people believe undocumented immigrants come to this country only to draw off the social programs states make available to its residents.
Undocumented immigrants do not receive health care benefits and are not eligible for state-funded programs. Only citizens with proper documentation are eligible for such benefits. The only exception is for pregnant women who require pre-natal services. It is important to recognize that, under federal law, the children of these mothers will be U.S. citizens once they are born. By denying pregnant women the vital prenatal care they require, we are risking an entire population of U.S. citizens who could be born with serious health problems because they missed out on important prenatal care.
I understand your frustration with our country’s handling of new immigrants to this country. I, too, believe the system is in desperate need of repair, but any reform must come at the federal level. It is the federal government that is charged with the responsibility of forming immigration policy and effectively enforcing those laws. Immigration enforcement is not the job of local law enforcement. Local peace officers currently have the right to investigate immigration issues as part of other criminal investigations, as they should, but do not have the resources to routinely question citizens about their immigration status.
At the state level, provisions creating tougher penalties for identity theft and fraud, human trafficking, and employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants have been introduced in previous legislative sessions and I will continue to support these proposals if they come before the Senate in 2008.
Additionally, I believe state policy should reflect Minnesota’s values of recognizing hard work, determination, and the goal of citizenship. The best thing we can do as a state is focus on policies that help illegal immigrants work toward citizenship and become contributing members of our society, while also calling on Congress to provide the much-needed reform of federal immigration laws.
Again, thank you for contacting me. If you have further questions on this or any other issue facing the Legislature, please feel free to contact me anytime."
Sincerely,
Rick Olseen
State Senator District 17
___________________________________________
Olseen wrote a whole lot of verbiage and never once came close to addressing the sanctuary cities issue that was protested by his constituent. His constituent’s statement is not hard to understand.
On the one hand, Olseen says the police ". . . do not have the resources to routinely question citizens about their immigration status," but on the other hand, he implies health care providers have the time to determine if a person is an illegal alien. They are not entitled to health care benefits, unless they are pregnant. I guess we are to conclude doctors and nurses have more time than police!
Notice too that he proposes the immigration system is broken and needs "reform." That sounds great, but he doesn’t tell us what he has in mind for "reform." It’s just feel good language to fluff his message that doesn’t have any solutions in it.
Olseen promises, ". . . I will continue to support these [aforementioned] proposals if they come before the Senate in 2008." But significantly, Olseen does not propose to produce any legislation to address the issues he claims bother him.
It looks like Olseen’s response was drawn from the same DFL canned mush that Kalin used. These guys don’t think for themselves.
On the one hand, Olseen says the police ". . . do not have the resources to routinely question citizens about their immigration status," but on the other hand, he implies health care providers have the time to determine if a person is an illegal alien. They are not entitled to health care benefits, unless they are pregnant. I guess we are to conclude doctors and nurses have more time than police!
Notice too that he proposes the immigration system is broken and needs "reform." That sounds great, but he doesn’t tell us what he has in mind for "reform." It’s just feel good language to fluff his message that doesn’t have any solutions in it.
Olseen promises, ". . . I will continue to support these [aforementioned] proposals if they come before the Senate in 2008." But significantly, Olseen does not propose to produce any legislation to address the issues he claims bother him.
It looks like Olseen’s response was drawn from the same DFL canned mush that Kalin used. These guys don’t think for themselves.
3 comments:
Note that he says illegals don't get health care benefits, "except for...." - he acknowledges that SOME ILLEGALS DO GET BENEFITS (pregnant illegal immigrants). Quite frankly, he's wrong about illegals not getting health care paid for by others, but I digress... He justifies providing prenatal care to pregnant illegals, because the unborn child would be a US Citizen.
This begs the question: If we are providing prenatal care to pregnant illegal immigrants, WHY AREN'T THEY DEPORTED after being identified as illegal aliens!?! Of course this brings us full circle to the issue of sanctuary cities; which neither Olseen nor Kalin are willing to address.
misterc is so perceptive. The libs don't even realize that what they write is full of holes. They simply don't want the starting point that an illegal should be deported when identified. Pregnant illegals can be deported!
In the typical "Slip, Slide & Duck" fashion characteristic of the DFL, Senator Olseen demonstrates convincingly that he does not represent the constituency here that elected him.
In fact, his response to the constituent who wrote to him about illegals in this State shows that Senator Olseen is an extreme LIBERAL and that he couldn't care less about what the people of this District think or want. Face it, Olseen is "owned" lock, stock and barrel by the extremist DFL Caucus.
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