immigration reform

You would think that the Latino electorate would have a lot to be pleased about after President Obama’s first year in office.
Take health care. Prior to reform one in three Latinos did not have health insurance. Thanks to the landmark overhaul, some Latinos will benefit as early as late June when many uninsurable or “priced out” citizens with preexisting conditions will begin to see new insurance options. Also, small firms with less than 25 employees will soon be eligible for tax credits to help provide coverage for their workers.

Tired of contentious, polarizing issues that pit red- and blue-state Americans against each other and make it impossible for them to find common ground? Well, rest easy. It's time for consensus-building, bipartisan, comprehensive immigration reform!

Seriously. It's OK. Starting the debate now won't usher in the apocalypse, despite the fervor of the few and the loud who have so effectively demonized immigrants and distracted the country from the truth about immigration.

Five years from now, the United States will need 1.2 million more registered nurses to meet the needs of retiring (and aging) baby boomers. Supply is already short in the United States and around the world, promising that fierce competition will only grow more intense for these essential workers.

The highly respected former Republican Secretary of State James Baker and former Democratic Congressman Lee Hamilton, co-chairs of the 2006 Iraq Study Group, recently praised President Barack Obama's realistic and pragmatic approach to international relations. In an interview with Jim Lehrer on public television, they said Obama listens, understands what you say and then asks: "How do I get it done?"

MINNEAPOLIS - In early 2006, Mariano Espinoza was encouraged by developments in Worthington. The town of 11,000 in southwestern Minnesota was involved in a delicate dance, its well-being dependent on a meat packing plant that in turn depended on immigrant Latino workers.