Polls Show Broad Support for Immigration Reform - Page 2

And you know they're accurate how?

800 people is nothing, you take 800 in LA or NY and you will get like 80%, you try the same thing somewhere in the midwest like Michigan and you will see much lower support. I could probably find 700 out of 800 USC in favor of CIR in my area without picking them but just going to a few specific places with large groups of open-minded people.

This is funny. If you ask people "would you want reform in our immigration laws?" most will say yes, even anti-immigration people will say yes. There is always room for reform but that does NOT mean they support CIR. This poll is completely biased.

Michigan is a blue state and has always been. Don't confuse it with Texas.

People's stand on CIR has very little to do with whether they're democrat or republican. Michigan is considered to be one of the states that got hit the hardest by the recession. They have an unemployment rate of 14.1% in comparison to Texas which is only 7.9%. Ask an unemployed person anywhere whether CIR is a good idea and let me know what answer you get. Better yet, ask a regular person who even knows of someone who's unemployed and is having a really hard time making ends meet, and see what answer you get. It is only normal that USCs will look after USCs first.

The reason why you see such high support in LA and NY is not only because people have more direct contact with the immigrant population, but because the unemployment isn't as clustered. I mean people still get laid off all the time, but the economic effect is much smaller when a small office closes than when a auto factory lays off like 5k people at once. You get so many people, in the same situation, and if there was some support for CIR among them before it will quickly disappear in group like that.

Well then why did you say this:

because you could go to a liberal arts university in most communities and you would see a much bigger support for humanitarian causes. College students are a very small group and they aren't as directly affected by the economic crisis as opposed to the working class which obviously constitutes the greatest part of the voting population. The opinions of college students usually reflect ideals and not their financial situation. A poll done in a place like that wouldn't reflect views of the general American population, yet would show a great support for CIR.

If you were to poll the same group of people after they graduate that university and get a taste of real life you would see a difference in results. Same rule applies to geographic location in the US, you ask in a state that is getting destroyed by recession and the support will be small, you do the same thing in like NYC and the support will be bigger. Now how do you figure which one reflects the views of the general voting USC population? With such a small sample as 800 people they are both meaningless.

You could do it by state, with like 5000 people across the state in each state and then maybe you could at least get some reasonable idea of whether USCs actually support CIR.

Another poll result in support of CIR

http://www.americanprogress.org/issu...hot011810.html


Public Opinion Snapshot: Public Continues to Back Comprehensive Immigration Reform
By Ruy Teixeira | January 19, 2010

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There’s no doubt the politics of immigration reform are very complicated and that getting a bill through Congress will not be easy. But it’s important to be clear that the public is quite supportive of immigration reform, especially reform that is comprehensive and does not simply focus on punitive measures. This has been true of the public for some time and a new Benenson Strategy Group poll for America’s Voice demonstrates that it is still true today.

In the new poll, voters were asked about several aspects of comprehensive immigration reform. Perhaps not surprisingly, 89 percent supported increasing security on the U.S.-Mexico border and an identical number supported cracking down on employers who hire illegal immigrants. But nearly as many—87 percent—also supported a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, provided they registered with the government and met requirements like working, paying taxes, and learning English.



Underscoring this nonpunitive approach to immigration reform, the poll also asked voters to choose from two statements concerning immigration and the economy. One statement suggested that we’d be better off if people in the United States illegally left the country because they’re taking jobs Americans need, while the other statement suggested we’d be better off if illegal immigrants became legal taxpayers and paid their fair share. By 67-28, voters chose making illegal immigrants legal over having them leave the country.



Finally, voters were asked directly about what do with the 12 million illegal immigrants in the country in addition to obvious steps like securing our borders and deporting illegal immigrants who commit crimes. Just 22 percent thought they must leave the country and an even smaller group, 11 percent, thought they should be allowed to stay on a temporary basis but not allowed to become citizens. The overwhelming majority, 66 percent, thought the best way to deal with the situation was to require the illegal immigrants to register, meet certain conditions, and then allow them to apply for citizenship.



Immigration reform may be a difficult issue to handle politically. But conservatives and others who claim there is no real public support for immigration reform are just plain wrong.

Ruy Teixeira is a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress. To learn more about his public opinion analysis go to the Media and Progressive Values page and the Progressive Studies program page of our website.

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