Pakistan has nuclear weapons. The planet is overheating. And yet somehow the Republican candidates have time to fight about in-state tuition for illegals.
Should children of illegal immigrants be entitled to the same in-state college tuition benefits as other in-state students? Along with other immigration issues, this has become a major issue in the Republican presidential primary.
Whenever I hear Republicans debating this issue, my first thought is this: don't you have anything more important to discuss?
There's a laundry list of serious crises in the United States. A health care system that's clearly failing the people. A Social Security system that's about to run out of money. Global warming. A looming recession. Not to mention the War in Iraq, the threat of terrorism, and serious foreign policy messes in Iran and Pakistan.
So are we really worried about an 18-year-old in Arkansas who's going to have the opportunity to <gasp!> go to college? With everything else that's going on, is this kid who's jumping at the chance to sit in a college classroom a serious threat to national security?
The issue here is whether the kids of people who immigrated illegally should have the opportunity to attend college at in-state rates. These are kids who were born in the United States, and who therefore are citizens. They're not looking for a free ride-- only the opportunity to pay for college at an affordable in-state rate. This will open doors to these young people to higher paying careers-- along with higher levels of taxation to help pay for someone else's college education.
This is really a threat to national security?
The immigration debate is complicated, and we need to work hard to find some workable solutions that are fair to everyone. But keeping a kid out of college is not going to solve any problems at all. Republican candidates, please. Choose from the laundry list of social problems and real threats to national security and abandon this ridiculous issue.
