Visas? We don’t need no stinkin’ visas.

"The Nearer They Get to Their Treasure, the Farther They Get From the Law!", from a movie poster for “Treasure of the Sierra Madre,” in 1948.

In “Treasure of the Sierra Madre,” the riches were found in the mountains of Mexico. That treasure was only shared three ways, with disastrous results. The “Treasures of the United States” are being shared an extra eleven million ways.
Some people agree with what Humphrey Bogart said to a trespasser on their gold find: “We're full up. No vacancies. Understand? And in case I don't make myself clear, I think you'd be doin' yourself a favor by packin' up and gettin' out of here tomorrow morning. Go back where you came from. Take our blessings with ya… Tonight you're our guest. But tomorrow morning, look out - no trespassin' around here. Ya know - beware the dogs. Get it?”

But politicians seem to want something different. This is a mixture of Bush and Kerry quotes, from their debates and Bush’s 2006 State of the Union address. If you can’t tell which quote is from which person, does it really matter?

“There ought to be a temporary worker card that allows a willing worker and a willing employer, so long as there's not an American willing to do that job, to join up. I don't believe we ought to have amnesty. I don't think we ought to reward illegal behavior. There are plenty of people standing in line to become a citizen. If they want to become a citizen, they can stand in line, too.”
“We need a guest-worker program. We need to crack down on illegal hiring. And thirdly, we need an earned-legalization program for people who have been here for a long time, stayed out of trouble, got a job, paid their taxes, and their kids are American. We got to start moving them toward full citizenship, out of the shadows.”
“America's immigration system is outdated, unsuited to the needs of our economy and to the values of our country. We should not be content with laws that punish hardworking people and deny businesses willing workers and invite chaos at our border. It is time for an immigration policy that permits temporary guest workers to fill jobs Americans will not take, that rejects amnesty, that tells us who is entering and leaving our country, and that closes the border to drug dealers and terrorists.”

So it’s basically, leave ‘em in, keep ‘em out…
Seems to be the only workable solution. We can’t deport eleven million people. We can’t absorb anymore. They may come for the gold (one man’s minimum wage job is another man’s…), but hopefully they will realize our true treasure lies in the freedom bought by respect for the law.

Now that would be ironic.

(Bush during debate, Kerry during debate, Bush State of the Union, 2006)