Dallas Morning News Names The Illegal Immigrant as Texan of the Year for 2007

The Dallas Morning News named the Illegal Immigrant as the 2007 Texan of the Year, and one can only ask: why? There are numerous individuals on the ballot who were more deserving of the title. Robert Gates was one of the finalist in the decision making process of who would be named Texan of the Year, and talk about someone who has had a positive influence in Washington, and someone who has helped turn the War in Iraq around for the better, but in the end the DMN gave the title to the Illegal Immigrant. 

The problem here is, of course, that foreign nationalists who are here illegally are not legally Texans, they are not citizens of this state therefore one must ask how they were even put on the ballot? I can understand the newspaper’s rational for choosing the illegal immigrant. Much like Time magazine’s choice of Person of the Year, the DMN picked someone or, in this case, people who have had a major impact on our state and our nation, whether it be a positive impact or a negative impact. But, to be named Texan of the Year I would assume you would have to be a Texan meaning a legal citizen of the state. I’d say under the newspaper’s reasoning we could name just about anyone Texan of the Year, whether they are Texas citizens or not.

The issue of illegal immigration is seen nation wide as a complicated matter that has sparked much debate and controversy in our own state and in our nation. Despite some complicated elements that are indeed involved in the issue, when it comes down to it, foreign nationalist here illegally have broken the laws of our country, and break them every second they are in this country without the proper and legal documentation that is required of anyone living in this country. It is that simple. The complexity of the issue comes when we ask ourselves how we deal with the issue.

First and foremost the federal government needs to be doing its job and start enforcing the laws that we have on the books. The borders need to be better secured. The U.S. Border Patrol is currently underfunded, and lacking necessary resources and man power to be able to do their jobs, and along the southern border there is a war going on between the Border Patrol and drug cartels, and our Border Patrol agents are out gunned. Something needs to be done, and it needs to be done soon. There was the seven hundred mile fence that Congress promised two years ago that is not even close to being finished. Then, you have to ask, what do we do with the twelve million (Keep in mind this is the minimum number) of illegal immigrants who are presently living in the United States? The ideal solution would be to deport them, and not allow them to cut in line of people who chose to obey the laws of our country and are currently in the process of gaining the legal documentation to come to this country legally. The idea of deporting at least twelve million people would be almost impossible so focus needs to be on tightening the security along our borders, and all entry points into the United States, and then once we have secured the borders then we can address the laws on the books, and see where changes need to be made, because the status quo is unacceptable. It is an honorable thing to want to further the prosperity of your family and of yourself, but we have these laws for a reason. Legal immigration should be encouraged, but if you are living in a country like Mexico you could wait a decade before you are even granted the ability to come to this country legally. The current immigration system needs to change, but before we can do that we must secure our borders.

Big controversy came in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in 2007 when the Irving City Mayor Herb Gears made the right decision when he turned the city from being a sanctuary city to a city that is now helping Immigration and Customs Enforcement crack down on illegal immigrantion. Many people within the Hispanic community have come out and have called him a racist, but his issue is not about race, ethnicity, or nationality. It does not matter where you come from. If you are in this country without the proper legal documentation for being here then you have broken the law, and therefore must be subject to prosecution and deportation. Perhaps Mayor Gears should have been in the running for Texan of the Year.

Other finalist in the running for Texan of the Year included Garret Boone, Cathy Bonner, Alberto Gonzales, Craig Watkins, Robert Gates, Jerry Jones, Sharon Keller, Carol Wise, and Bill Mullican.