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04/20/2006
Public Agenda Alert -- April 20, 2006 * Raids Target Illegal Immigrants as Debate Continues Federal agents, in a new bid to target those who employ illegal immigrants, arrested nine officials of IFCO Systems and more than 1,000 illegal immigrants. The raids come as the debate over illegal immigration continues. Hundreds of students demonstrated in Denver this week in support of immigrant rights, while Georgia's governor signed a law to deny many state services to people in the country illegally. Public concern about illegal immigration is one of the issues Public Agenda Chairman Daniel Yankelovich identified as nearing a "tipping point" where the public demands action. Our newly released Confidence in U.S. Foreign Policy Index found consistent dissatisfaction with the government's efforts on illegal immigration, with the least polarization by political party affiliation of any of the index topics. More than four in five give the government a "C" grade or worse in protecting the borders, with 30 percent giving an "F". And public frustration on this issue may be particularly strong because the public feels the government has the power to control it. Nearly half say the government can do "a lot" to slow illegal immigration, with another 37 percent saying the government can do at least "something" about it. When asked how to improve national security, the public considers tightening controls on illegal immigration second only to improving U.S. intelligence gathering. In surveys, the public consistently makes a sharp distinction between legal and illegal immigrants. Historically, the public looks more favorably on immigrants perceived as "playing by the rules." Yet surveys suggest the public holds both positive and negative views of immigrants at the same time. In one Public Agenda survey, eight in 10 said immigrants have a greater appreciation for the Constitution than native-born Americans. But other surveys show the public says immigration lowers wages and weakens the national character. Emphasizing any one of these findings by itself could be misleading. Read Daniel Yankelovich's essay, "The Tipping Points," in Foreign Affairs: http://www.foreignaffairs.org/20060501faessay85309-p10/daniel-yankelovich/the-tipping-points.html Download a copy of the Confidence in U.S. Foreign Policy Index: http://www.publicagenda.org/foreignpolicy/index.cfm Read our Red Flags on Immigration: http://www.publicagenda.org/issues/red_flags.cfm?issue_type=immigration Read stories on the immigration raids: http://www.cnn.com/2006/LAW/04/20/immigration.raids/index.html The Denver protests: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/immigration_protests The Georgia law: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060418/pl_nm/usa_immigration_georgia_dc_2 * Behind the Headlines: Amid Protests, Chinese Leader Visits White House With human rights protests going on outside the gates, Chinese President Hu Jintao is at the White House today for talks focusing on the trade gap and North Korea. Two-thirds of the public say they worry about the growing power of China at least somewhat, but that's actually far below other concerns like the war in Iraq and the nation's oil supply. Overall, the public doesn't seem to know what to think about China. Find out more Behind the Headlines: http://www.publicagenda.org/headlines/headlines_blog.cfm
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