Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Blaise Ingoglia criticized the details of the Dignity for Immigrants while Guarding our Nation to Ignite and Deliver the American Dream Act (DIGNIDAD) during a recent podcast discussion.
"Amnesty isn't compassion, it's a magnet, and history will repeat itself. The Dignity Act proposes amnesty for over 11 million illegals in exchange for wait for it, enforcement," Ingoglia said.
Proposed by Reps. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL) and Veronica Escobar (D-TX), the DIGNIDAD Act aims to overhaul U.S. immigration by increasing border security and mandating E-Verify, while creating a 7-year path to legal status for undocumented immigrants who arrived before 2021.
"The Dignidad Act is bad policy and a bad idea," Ingoglia said.
Ingoglia noted the bill's playbook came from President Ronald Reagan's Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986, which granted amnesty to 3 million illegal immigrants in exchange for tougher border enforcement and penalties for employers who hired illegal workers.
That didn't work, according to Ingoglia, noting enforcement never came. He also mentioned that history might be repeating itself, noting that amnesty, at the expense of the American taxpayer, could attract "tens of millions more" illegal aliens coming to the U.S. in the future.
"The biggest problem is government creating taxpayer-funded programs that attract illegals to our country, and Amnesty is the biggest magnet of them all," Ingoglia said.
The CFO further critcized the representative's proposal.
"There are more in this legislation than all golf courses in America combined," Ingoglia said, while providing specific examples of the bill. An outline of the Dignity Act is available here.
"To be eligible for amnesty in the Dignity Act, all you have to do is get two other illegal immigrants to say you've been in the country continually for more than five years. You can also be granted amnesty if you have a criminal record or if you've participated in gang activities within the last five years," Ingoglia said.
"The bill just doesn't grant amnesty for illegal immigrants. It also hurts American workers by expanding legal immigration in such a way that it will put American jobs at risk," Ingogia continued. "Think of it as a supercharged H-1B program on steroids. The Dignity Act stops all currently scheduled deportations dead in its tracks."
Rep. Salazar, who's up for re-election in District 27, fired back at critics of the bill last month, including those who raised concerns about its amnesty and criminal elements.
“This is enforcement first: zero tolerance for criminals, permanent border security, and hard, earned requirements to step forward and face the law, so American workers are protected, not undercut," Salazar said. "The DIGNITY Act removes ALL criminal illegal aliens and recent arrivals, and it shuts down future illegal immigration once and for all."
