Should we kick out all the Mexicans?

In light of the ongoing debate about HB 87, Georgia's knockoff version of the Arizona anti-immigrant legislation, I think that a carefully contemplated rebuttal to the short-sighted reasoning of the conservative argument is well warranted.  The Republicans in this state seem to believe that an enforcement-only approach---that is, catching and kicking out Mexicans and other Latinos---will somehow be the silver bullet that magically solves the immigration problem in this country.  "Pull them over, ask for their papers, and deport them!" they say.  It all sounds simple enough.  But is it really a good idea?  Let's consider some common conservative arguments:

• "Illegal immigrants take jobs away from Americans."    

In an effort to be as unbiased and objective as possible, I am going to diverge slightly from the most extreme liberal defense to this criticism and acknowledge that undocumented immigrants probably do compete unfairly with U.S. citizens in unskilled sectors to a certain degree.  We all know that undocumented immigrants mow our lawns, clean our houses, work in dry cleaners, and perform construction work; they simply do not have the necessary background or credential to work as sophisticated software engineers or doctors.  And yes, they usually get paid in cash under the table and earn below minimum wage.  

However, I would counter that the crux of the problem does not lie with the undocumented immigrant.  A Mexican understands incentives just as well as anyone else and would much rather make more money for his or her services.  But imagine the following conversation taking place:

American Employer:  Jose, I'm gonna have to ask you to work overtime tonight.

Mexican Worker:  Will you pay me extra or at least give me minimum wage? 

American Employer:  Nope, because I can get away with it.  And if you cause trouble, I'll call the authorities and have you deported. 

Mexican Worker:  (Thinking) Wow, really?

One needs to understand that the Mexican worker isn't the one harboring direct malicious intent to screw American workers out of the labor market.  Jose would opt for minimum wage any time if it were offered to him; but the American boss will simply not do so because he has leverage over Jose.  And we all know why Jose is not going to call the cops about this.   

Furthermore, nobody talks about the problems associated with the unskilled American who is competing against someone like our fictional Jose.  It may be harsh but a blogger who goes by the pseudonym "The Korean" phrased it well:

"Even if we were speaking on the low-paying and volatile jobs that illegal immigrants generally take, have you considered, you know, studying hard during school so that you won't have to take those jobs? Or working harder than the guy next to you at your job? Surely, you are not saying you are in a worse position to compete with an illegal immigrant, who is faced with language barrier, cultural gap, poverty and constant persecution from immigration authorities? Even with all that, illegal immigrants apparently find jobs. What's your excuse?"

"Seriously, what entitles you to a job? Don't you generally belong to the political party that does not believe in giving free handouts to people?"

Based on anecdotes, I know that many Korean business owners---who usually run construction companies, dry cleaners, restaurants, etc.---simply refuse to hire American-born workers because they have a bad attitude, perform poorly, and inevitably ask for more pay.  They hire Mexicans because they get the job done.  I do not justify any Korean business owner paying Mexican workers below minimum wage; however, I do think that most business owners would still hire Mexicans immigrants over native-born Americans even if the former group had legal status and demanded a fair wage. 

And let's face it.  More "refined" Americans love having Latinos mow their lawns and clean their homes for a bargain cost.  Also, for example, just look at how this country has enjoyed relatively cheap real estate for a while because Latino construction workers did not receive fair compensation.  Unfortunately, Wall Street decided to gamble with mortgage-backed securities and screwed us all.

At this point, I can just picture a conservative asking, "But all you're doing here is blaming Americans.  Isn't it nonsensical to talk about fair wages for illegals?  They shouldn't even be here in the first place."

Since this entry is getting a bit lengthy, I'll have more in a follow-up...