Up in Minneapolis, local Somalis (“the largest concentration in the United States”) are considering their options given the Islamist takeover of the capital of their homeland, which has been without a government for 16 years. (How time flies!)

Many are happy that a government may be formed and that security will be improved, albeit in the Taliban style. None of the Starbucks Somalis (they seem to have a lot of leisure time) seems exactly unhappy that a brutal Islamist group has taken power, although one “Somali scholar” noted that the militias mean to impose an Islamic caliphate over that region of Africa, which will be exceedingly strict. [Somalis ponder the possibility of peace, Minneapolis Star Tribune, 6/11/06]

Out pour the views:

Yes, the victory of an Islamist coalition in the battle for Mogadishu is a good thing. But not if they turn out to be Taliban-style Islamists. But they aren’t. Well, some of them are.

One predictable portent occurred the other day when the new rulers unplugged Mogadishu residents watching the World Cup soccer tournament. Such activities are western and therefore corrupt, the Islamist militiamen believe.

So will any of these suburban Somalis actually pack up and move home, as a couple said they would? Doubtful, although the Minnesota winter may be an inducement in a few months.

Over 28,290 E2 Visas were issued last year according to the Washington Post. These visas can be obtained pretty much by anyone with $100,000 to invest in an existing US business.

Now, what is this really doing for existing US citizens? I’m sure many of the holders of E2 visas are decent, hardworking people. What I want to see here is some real analysis of how this program really benefits the American people.

At minimum, it seems to me the fees for these visas should be substantially raised. The existing fees don’t even look adequate to supervise the program. The US is running a huge trade and budget deficit-such corporate welfare should all be looked at closely.

The question of whether or not illegal aliens might–horrors–actually be deported under some yet-to-be-agreeed-upon-legislation surfaced in Brian Bilray’s successful race last week for Congress in California 50th District.

When Bilbray addressed the San Diego Chapter of the Republican National Hispanic Assembly, he was asked if deportations might separate families and disturb neighborhoods.

Bilbray replied: “You’re going to have displacement.”

Since Bilbray was elected, you can conclude that he dodged a bullet. But in truth, Bilbray gave the wrong answer. When asked how deportation might break up families, Bilbray should have said: “Not necessarily. Families can remain intact by returning to Mexico together.”

We are going to hear a lot more about family displacement as the Senate and House confer. I suggest we make our point early and often about togetherness being a family choice and not something imposed by federal immigration policy. Let’s not let “family unity” become “Jobs Americans won’t do.”

Being sent home is not a death sentence. They will be returning to their native land—you know, the place where they have Starbucks, WalMart and Blockbuster.

It’s a truth universally acknowledged, as they say, that you can either be a serious immigration reformer, or you can write for the Wall Street Journal editorial page–you can’t do both.

Guess what–Congressman Mike Pence, whose privatization plan for open borders has been repeatedly skewered here, has just come out with an oped in the WSJ.[A Middle Ground on Immigration | Yes to guest workers, no to amnesty. By Mike Pence, June 11, 2006]

How is this package a“middle ground,”you ask? Well, it’s meant to be less obviously horrible than the Senate bill, thus weakening House resistance, plus, of course, in Pence’s new role as a WSJ op-ed writer, anything more in line with the rule of law than “There shall be open borders” is “middle ground.”

Marcus Henry, whose recent piece here was the Absolutely Definitive takedown of the Pence Plan, emailed us and said

In this WSJ piece, Pence merely restates his original plan as outlined at Heritage on May 23 without any significant modifications. The stealth amnesty is still there, the path to citizenship is still there, and the unworkable “private sector visa centers” are still there, now insultingly named “Ellis Island Centers” to slander generations of refugees.

Nothing I said in the VDARE essay has been refuted. In fact, Pence refutes himself on several points, most blatantly on the path to citizenship issue. There is simply no requirement in his plan that the guest worker go home after six years–he can apply for a green card if he chooses.

As I said in my original essay, in Pence’s plan only the guest worker’s term as a guest worker is limited, not his residence in the U.S. This confusion on Pence’s part is either a sign of total ignorance of how a “path to citizenship” actually works in our immigration system or it is a conscious obfuscation.

Some people inside the Beltway may choose to accept Pence’s sleight-of-hand if they are desperate for a magical solution to a difficult problem, but no one outside Washington who understands the English language will be fooled.