Duh!!!! Sharing in case anyone else was as dense as I was. [View all]

I've always felt uneasy about the use of "undocumented" instead (I thought) of "illegal." It sounded like special pleading. And then, yesterday, I put it all together. It is not "illegal" to enter the United States any way you can to claim asylum. After you've claimed asylum, you go through a process to gain, you hope, documents. Official status to remain here and, hopefully, enter a path to citizenship. So "undocumented" is, indeed, the correct term. I had all the pieces, just didn't put them together.

Now, for sure, some people that are claimin asylum are doing so illegitimately. But, until their case is heard, we don't know that.

I know most of you DUers have been clear about that all along, but maybe a few more need to hear it.

I do, though, think the law needs to be changed, or the staffing at the border for hearing cases needs to be vastly increased.

Another thing I learned. The right's resistance to "fixing" things hinges on the fact that the census counts people, not citizens. They literally do want to get rid of all those people increasing the chance of democratic congressional districts. It's not a matter of people taking jobs, or even racism. It's pure politics.