January 30, 2008

Latest Treason Lobby Scam: “Undocumented” = “Unbanked”

By Brenda Walker

We in Mexifornia live on the front lines of diversity. Every day politicians, business and the academy work to spread the doctrine of increasing inclusion, sometimes with the discovery of a new group of underprivileged foreigners who need our attention. Our political leaders in particular are highly attuned to any alleged discomfort on the part of Mexicans—or anyone else under the sun who can make their way here.

The latest attempt at heart-tuggery: the tribulation suffered by “The Unbanked”—as imagined by California’s illustrious Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and his compadre Bill Clinton in the prestigious Wall Street Journal [Beyond Payday Loans, Jan 24, 2008].

"The American dream is founded on the belief that people who work hard and play by the rules will be able to earn a good living, raise a family in comfort and retire with dignity.

“But that dream is harder to achieve for millions of Americans because they spend too much of their hard-earned money on fees to cash their paychecks or pay off high-priced loans meant to carry them over until they get paid at work.

Here is one initiative that can unite progressives and conservatives as well as business leaders and community activists: helping the ‘unbanked’ enter the financial mainstream by opening checking and savings accounts, and working collaboratively with financial institutions and community groups to develop and market products that work for this untapped market. This will put money in the pockets of individuals and grow the economy. And it won't cost taxpayers a dime."

On the surface, this underwhelming policy suggestion seems a harmless snoozer. Remember how Bill Clinton peppered his Presidency with insignificant programs that kept up the appearance of relevance and progress? In the policy area, the recommendation is that banks should offer more starter accounts with features designed for the Unbanked demographic.

But the op-ed does not identify honestly many of this proposal’s true beneficiaries—illegal aliens. The piece slyly combines groups to hide that fact, saying, "Approximately 11% of California households, including 25% of Latino and African-American households, do not have a checking account." The words "immigrant" or "alien" do not appear.

A report from Scarborough Research (PDF) showed the communities with the highest percentages of "unbanked" were also home to many illegal aliens (e.g. Fresno, El Paso, Los Angeles, Dallas).

The Unbanked are illegal aliens, first and foremost, though there are certainly some citizens who plain don't like banks and manage somehow to avoid using them.

Reasonable observers have to ask, however, whether this "problem" exists at all. Illegals can't cash their checks? Banks don't mind giving them hundreds of thousands of dollars in mortgages, or at least were happy to do so a few months ago.

A Wall Street Journal article, How the Subprime Mess Hit Poor Immigrant Groups [By Jonathan Karp and Miriam Jordan, December 6, 2007] focused on a Brazilian-church-based mortgage scam located in South San Francisco.

"Ms. Costa, the housekeeper, secured a $713,000 sub-prime mortgage. In another instance, a Brazilian baby sitter borrowed $495,000. Now, the home buyers are beset by foreclosures and additional stains on their already-tainted credit. "

The reader learns much later in the article that Ms. Costa is an illegal alien.

VDARE.COM's own one-time banker Joe Guzzardi described in 2005 how traditional financial standards were thrown under the bus for the quick profits of home-loan scams that targeted foreigners: Mortgages For Illegal Aliens: Are Banks The Treason Industry?.

"Not surprisingly, given my rigid financial training, I am aghast at the newest trend in accommodating illegal aliens—home mortgages.

“No matter how hard I try, I simply cannot conceive of any bank granting home loans to applicants who cannot produce a social security card.

“Nor can I for the life of me imagine proposing to my former superiors a new type of loan whose success is dependent on violating federal law on several levels.”

And beyond the big money in home loans, greedy American banks are willing to accept the bogus matricula ID card that most Mexican banks refuse. Foreigners are welcome to open bank accounts with the junk identification that any terrorist can buy on a local street corner.

As Ed Rubenstein has observed, the Unbanked do not leave a telltale paper trail that could inform authorities of their general whereabouts. Evidence indicates that being a bankless, cash-embracing foreigner is a rational choice, not an instance of victimhood.

What does the Arnold and Bill collaboration indicate? They are broadcasting the message south that nothing has really changed in the USA, and the welcome mat remains out for the willing workers of America's slavery-lite economy. Most Democrats and some Republicans are working to expand the array of benefits to make life easier for illegal foreigners. Mexicans and others may have heard about tougher enforcement, particularly in states like Arizona where attrition is working. But most places operate as before, despite the obvious damage.

California is in the midst of a worsening financial crisis caused largely by spending $10 billion yearly on foreign squatters, but the Governor continues to invite them. His transformation from outside reformer to opportunist political hack has been rapid indeed.

The Unbanked initiative takes a non-existent problem as an excuse to peddle financial services to a group which the banks hope to ensnare, perhaps with an eye to profitable remittance transfers.

It's another effort to diminish national standards and institute a more globalist system.