With House Speaker Joe Straus no longer holding sway over one chamber of the Texas Legislature, many conservatives are hoping this year will be the time that in-state tuition for illegal aliens is repealed. And amnesty supporters are organizing in Texas to stop them.
Last week a new pro-illegal alien organization launched in the Lone Star State: Texans for Economic Growth.
The group, which appears to contain more chambers of commerce than actual businesses, is directly tied to Partnership for a New American Economy, a “comprehensive immigration reform” (pro-amnesty) organization headed by two billionaires, the anti-gun former Mayor of New York Michael Bloomberg and News Corp’s Rupert Murdoch; a host of other media elites; big business CEOs; and mayors.
NAE makes it very clear that it’s not about a new economy for Americans, but rather creating new Americans for the economy.
Among other goals, NAE will work to persuade federal lawmakers to enact legislation which will create “a path to legal status for all undocumented immigrants now in the United States.” The partnership will seek to influence by “publishing studies, conducting polls, convening forums, and sponsoring public education campaigns.”
Enter their Texas chapter, Texans for Economic Growth, which announced in a press release they formed to oppose legislation to end in-state tuition for illegal aliens in Texas.
“During the 86th Legislature, Texans for Economic Growth will focus its efforts on protecting the Texas economy from the harmful effects of anti-immigrant legislation. In particular, the Coalition will oppose efforts to increase public college and university tuition for certain long-term Texas resident students.”
They’ve even come up with a doom-and-gloom study they say shows Texas will lose $400 million if subsidized tuition for illegal aliens is repealed—a number disputed by State Rep. Kyle Biedermann (R-Fredericksburg) whose House Bill 413 would repeal in-state, subsidized tuition for illegal aliens in the Lone Star State.
“As a small business owner, I value the workforce, but there is no justification for the State of Texas to subsidize tuition of illegal aliens,” said Biedermann. “This isn’t the first time an organization has put out unsubstantiated numbers that weren’t accurate to try and justify illegal immigration.”
The projections provided by Texans for Economic Growth likewise didn’t dissuade other grassroots conservatives from fighting to repeal the policy of granting subsidized tuition for illegal aliens.
Saurabh Sharma, a legal immigrant and chairman of the Young Conservatives of Texas, said his organization would continue supporting Biedermann’s bill and advocating for the policy to be changed.
“Open borders policy has always been popular with big business, but Young Conservatives of Texas firmly believes that if Texas is going to invest in state-sponsored higher education, that investment should be geared towards law-abiding citizens and residents who have no chance of deportation due to their illegal entry into the United States,” said Sharma.
