Obama Sets Sights on Merging Mexico and US?

After more than a year of campaigning, President Obama (left) finally won much-needed and long-overdue changes to our health care system. Achieving what four other presidents could not, Obama broke through the political impasse to obtain health care coverage for the vast majority of uninsured Americans. The president now needs to take this mandate and act quickly on what should be the next major item on his domestic agenda: modernizing our immigration system. Comprehensive immigration reform requires a balanced and measured approach that includes a broad legalization component, a foreign policy that promotes meaningful and equitable economic development in the region, and humane enforcement measures that strengthen, rather than divide, local communities. Any comprehensive immigration reform bill thus must hold as its centerpiece a fair and practicable legalization plan that recognizes and respects the diversity of our communities. The clearest option would be granting undocumented immigrants, including LGBT domestic partners, broad access to permanent resident status so they could work and travel freely. It is only when we remove the fear of deportation that we truly remove the burden of second-class citizenship. While the word "amnesty" is politically unpopular in some circles, its true meaning is reprieve or absolution. Amnesty does not mean a free ride, as people must still pay fines, wait their turn in line and comply with whatever new rules are developed. – SFGate.com

Dominant Social Theme: Painting the canvas of future greatness. The great uniters will unite all.

Free-Market Analysis: This article is the story of a canvas now being painted. It may even end up with a portrait of an international couple being married. But it is not a pretty picture by any means. Investors with holdings in the United States – dollars, bonds and stocks – will have to beware of what is coming. Some of the largest markets in the world could be further destabilized in the near or fairly-near future.

The problems have to do with the Obama administration's focus on upcoming legislation. While financial reform is an interesting topic, US President Barack Obama and those behind his administration are aiming, in our estimation, at a bigger prize - immigration reform. They seem to want to introduce such legislation soon, and while it may not go anywhere after a divisive health care debate, we think that it will come back again and again, as it is important to a larger agenda. This article will concentrate on immigration reform and its eventual ramifications, financial and otherwise.

To start, one has to grant continuity between this administration and the last (a Republican one) and grant also that each party is a continuation of the other. The players behind the scenes are a power elite that continually seeks further consolidation and concentration of wealth (in its hands) at the expense of the middle class and other influential factions of a participatory democracy.

If one does grant this, the picture steadily reveals itself, even if it is not finished. What one sees, however, if one looks hard, is a potential finished work that will be one of amazing trickery and false perceptions. Yet, it is not a new effort. In fact, it's been going on for decades, but the health care bill was doubtless a major advance. Here's a Fox News story that reveals more of the big picture:

Immigration Reform Could KO Health Care ... While Congress voted to overhaul U.S. health care and provide universal coverage, 15 percent of America's uninsured population remains uncovered and unaddressed: illegal immigrants. Democrats are expected to introduce comprehensive immigration reform legislation this spring, and when they do, health care costs will once again be front and center. Under the new law just passed, illegal immigrants are not entitled to health care. That means undocumented workers will continue to get care the way they always have, showing up at county clinics and hospitals for emergency treatment. According to cost estimates submitted by various states, that costs taxpayers and ratepayers about $4.3 billion a year.