I've noticed that the overwhelming majority of people who are vitriolic about illegal immigration are also vitriolic about welfare and unemployment, and I believe I know why.
When talking about illegal immigration, the implicit (and often explicit) argument is that for every illegal immigrant with a job, some American who wants a job can't find one. Even when the words are not so precise, the meaning is clear: some Americans will remain unemployed until we remove illegal immigrants from those positions.
This clear and direct impact on Americans must - by necessity - pit the needs of Americans against the needs of illegal immigrants. And since it is "us vs. them", we must choose "us." It is our only chance of survival.
