To Phil Murphy, citizenship means nothing

Three months into his first and hopefully only term as governor, I've concluded something terrifying about Phil Murphy. His actions and words while on the campaign trail and now in office show me that citizenship means absolutely nothing to this guy. Even worse, many in New Jersey are just like him.

I have nothing against immigration. My mother's side of the family has been here since colonial days. But my father's side came over in the late 1800's. Yes, we are a nation of immigrants. Yes, we should be a shining example of tolerance with a country filled with many races and cultures. But illegal immigration has nothing to do with that. Illegal immigration isn't about culture or race. It's about the law.

We have millions of lawbreakers living here and if you dare bring up that they don't belong you are labeled a xenophobe and a racist. Well I'm bringing it up. Not because of race, foreign languages, culture clashes, etc. Those are all things that should make the mosaic of America beautiful. Rather because if we continue down this path of treating illegals the same as citizens, citizenship becomes absolutely meaningless. To Phil Murphy, it already is.

This week the Assembly passed legislation that the Senate already had. It will make state financial aid available to illegals who want to attend college. They had already been granted in-state tuition at state schools even though they are living in New Jersey illegally. Yet a citizen who lives across the Delaware in New Hope would have to pay double to attend Rutgers. Now we will have state aid for them. The bill goes to Murphy's desk for signature and he already said during the campaign he would sign such legislation.

There are two things that could happen here. Either no additional money is put into that system therefore more citizens will get less of the pie or nothing. Or, and this appears to be how it will work according to published reports, millions of additional tax dollars will be added to that system to accommodate illegals. That doesn't make it any more okay. All that means is they could find a way to increase the funds for illegals but not for hard working U.S. citizens who never broke any laws. In other words, how about increase the size of that pie to help more people who belong here, not the ones who don't?

His talk of a sanctuary state and his racing to the Reformed Church in Highland Park where illegals were hiding from ICE in January was just sad. Where is such urgency for the problems of law abiding U.S. citizens who can no longer afford to live here, no longer afford their runaway property taxes? If you're going to race anywhere, race to us first. We are legally here. Would you help your across town neighbors before you help your own family? It feels like we're being abandoned by a father who doesn't care.

Then there's the more than $2 million he included in the budget to give legal aid to illegal immigrants who are facing detention or deportation. Another slap in the face.

I don't hate anybody. I don't hate people. I hate actions. If you came to this country through legal channels good for you! We are stronger with diversity. Even if you came to this country illegally but immediately got to work on how to make yourself right with the law, paid the often tens of thousands of dollars over years of time necessary to become a citizen, I'll still applaud you. Yet we have millions of illegals in this country who came for our financial opportunities but not for our values. Illegals who haven't done square one about becoming a citizen and don't care to. And guys like Phil Murphy say it doesn't matter.

If citizenship doesn't matter, why did I serve on juries? If citizenship doesn't matter, why did I register for the draft on my 18th birthday? If citizenship doesn't matter, why have I faithfully paid my taxes even when I could barely afford to? If citizenship doesn't matter, why have I been so law-abiding? Why have I always exercised my right to vote?

While this week many are celebrating the help and handouts about to be given to illegal immigrants here, some of us know this is actually a dark time. If citizenship doesn't mean anything anymore, neither does our nation.

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