Most citizens are well aware that illegal immigration is a serious problem in the United States.
The INS estimates there are over 5 million illegal aliens living in our country, and an additional 1 million 'transient' aliens here illegally at any point. To put it another way, there are enough illegal aliens in the U.S. to make two cities the size of Chicago. This high number of illegal aliens is despite the fact that over three million illegal aliens were given amnesty in the late 1980s, when Congress attempted to 'magically' solve the illegal immigration problem by turning illegal aliens into legal immigrants. Or perhaps the current high number of illegal aliens is not despite the amnesty, but rather because of it. Ever since the first amnesty was passed, the hope of another one has lurked in the background, encouraging illegal aliens to wait for the day when they may be forgiven for 'breaking and entering' into our country.