Top secret issue in current border/amnesty debate - crime.

The Justice Department has no idea what’s driving this upswing [in crime], but I think the answer is very easy to figure out. Three words: Gangs of illegals.

The one that’s gained a very large dose of notoriety of late is Mara Salva Trucha, better known as MS13..

These thugs are trained in paramilitary tactics, which means they can invade homes and rob with alarming efficiency. They’re also known for the way they punish defectors and rival gangs, one of their favorite methods being to cut off the fingers of offenders with machetes. The group is made up mostly of Salvadoran illegals, but now includes a large number of Mexican illegals as well.

And they’re not just in big cities anymore. They now have a presence in Northern Virginia, as well as rural [Pennsylvania].

And the scariest part is they’re just the tip of the ice-berg. Hispanic youths, whether recent arrivals or birthright American citizens, are developing an underclass culture. . . . Hispanic school dropout rates and teen birthrates are now the highest in the nation. Gang crime is exploding nationally—rising 50 percent from 1999 to 2002—driven by the march of Hispanic immigration east and north across the country.

Most worrisome, underclass indicators like crime and single parenthood do not improve over successive generations of Hispanics—they worsen.

"Hispanic Gangs Responsible For Increase In Violent Crime." By Rahel, Customerservant, 6/15/06 (some formatting by us)