By Nicholas Stix
We’re supposed to believe that there are throngs of Brazilians, Chileans, and Argentinians pining to travel all the way to New York City, to visit … Queens? Talk about peeing on someone’s leg, and telling him it’s raining. They’ll come here, and disappear into “the shadows” of illegal, cheap labor, and wait until the next illegal alien amnesty, while voting illegally for Obama, and ripping off the American taxpayer for all manner of services, founding illegal families, etc.
Officials Seek Expansion of Visa Waivers
By Jason Pafundi
April 12, 2012
Queens Tribune Online
U.S. Rep. Joe Crowley (D-Jackson Heights) announced that he will introduce a measure in the House of Representatives that will encourage the U.S. Government to expand the Visa Waiver Program, an effort that he expects to help boost tourism in Queens.
The Congressman was joined by Jack Friedman, executive director of the Queens Chamber of Commerce, Seth Bornstein, executive director of the Queens Economic Development Corporation and Patricia Rojas from the U.S. Travel Association at the press conference at the Queens Chamber of Commerce in Jackson Heights.
“We need to do all we can to make Queens a destination point and not just a gateway to Manhattan,” Crowley said.
The resolution calls on the government to expand the waiver program to include at least three new countries: Brazil, Chile and Argentina. Rojas said the U.S. economy gets about twice as many tourism dollars from South America compared to the United Kingdom, so making it easier for more travelers from more countries to come to America would mean more money for the economy.
The Visa Waiver Program allows visitors from 36 participating countries to travel to the U.S. for tourism or business for stays of 90 days or less without obtaining a visa. Countries included in the program were the largest source of inbound travel in 2010, representing 65 percent of all tourists to the U.S.
Crowley said that expanding the program will encourage more international visitors to the U.S. and will help communities like Queens that are looking to increase tourism and create jobs.
“The history and diversity of Queens has so much to offer to travelers, and increasing travel and tourism is one of the most effective tools we have in our pocket to spur job growth and foster economic activity on the local level,” he said. “My resolution will expand on New York City’s standing as the No. 1 American tourist destination for international visitors by making Queens a part of tourists’ itineraries.”
According to a press release, tourism generates $46.5 billion in economic impact in New York City and supports over 300,000 jobs. In 2010, tourists spent $6 billion in the outer boroughs and 25 percent of international travelers traveled outside of Manhattan.
Bornstein spoke of the QEDC’s recent revival of the Queens Tourism Council as part of an effort to encourage more people to check out the many diverse entertainment options in the borough.
Rojas said that the European Union added a number of countries to its waiver program a decade ago, but the U.S. is taking a more deliberate approach with a much more stringent screening process for countries to be added to the list. And it is much more difficult to get into the U.S. as a foreign visitor than it is for an America to travel abroad. Currently, a person in Brazil could not just decide one night to fly to Las Vegas the next day — they would need a visa and that requires background checking involving many government agencies and INTERPOL, among other requirements.
Crowley said that part of the reason it is so difficult to get into the U.S. is the heightened security and sensitivity in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001.
Reach Reporter Jason Pafundi at (718) 357-7400, Ext. 128, or jpafundi@queenstribune.com.
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