text: what percentage of the population are illegal immigrants? if they are only 5% (or so)how can they actually economically have a huge impact? they congregate in specific areas, rather than spreading through the nation.  california has the most in one place.  i have read that up to 50% of the inmates of california prisons are illegal immigrants.  (it looked like legitimate census data, and was quoted in governmental literature.)  furthermore, the poor have it hard enough without downward pressure on their wages.  i'm for closing the border and legalizing qualified illegal immigrants here.  however, i want the future expansion of legal immigration through an extended guest worker program to wait until border security measures are in place.