¡La Migra!

12 January 2004


Bush Proposes Immigration Reform

With an estimated 8 million illegal immigrants in the US, President Bush's proposed reforms of what is laughingly called American immigration policy look like the right direction in which to move. Ideally, there should be no illegal immigrants, but facts are facts, and Mr. Bush has prudently opted for an approach that will legalize their status. So long as it doesn't become yet another amnesty, it might even have long-term benefits.

For those now in the US illegally but who have jobs, Mr. Bush offers a 3-year visa, they may apply for a green card (permanent residence, just shy of citizenship), and they may travel freely between the US and their home country. For those wishing to come to the US, a guestworker program would allow them to come to the US if they can prove no US citizen can do the job (e.g., musicians and particle physicists). What is unclear, though, is whether the program will speed up the process of sending people back home before their visa expires.

In the past, illegal immigration in the US has reached such levels that handing out green cards and declaring an amnesty has been the "solution." In a less security conscious society with a healthier employment picture, this may have been acceptable. Today, America is a different place. Mr. Bush must end the practice of legal appeal upon legal appeal in immigration cases once it is made easier to arrive legally.

The problem is not immigration in the 21st century any more than it was in the 19th. The nativists may scream, but people will come and change the country in doing so. This cannot be stopped. What must be stopped are the evils that a huge illegal population creates: low wages, poor education and healthcare for children of the illegals (many of whom were born in the US, and therefore, are US citizens), human smuggling, and the threat of terrorism.

The president has left the details of this plan to Congress, which may be the kiss of death, but it may be the only realistic way to get this accomplished. The real question is whether this gets passed before the election, or is this pandering to the Latino vote that will be forgotten after November 2004?

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