Hundreds of demonstrations are expected again this week over the
highly emotional issue of immigration policy, and rightly so.
Hundreds of demonstrations are expected again this week over the highly emotional issue of immigration policy, and rightly so.
The nation is crying loud and clear for congressional leaders to tackle the difficult problem. It’s a disgrace that our politicians at the nation’s Capitol are taking a two-week vacation and putting this on the back burner to focus more on their elections this November.
We believe when Congress returns to work on April 24 members of the Senate and House should deal with four imperatives that need to be addressed in an overdue overhaul of immigration legislation.
- Admit that the current wall along the U.S.-Mexico border is not being patrolled adequately with the amount of Border Patrol immigration agents available. Congress needs to strengthen the point of entrance for illegal immigration. Hire the 12,000 men and women needed to secure American gates.
-
President Bush and Mexican President Vicente Fox need to get serious about reaching some sort of agreement over those who come to American soil to work and make money. Bush and Fox should impose a tax, first of all, on those who earn dollars here, and the “guest worker” program being proposed needs to be implemented in Mexico through American embassies reviewing applications of immigrants. Whatever worker program is adopted needs to be limited to just a few years, and the opportunity of citizenship should only be given to those who meet strict requirements, such as learning English and paying back taxes.
When immigrants fail to return to their home country, immigration officials need to have the backing of the Mexican government to seize their properties in their countries of origin or impose some other penalty that will require a return to their native land.
- The program should include amnesty only to immigrants who have lived in this country for a limited number of years. Treat those who have lived here longer differently than new arrivals. Amnesty should also only be given to those who qualify for it and not to those who in 1986 obtained it through fraudulent means, by falsifying documents that our government couldn’t screen properly.
Bring these immigrants out of the shadow for security and economic reasons. Our country’s coffers are being drained with the thousands who seek medical care and welfare services who live as ghosts, in obscurity, working with fake documents and never paying taxes, while hardworking Americans foot the bill. This is not fair.
- Finally, Congress should drive home the point that it’s not the municipal government’s job to enforce immigration law, but the federal government’s responsibility. Once owning up to a failure to properly enforce employer sanctions, Congress must institute stiffer penalties on violators of the law who often exploit immigrants
It’s time for the House and the Senate to reach a consensus on this issue as soon as possible. They must realize illegal immigration is not just an American problem, but a Mexican problem, as well. Prioritize immigration policy and leave the campaigning for the end of the fall.
