Bush's Plan for Immigration Reform
President Bush supports comprehensive immigration reform. Some of the proposals
include: resolving the status of the millions of illegal immigrants already in
the United States, encouraging illegal immigrants to assimilate, working on
making the borders secure, introducing a temporary
guest worker program and
penalizing employers for willingly hiring illegal immigrants. Bush also
recognizes that in order for the immigration problem to be solved, all these
issues must be dealt with simultaneously. So what is the current administration
doing to address the first issue of increasing border security? Border security
funding has gone from nearly $5 billion in 2001 to over $10 billion in 2007. The
number of border patrol agents has gone from 9,000 to almost 15,000 during the
same time span. By the end of next year, there should be approximately 18,000
border patrol agents. Six-thousand National Guard troops have been called to
temporarily assist the Border Patrol with such duties as intelligence analysis,
building fences and patrol roads. Infrastructure is being improved and
investments in more advanced border technology continue. Additional detention
beds has meant that instead of the “catch and release” policy previously used
due to the shortage of beds, more illegal immigrants can now be detained. More
illegal immigrants are being
deported (especially those with criminal
backgrounds) due to a quicker “expedited removal” process. In addition, there is
now greater cooperation among local and state local law enforcement and the
Department of Homeland Security to prevent illegal immigration.
LATEST NEWS
On June 29th the United States Senate killed the proposed comprehensive
immigration legislation, ending chances for President George W. Bush to pass his
immigration reform plan--a centerpiece of the president's domestic agenda.
Immigration reform supporters garnered just 46 of the 60 votes needed to
conclude debate and proceed to final passage. Sixty senators, including 37 of
Bush's fellow Republicans, voted against it. Most senators said they had no
plans to try to overhaul immigration law before the 2008 presidential election,
so it is unlikely that any major immigration bill will become law until 2009.
The biggest obstacle was to convince conservatives that the path to citizenship
for illegal aliens is not Amnesty. The bill's bitter end has a deeper meaning,
as it demonstrated that conservative Americans’ vision for US immigration reform
should not include any type of amnesty or legalization for undocumented workers.
"This vote effectively kills comprehensive immigration legislation in the 110th
Congress" - said Democratic Representative Zoe Lofgren, head of a House
Judiciary subcommittee on immigration.
The measure, the biggest rewrite of U.S. immigration law since 1986, would offer
12 to 20 million illegal immigrants a path to citizenship while tightening the
border with Mexico and creating a guest-worker program to help employers fill
low-paying jobs.
President Bush, who had lobbied Republican senators to support the legislation,
acknowledged defeat, saying that - "Congress's failure to act on it is a
disappointment." The Bush administration is still interested in finding the
solution to the problem of illegal immigration, said Michael Chertoff, Bush's
homeland security secretary who helped draft the legislation. |
In terms of employers who willingly hire illegal immigrants, the Bush
administration has more aggressively gone after them. While there have always
been laws prohibiting the hiring of illegal immigrants, these laws have not been
consistently enforced. Those employers who were prosecuted were given a modest
fine that they considered was a small price for doing business and they
continued to hire illegal immigrants. Last year alone over 4,000 arrests were
made; a number seven times greater than the arrests made in 2002. Enforcement
funding was doubled and special task forces were created to dismantle criminal
rings specializing in counterfeit documents. The Department of Homeland Security
is looking at introducing a “no-match” regulation. This would make employers
aware of their hiring of ten or more employees that have provided inaccurate
Social Security information. It would also remind them that they could be held
liable for hiring these employees. Another possibility is to introduce a
standardized ID card for legal foreign workers that would show their legal
status so that employers could easily identify them. When it comes to
border
security, it must also be complemented by a temporary worker program. Such
program would allow companies to legally hire the workers they need and would
take pressure off the border. Border Patrol could then focus on going after more
drug dealers, terrorists and other criminals. The program would be temporary and
violators would be denied the opportunity to become permanent residents and
citizens. In addition, American workers would be given priority and any
jobs not
filled by them would be made available to temporary workers. The number of
temporary guest workers would be determined by the market.
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Another issue that has to be addressed is dealing with the illegal immigrants
already in the United States. There are many
illegal immigrants who have lived
in the U.S. for many years, worked hard, raised their children here and can
generally be considered a “good resident.” According to Bush, they should be
taken “out of the shadows” and given the opportunity to not be looked down upon.
However, illegal immigrants should not be granted automatic permanent residency
or amnesty since this would be unfair to those who have been patiently waiting
for years to obtain residency and to enter the U.S. legally. Individuals who
have overstayed their visas would be required to pay a hefty fine. Illegal
immigrants given the opportunity to the path of
citizenship would be required
to: learn English, pay a substantial fine, have a job for “x” years, clear a
background check and pay their taxes. In addition, they would not be given
preference in the application process and would go to the end of the application
line. The last issue that must be addressed for
immigration reform is the
assimilation of illegal immigrants into American society. They should be taught
English and be able to understand and live the American values. By assimilating,
immigrants will be able to achieve their dreams, advance in their careers, and
contribute to the cohesiveness of America. To better help immigrants assimilate,
volunteer organizations would provide assistance by offering courses in
English
and civics among others.
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