The time is ripe for comprehensive immigration reform. Border enforcement has brought illegal crossings down by 80 percent over the last two decades. Fortune 500 business leaders and farmers are unified in demanding a system that meets 21st-century economic needs. And pretending that the 12 million illegal immigrants who are already here can and will just go away is no longer feasible. This week, a bipartisan group of senators, as well as President Obama, all publicly agreed to these basic principles. This itself is tremendous progress. But success will ultimately come down to the details of a legislative proposal. And it is always the details that undermine comprehensive immigration reform.
The hopeful news is that many leaders of the Republican Party seem ready to endorse a comprehensive plan. Senator Marco Rubio, a rising star among Republicans, has put the full weight of his career behind pushing a resolution that would include a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants.
Comments
Border enforcement has relatively little to do with it the rate of crossing. The state of the US economy is responsible for the stability of the Mexican population in this country. What said border enforcement *has* accomplished: Those who do cross illegally now do so at much greater expense, at much greater risk of life, and with a much higher probability of organized crime being involved in their transport. It would really make more sense to reform the visa system.
Increased enforcement, as called for in the Senate proposal, won't help. Taking "secure borders" as a criterion for allowing people to get status is ridiculous. The situation on the border is a symptom of a problem. Treat the problem, and the symptom will go away. Refuse to treat until the symptom is healed, and you've got a recipe for a bad outcome.