President Trump on Tuesday lambasted our current immigration system, saying that “not another country in the world has the stupidity of laws that we do.”
He’s right. Unfortunately, his own immigration reform framework won’t do much to fix our current system.
The framework would grant amnesty to 1.8 million illegal aliens while making only superficial changes to chain migration. It would also do relatively little to stop illegal immigration. The proposal betrays voters who believed in President Trump’s America First agenda.
Washington has a less-than-stellar record when it comes to immigration amnesties. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, then a member of the House of Representatives, spearheaded a massive amnesty bill in 1986. The Immigration Reform and Control Act was marketed as a one-time amnesty that would also secure the southern border and sanction employers who hire illegal workers.
The amnesty happened; however, Congress never followed through on the enforcement and border security. Instead, Congress subsequently passed six more amnesties. The illegal alien population ballooned from 5 million during the Reagan era to roughly 12 million today.
Congress also increased legal immigration levels. America now gives more than 1 million lifetime work permits to legal immigrants each year.
Many Americans voted for President Trump because he pledged to curb both legal and illegal immigration. According to a recent Harvard-Harris poll, 80 percent of Trump voters want to reduce overall immigration levels. So, too, do 73 percent of all voters, including 68 percent of Americans who voted for Hillary Clinton, 75 percent of Black voters, and 74 percent of Hispanic voters.
There’s a reason so many Americans share this view. Fewer than 7 percent of legal immigrants are admitted based on their educations or skill sets. Most come because an extended family member already living in America sponsored them for a green card – a process known as “chain migration.”
Many flock to low-skilled sectors, where they displace vulnerable Americans. The share of male high-school dropouts working or looking for work has dropped by 15 percent since 1960.
Excess immigration depresses wages. According to a 2016 National Academy of Sciences report, current immigration levels reduce native-born Americans’ wages by as much as 5.2 percent.
The White House proposal wouldn’t solve these problems. In theory, it would end chain migration – but not for 17 years. It also includes few measures, other than a border wall, to deter future illegal immigration.
Fortunately, there’s a worthy alternative. Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., recently introduced the Securing America’s Future Act. The bill, which has more than 75 cosponsors, represents true America First immigration reform.
It would end the visa lottery and chain migration in just one year. That would reduce competition in the labor market, giving workers more leverage to find good jobs and demand higher wages.
The bill would also require employers to use E-Verify, an online worker verification system. E-Verify would deter illegal immigration by cutting off unlawful workers’ employment options. It would be immediately effective.
A border wall, by contrast, would take years to build. And it would do nothing to deter people who come to the U.S. legally but overstay their visas.
Goodlatte’s bill would not end family-based immigration. Immigrants would still be able to bring in their spouses and minor children, but they would no longer be able to sponsor extended family members, such as parents, siblings, and their adult children, all of whom could eventually have brought in their extended family members.
It’s time for President Trump and GOP leaders to keep their promises and pass an America First immigration reform.
Deena Flinchum is an IT worker who was employed by the AFL-CIO for 25 years before retiring. She is now a community volunteer in southwest Virginia.
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