The Washington Examiner’s recent collection of pieces about immigration and national identity represents an important conversation at this moment in American history. Few issues feel as intractable as immigration, and the current broken system benefits none of us.
Many of the conservative authors allowed room for a conversation about how legal immigration can work for America. That’s in line with our work at the organization I lead, the Forum, where we have found opportunities for common ground on immigration among all but the farthest fringes on the Left and Right of the political and ideological spectrum.
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So what does finding common ground entail?
Safety and security are foremost — I’ve met no one who disagrees. We need border policies, and updates to our asylum system, that keep our borders orderly and our communities calm. Immigration enforcement should align with the Trump administration’s promise to prioritize safety threats.
At the same time, almost everyone I speak with, on the Right and the Left, agrees that we must have room for fairness and compassion together with security.
Law enforcement leaders will tell you that extreme immigration enforcement practices, such as those that sweep up military spouses and parents of U.S. citizens, reduce trust in communities and make all of us less safe. Then there are the economic realities of ending programs such as temporary protected status, which have allowed hundreds of thousands of immigrants to work legally, some for many years.
Americans themselves are demanding changes in how the nation handles immigration, and soon. The right way forward is firm, fair, and compassionate immigration solutions. That means ensuring a secure border, setting priorities for immigration enforcement, updating the asylum system, and establishing legal immigration pathways that benefit all Americans.
In a December survey from the Bullfinch Group and the Forum, 80% of Republican registered voters said they’d support these kinds of balanced solutions. We’ve since built on this finding, most recently in mid-August: By a margin of 77% to 9%, voters said they’re “holding Republicans and Democrats accountable to act together and urgently on fair, firm and compassionate immigration solutions” that had garnered earlier support.
The support is remarkably broad, encompassing 82% of self-identified Republican and Democratic voters alike, 79% of conservatives, and 80% of white evangelical Christians.
Americans want unauthorized immigrants to face consequences for having broken the law, then a chance to earn lawful status. We want secure legal immigration options and an end to illegal immigration. We want firm but compassionate solutions. And we want policymakers to act now.
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Republicans and Democrats in Congress and the Trump administration should listen to this large majority of Americans, who’ve had enough of the polarizing fringes on both sides — and enough of the attacks on legal immigration. The public knows what immigration solution they want. That’s why Congress must act now.
Neither Democrats nor Republicans have resolved our immigration challenges — but the public has laid the groundwork. Legislators should enact a solution that reaffirms our secure borders, provides smart enforcement that targets violent criminals, updates processes to manage lawful migration, and offers compassionate solutions for longtime residents who are contributing.
Jennie Murray is president and CEO of the Forum.