Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor? America’s Ongoing Immigration Debate

"We wanted a labor force, but human beings came." Swiss writer Max Frisch

What does it mean to be an American?

Does it mean working on American soil? Paying taxes? Speaking English? Owning land? Contributing to the health and wealth of the nation?

What does it mean to be an immigrant?

Immigration crosscuts almost every other issue and can be seen through many different lenses -- looking through just one obscures the big picture. Understanding the facts and looking at policy options from different viewpoints is essential to making a personal and informed choice about one of America’s most important issues.

Click one of the following links to jump to that section:

• What are the facts?
• How do you look at immigration?
• Immigration as a moral issue
• Immigration as an economic issue
• Immigration as a security issue



• What’s the debate?
• 2006 Republican split/2007 Democratic split
• Pick your policy options
• What’s the strategy?
• What do you think?

What are the facts?

• Poor people will want to go to richer countries- regardless of time & place.
• Richer countries depend on cheap labor.
• The US shares a porous border with Mexico- but not economic wealth.
• About 485,000 illegal aliens successfully immigrate to the U.S. each year and another 10.3 million live here already, according to the Pew Hispanic Center.
• In a Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing on Immigration Reform, Ranking Member Arlen Specter (R-PA) called deporting almost 11 million undocumented immigrants now a "practical impossibility."

How do you look at immigration?

Any national legislation has to take into account the moral, economic, and security concerns of different localities. Each of us must weigh the facts and determine how we want to live with our diverse neighbors in a country with a federal system.

Immigration as a moral issue

• For many, immigration is a moral issue. It’s about allowing people to come to this country and work towards a better life for themselves and their families.
• But not all immigrants that come to this country are "huddled masses yearning to breathe free." Many are motivated not by any desire for citizenship, but to work in America but eventually return home -- with their earnings.
• Many immigrants do not have health care and so, like uninsured Americans, strain the current health care system by going to the emergency room for care.

Should immigrants have access to human services like education and health care regardless of their intentions or status? Or should illegal/undocumented workers be punished for breaking the law?

Immigration as an economic issue

• Undocumented workers contribute to our economy not only with labor but also by buying goods and services and often paying taxes on their earnings while they’re here.
• Undocumented workers use human services like education and health care which are paid for by tax dollars and can strain local economies- particularly in border states.
• Our economy demands cheap labor, and many immigrants are willing to fill that demand. That’s why businesses are in favor of a guest-worker program.
• Businesses are now also being asked to take on a greater law enforcement role in the immigration issue by checking on and reporting to the government on the status of every worker.

Immigration as a security issue

• After the attacks of September 11, we realized that our immigration policies were far too lax and had allowed terrorists to enter the country easily.
• Our economy depends in great part on our trading partners in the North and the South. Immigration policy affects our long-term economic security -- the basis for our military security. The way that Congress reshapes immigration will have a lasting effect on the stability, security, and prosperity of Mexico and other essential trading partners.

For a detailed analysis of the many threads of immigration, click here.

What’s the debate?

"One result of this passionate debate is that many words in our immigration discourse have lost their meaning, with people often just talking past each other."

--Secretary of Commerce, Carlos Gutierrez

2006 Republican split/ 2007 Democratic split

. In 2006, the immigration issue split the Republican Party. Many Republicans followed their constituents’ lead on no-nonsense immigration reform, while others were worried about upsetting the business community and scaring away their Hispanic voters.

The Senate compromise broke down over possible amendments and the House version, which did pass, focused on tightening security and criminalized undocumented immigrants, a provision that the Hispanic community publicly protested.

The immigration debate rages on even though the majority party has changed.

For more on the historical context, click here.

In 2007, Democrats have to deal with their own split:

• Just like Republicans last year, some Democrats are concerned that a guest-worker program amounts to amnesty. Freshman Representative Jason Altmire (D-Pennsylvania) says that he would not support any "amnesty-type" provisions, meaning rules that would allow undocumented workers to become citizens. .
• Because some Democrats would vote down an immigration bill that looks like last years’ legislation, Democratic leadership will have to propose a measure that can win some support from the other side of the aisle.

Pick your policy options

Look for the following policy options in upcoming legislation: guest worker plans, citizenship options, and better border security.

Many in Congress are concerned that a guest-worker plan would further encourage immigration, but proponents claim that the plan is not meant to increase the number of immigrants, but rather legalize those who are coming anyway.

The guest-worker policy recognizes that large sections of the economy - especially the farming, construction, hospitality, and restaurant industries - are making possible illegal immigration because they rely heavily on undocumented workers.

The plan would legitimize these industries as well as the workers themselves, requiring both parties to keep records and pay taxes. Proponents say that the program would free up border patrols, allowing them to guard against smugglers and terrorists instead of busboys and gardeners.

Let your representative know which policy options you favor. Look up your Senators, Congresspeople, and their committees - RIGHT HERE:

What’s the strategy?

President Bush has long been in favor of a comprehensive guest-worker program, so Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-California) plans to let the Senate introduce the bill so that it can gather momentum before reaching the House, where it faces more opposition.

In the Senate, Democratic leader Harry Reid is expected to try to keep amendments to a minimum (since they helped to kill the bill last time.)

What do you think?

How would you like to see Congress come together to reform immigration? Do you like the idea of giving immigrants permits to work and to one day become citizens? How do we "secure" the border and allow for these "guest" workers at the same time?

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