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US IMMIGRATION UPDATES
IMMIGRATION UPDATE |
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MAR 16, 2006 |
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Immigration Reform: Looking
Beyond Border Patrols for Answers |
By Attorneys Bruce A. Coane and James P. McCollom, Jr.,
Anyone living in Arizona or Texas or Florida knows all too well that
our nation’s immigration policies have failed miserably.
Deaths in the desert, fake documents, community tensions and divided
families are but a few of the symptoms of a system so hobbled and
inadequate nothing short of a complete overhaul will suffice.
In Arizona alone, the numbers are chilling: More than half of the
1.1 million illegal immigrants apprehended by the Border Patrol in
2004 were picked up within Arizona. Every day, patrols find an
additional 1,000 undocumented immigrants in Arizona. Many never make
it here at all, dying in the sweltering heat of the desert or
stuffed into the backs of horse trailers like human chattel.
The flood of illegal immigrants into the United States is hardly a
new problem. Nor is it a new idea that this problem can be solved,
as some have suggested, simply by stepping up border patrols and
enforcement. The truth is, over the past decade, the U.S. has
tripled the number of border patrol agents and quintupled the
nation’s enforcement budget. All told, we have flushed more than $20
billion into attempts to plug the helplessly leak-riddled dike that
is our current border control system.
The result? The number of illegal immigrants pouring into our
country has risen steadily, to a mind-numbing 11 million people.
Pumping more money into enforcement-only measures won’t change a
thing, except the total dollar amount spent upon fruitless efforts.
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Legislation that focuses exclusively upon enforcement may provide
the appearance of “getting tough,” but it will do little to stop the
flow of people entering the United States illegally. Likewise,
attempting to round up and deport the 11 million undocumented
workers already in this country would prove an impossible – and
ridiculously unwise –task.
Documented and undocumented workers make up 40 percent of farming,
fishing and forestry jobs in the United States; 33 percent of jobs
in building and grounds maintenance; 22 percent of food preparation
jobs; and 22 percent of construction jobs. Our economy relies
heavily upon the contributions of these workers, who often take jobs
Americans remain unwilling to take themselves.
Even if we wanted to jettison undocumented workers, the U.S.
government simply doesn’t have the resources to do so. The Center
for American Progress estimates it would cost roughly $206 billion
to ferret them out and ship them home, roughly $41 billion per year
over five years. That’s more than the total annual budget of the
Department of Homeland Security.
Most Americans wouldn’t even support such measures. Even Republican
voters don’t favor enforcement-only solutions, according to a recent
poll taken by the Tarrance Group for the Manhattan Institute. The
poll found that 72 percent of registered voters “likely” to vote
Republican strongly favored a plan that combined tougher enforcement
with earned legalization for all illegal immigrants.
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We
need a fair, orderly, controlled system of immigration that
reflects our nation’s values and restores the rule of law.
Bipartisan legislation introduced by Senators John McCain and
Ted Kennedy, along with a companion bill in the House sponsored
by Representatives Jim Kolbe, Jeff Flake and Luis Gutierrez,
provides measures that would toughen security around our
nation’s borders while offering undocumented workers the
opportunity to earn their way to legal status by working, paying
taxes, learning English and being committed to American values.
The McCain/Kennedy plan, known as the Secure America and Orderly
Immigration Act, would provide reforms that enhance our national
security while reuniting families, some of whom have been separated
for 20 years. It would help us know who is here and keep out those
who mean us harm. Such reform would facilitate the cross-border flow
of people and goods that is essential to our economy.
Now is the time for real solutions, not empty gestures and political
posturing. According to the FBI, there’s another reason we need to
address this issue promptly: An increasing number of those picked up
by the Border Patrol are not from Mexico, but originate from
“countries of interest,” that is, countries known for supporting or
harboring terrorists. Tough talk may make us feel better but it does
nothing to keep us safe, improve our quality of life or bolster our
economy. What we need is action. It’s time to pass real
comprehensive immigration reform policies that will restore order
and security to our nation’s borders and to the nation at large.
Bruce A. Coane is Board Certified in Immigration and Nationality Law
by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. The law firm of Coane &
Associates has offices at 407 Lincoln Road, Suite 306, Miami Beach,
Florida 33139, Tel. (786) 457-VISA (8472). The law firm website is
www.coane.com. The law firm email is immigrantlaw@aol.com. James P.
McCollom, Jr. is an associate attorney at the firm
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