Thread: Half of an immigration policy

BLEEDING HEART BOSTON GLOBE EDITORIAL
Half of an immigration policy
August 13, 2007
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editor ... on_policy/

ON FRIDAY, the Bush administration released a plan it said would improve immigration policies by using existing laws. Instead, it's a short-sighted crackdown.

The plan tries to patch the hole left by Congress earlier this summer when lawmakers failed to pass comprehensive immigration reform. But the president's plan is skewed too heavily toward enforcement. And it fails to take truly bold steps such as suspending workplace raids or refusing to deport valuable workers until real reform is in place -- steps that could prod Congress into action.

The plan could hit employers hard. Immigration officials say they will zero in on companies that hire workers whose names and Social Security numbers don't match. And to aid identification, the federal government is also asking states to share their drivers license records and photographs.

It's important to prosecute employers who flagrantly exploit undocumented workers. But enhanced enforcement only makes sense if companies also have new, legal ways to hire immigrants and a more effective verification system that quickly confirms people's legal work status. The president's plan only calls for modest changes to worker programs that include speeding up processing times for nonagricultural workers and streamlining the processing of agricultural workers.

Under this plan, the country could end up with more workplace raids, more crowds of crying children whose parents have been detained by immigration officials, and more workers hired off the books. Companies might lose money. Consumer prices might go up. And states and employers might complain. But immigration officials would likely say that they're only doing their job.

This get-tough approach may please some conservatives who feel lawlessness has run amok. But even President Bush knows better. Bush has called for creating a temporary worker program that would "provide a lawful channel for employment that will benefit both the United States and individual immigrants." And Michael Chertoff, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, acknowledges that broader reform is still needed. Last year, Chertoff issued a press statement supporting a comprehensive solution to illegal immigration that explicitly included a temporary worker program. Such a plan would "replace illegal workers with lawful taxpayers, help us hold employers accountable, and let us know who is in our country and why they are here," the statement read.

Given this awareness, it's disappointing that Bush is settling for policies that are unlikely to make a significant dent in the overall problem of illegal immigration.

Partial fixes won't work. Congress should try again to pass comprehensive immigration reform so that instead of merely flexing its law enforcement muscle, the country can act wisely and fairly.

Totaly biased report by a pro-amnesty media source.