How Arizona's law will hurt America: Mayor Michael Bloomberg assails the new immigration statute

By Michael Bloomberg

Wednesday, April 28th 2010, 4:00 AM
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A new Arizona law requiring local police officers to stop anyone they might reasonably suspect of being here illegally may produce unintended consequences that could hurt not only Arizona, but all of America.

The law is so vaguely written that it may force officers to stop people who look or dress differently - or who speak a foreign language, or English with an accent.

Already, stories are appearing about foreign travelers crossing Arizona off their vacation lists. Who wants to visit the Grand Canyon if you could end up getting hassled by the police - or arrested - if you leave your passport at the hotel? Foreign business leaders may also think twice about visiting or investing in Arizona.

While Arizona may suffer, as long as those visitors and investors still come to America, the country will be fine. In fact, we hope more of them come to New York, where we would welcome them with open arms.

But if some of them stop visiting and investing in America, and if other states follow Arizona's lead - as some are now discussing - the economic consequences will be felt in middle-class communities across the country.

American citizens would lose jobs as businesses downsize, and governments with lower tax revenues would lay off teachers, firefighters and police officers. As a result, our country would have a harder time climbing out of the national recession.

Requiring local police to stop anyone they suspect of being here illegally may also hurt public health and safety. In New York City, we protect the confidentiality of all residents when they interact with government, because whenever someone is afraid to report a crime, for any reason, it makes all of us less safe. Whenever someone is afraid to go to the hospital to get treated for sickness or disease, it puts all of us at risk. Whenever someone is afraid to report exploitation in the workforce, it hurts all of us.

Since our earliest Colonial days, people have come here from around the world - with few restrictions - to better their lives. Today, we continue to rely on people from every continent to lay the foundation for our future economic growth, both through their innovative new ideas and their manual labor. But the simple fact is that our policies are too restrictive given American companies' demand for workers and American consumers' demand for products and services.

Basic free market economics tells us we need more legal immigrants - immigrants who will start new businesses and help build the foundation for future economic growth. Laws that have the potential to hassle them could prove devastating to our economy.

From a practical point of view, police officers have no rational way of knowing in advance who is a citizen, or a tourist, or a business traveler, or a legal permanent resident, or a foreign student, or a temporary worker - and who is not. And this could lead immigrants who own businesses to pack up and leave and take their companies' jobs with them.

Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon understands the harmful impact that this law could have on his city, and he is weighing a legal challenge. Certainly, a very strong case could be made that the law is unconstitutional. But Gordon also understands that the real solution lies in Washington.

We need Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform - and fast. In the weeks and months ahead, I will do everything possible to join with Gordon and others to advance reform that strengthens our economy, secures our borders and honors our history.

What's at stake here is nothing less than America's international reputation as the most open and attractive marketplace in the world, and our standing as the world's strongest economic superpower. Immigrants have always been at the heart of American culture and capitalism, and casting suspicious eyes on legal immigrants will only harm both.

Bloomberg is mayor of New York City.

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