Immigration Renovation: Senate Backs Out

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?

The Senate struggled with these issues before reaching a short-lived compromise hailed as a "huge breakthrough" on April 6th. But the dream didn’t last, and less than 24 hours after Majority Leader Bill Frist (Tennessee) and Minority Leader Harry Reid (Nevada) announced that they had come to an agreement on immigration, the deal disintegrated.

Late that night (or early the next morning), the parties could not see eye to eye on possible amendments. Republicans wanted members of their party to be able to offer changes, even if those changes weren’t likely to pass. But Democrats were strict about limiting amendments, saying they worried that Republican proposals could result in major alterations to the bill’s language.

Republican John McCain of Arizona was miffed by the Democrats’ stubbornness, saying no amendment had enough support to pass and that Democrats were holding up the bill for political gain.

Because of the breakdown, an immigration bill may not pass this session. Congress begins its spring recess April 8th.

What was the compromise?

Republicans and Democrats in the Senate decided that employed but undocumented immigrants who have been in the U.S. more than five years would be able to stay and earn citizenship after paying back taxes and undergoing a background check.

Immigrants that have been here more than two years would be able to apply for a temporary work visa and be eligible for a green card, but they would have to leave the country in order to obtain both.

Undocumented immigrants here less than two years would have to return home and apply for guest worker credentials.

This bill would’ve needed to be reconciled with the House version, which looks very different.

House bill

In December 2005, the House passed the Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act, which would tighten security at the Mexican and Canadian borders by increasing immigration inspectors and canine teams. Also, it would fully criminalize undocumented immigrants, making them felons. This law would therefore bar citizenship to the eleven million undocumented immigrants that the Census Bureau estimates to be residing in the United States.

The business community and the Hispanic community have been protesting this legislation since January, and, for some groups, this includes marching to city hall.

Therefore, the immigration issue splits the Republican Party. Many Republicans are following their constituents’ lead on no-nonsense immigration reform, while others are worried about scaring away their Hispanic voters.

Does it have to be amnesty versus criminalization?

Many of the loudest voices in the debate speak of immigration reform in broad strokes. The flashing ideas at either end of the spectrum seem to be 1) Enforce the illegality of undocumented immigration, meaning criminalize undocumented workers or 2) legalize them and give them full amnesty.

Both of these positions are hard to maintain under a critical eye. Many argue that making felons of all undocumented workers is both unfair and illogical. It puts business owners in the untenable position of harboring those felons and prevents undocumented workers any hope of integration into American society and culture. Further, it denies the economic realities of the labor market - the U.S. demands and requires cheap immigrant labor and underdeveloped nations are eager to provide it.

On the other end of the debate, full amnesty seems equally unsound. It would likely encourage more illegal immigration and put a greater strain on the state-sponsored human services that undocumented workers use while they’re here.

Further, a steady supply of unskilled labor drives down wages for all lower-skill jobs. George Borjas and Lawrence Katz of Harvard University estimate that U.S. high school dropouts would earn as much as 8 percent more if it weren’t for Mexican immigration.

Lazy Americans?

So do immigrants really do jobs "that no American will do?" as Bush famously says?

As reality TV shows confirm, Americans will do just about anything for the right price. Obviously, U.S. citizens would happily wash dishes, perform landscaping, construction, and agricultural work if they were paid a living wage and health benefits. So, the issue isn’t that there aren’t enough Americans to fill the jobs or that we’re too lazy to do them, but rather that the demands of the labor market don’t match the demands of the consumer market.

In a nutshell?

So, where does that leave us?

With consumers that demand low prices for goods and services that require lots of low-wage workers. With a superpower that is bordered by a nation with a troubled economy and lots and lots of unemployed and underemployed workers willing to move north for better work. With eleven million undocumented workers that U.S. businesses depend on. With stretched-thin human services that cannot support these millions of undocumented immigrants. And with constituents screaming about the security concerns stirred up by it all.

It’s a complex situation - a situation that probably won’t be solved by, say, a big wall.

Of course, a big wall on the U.S. - Mexico border is a start, some say. It will keep more immigrants out and provide more tangible security. But experts retort that the fuzzy golden promise of a better life in America can’t be stopped by any wall. More immigrants may die trying to cross it, but they will cross it. And what about migrant workers who cross back and forth every ten months? Some forget that a wall that keeps people out also keeps people in.

What do you think?

How do you envision immigration reform? Do you think Democrats should allow for amendments? If so, what kind of amendments would you like to see?

Your input matters

Your representatives in Congress DO care what you think. Especially now -- 2006 is an election year and many representatives will be looking to reconnect with their constituents. Let your congressmen and women know what you think! Give your senators a piece of your mind! To find your reps, click here.

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Article Posted on: 4/9/2006