Compromise happens: Immigration Law in the Process

Compromise is a key element to lawmaking. However, piecing together a cohesive national policy out of individual and local stories is no easy task – especially in a nation of our size and diversity.

Each of our representatives must consider both the particular concerns of their region in the short-term (and certainly until the next election term), and the interests of the nation in the long-term. Lawmakers are charged with both representing their own constituents, and at the same time looking past local concerns and pressures to create workable compromises with their congressional colleagues.

Our representatives are required by their job description to wear several hats – and when an issue is controversial and complex, like immigration, negotiation becomes an art.

America’s immigration problems are intricate and numerous, as are opinions on the matter. So it’s no surprise that our representatives are bargaining like crazy, trying to come up with a plan that everyone can agree to and, hopefully, one that works.

The constituents

As can be expected, various powerful groups have entered the debate over immigration – making their voices heard and putting pressure on representatives. To make things more complicated, many of them approach the issue from very different angles – moral, cultural, political, economic, etc. Hispanic groups want the guest-worker program to include a path to permanent residency, saying that the bill keeps immigrants on the margins.

Union workers are against the guest-worker provision, claiming that the program would create unfair competition and drive down wages, benefits, and workplace safety standards. However, proponents say that guest workers would be paid at least minimum wage, and employers would be held to U.S. labor laws. There is also sharp disagreement about whether our immigration laws should prioritize family members, or if the focus should be on encouraging immigrants with the skills and education levels that best fit our economy.

The basics

Two-months of behind-the-scenes negotiations among legislators and various constituents produced the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007. Senators are still trying to make changes by adding amendments, and here’s what they’ve decided so far -- as you can see, each of these items is itself a compromise in itself.

• To authorize 200,000 visas a year, making workers eligible to stay for two years.
• To allow immigrants to renew the visa twice, on the condition that they return home for a year in between each two-year stay.

Who?

• Workers’ family members are allowed to come into the country with them for one two-year stretch, costing the visa holder one renewal — allowing them only four years in the United States, with one year at home in between.

How?

• Requiring 20,000 border patrol agents, 300 miles of vehicle barriers along the border, and 31,500 detention beds to be in place before the guest-worker program can begin.
• Increasing minimum jail sentences for those who are caught re-entering the country illegally to between 60 days and one year for a first offense and a minimum two-year sentence for a second offense. People who overstay their visas cannot receive any immigration benefits for 10 years.
• Establishing procedures and standards to protect thousands of undocumented children who are in the country unaccompanied. The essential worker

Immigrant laborers are already a fundamental piece of the U.S. economy. History and basic economics tell us that poorer people always have and always will come to richer economies.

The flow of workers from México is a logical response to a shortage of low priced labor. These workers perform essential labor that American workers are unwilling to perform for low pay. Specifically, the agricultural and service industries depend on immigrant workers for efficient labor at very low cost.

President Bush has said that immigrant laborers play a vital role in the U.S. economy, but that they should not be rewarded for crossing the border illegally. For this reason, Bush refuses to grant illegal immigrants amnesty, as Congress did in 1986.

All Americans benefit from these workers -- the inexpensive labor allows farmers and restaurants to keep prices low. But there are trade-offs too: all Americans also pick up the cost through taxation for public school, healthcare, and services for workers below or near the poverty line, particularly at the local level. Further reading and listening For a discussion about immigration as a moral, economic, and security issue: http://www.womenmatter.com/jobstaxes_whatsnew.htm#look For recent debates over immigration: http://www.womenmatter.com/jobstaxes_archives.htm For our radio show on the matter: http://www.womenmatter.com/radioshow_migration.htm Contact your representatives

The immigrants in question can’t vote, and our representatives face immense pressure from interest groups and local constituents to get reelected. So it is important that each of us step back, look at the big picture and then weigh in. How do you see immigration? Is it a moral, cultural, political, or economic issue?

You can also discuss details with other WomenMatter readers on our blog.

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Article Posted on: 2/11/2007