Overview
I believe that comprehensive immigration reform is needed. In this post September 11, 2001 world, we must secure our borders and know who is entering our country.
Strengthening our borders, however, should not disrupt the lives of people who legally came to the United States and are productive, taxpaying members of our communities. Additionally, we need to provide a path for the estimated 10 million undocumented workers currently in the United States to become documented through a legal process of applying for permanent residency or citizenship. It is clearly in the best interest of the U.S. to identify these undocumented individuals and provide them with the necessary incentive to come out of the shadows and regularize their status.
However, I oppose complete amnesty for the undocumented workers currently in the United States. In order to gain citizenship, these workers must be required to follow our laws. They must begin the process at the back of the immigration line, learn the English language and pay a penalty for their illegal entry. I support legislation to provide a path for earned legalization that requires people to go through a thorough legal process of attaining a visa, then applying for legal permanent residency and then possibly becoming a citizen in the future.
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Border Security
I also support efforts to strengthen the United States Border Patrol (USBP), which is the nation’s first line of defense against unauthorized migration. The USBP mission is to detect and prevent the entry of illegal aliens into the country, assist in the detection of possible terrorists, and prohibit drug smuggling and other criminal activity. I do not, however, believe that building a fence along much of the southwest border is a practical solution that will prevent the entry of illegal immigrants into the United States. Such a fence will merely re-route unauthorized migration, and will divert limited resources that could be invested in strengthening the Border Patrol.
Lastly, immigration reform must include stiff penalties for employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.
These comprehensive measures—securing our borders, enforcing our laws, providing a legal path for undocumented immigrants already here to regularize their status and holding employers accountable for hiring illegal immigrants—provide a rational framework to address this challenge and enhance our national security.
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