These, if you keep up with the politics of immigration, are the only roads before us. We must either pardon all illegal immigrants for their transgressions (real or imagined) and put them all on the path to citizenship, or we have to round up all 12 million or so of them and send them back to where they came from (which, if you believe conservative rhetoric, is Mexico).
Which would you choose: amnesty or Arizona? Surely there must be a middle ground lost somewhere in the debate over the economy and the fact that bipartisanship is a word of the past.
The Obama administration has been good about policing the border and challenging Arizona's draconian and bigoted excuse for a law, but immigration as a political issue has taken a back seat to the economy. Given the intrinsic link between the two, this failure to address immigration in more than a token "beef up the border, but don't give in to the bigots," manner is shortsighted.
Ironically it is a Republican candidate who is leading the way on actual immigration reform. Just as George W. Bush offered tough but moral policies to deal with immigration - only to be rebuffed by the baser elements of his party - Newt Gingrich is now doing the same (probably only to suffer Bush's fate).
America's approach to immigration should be tough but moral and practical. The ole "America is a nation of immigrants" line is tried and true, but it's not going to win any converts from the ranks of those who think we should slash government spending except to pay astronomical sums to round up and deport all 11-12 million people living in America illegally. The immigration approach that we should be playing up is about how immigrants bring new ideas to America and help increase innovation and competition, reinvigorating the economy rather than dragging it down. Are there people here mooching off the system? Sure there are. Are there illegal immigrants committing felonies? Absolutely. Is it practical to amnesty to everyone living here illegally and put them on the path to citizenship? Probably not. But the best approach is open avenues for legal immigration going forward while addressing the people already living here illegally in small subgroups. This is where Newt has some good ideas.
Sure, there is some bunk in there, but Newt makes a lot of good points; he recognizes that the majority of illegal immigrants are gang members pushing drugs on America's susceptible youth and committing wanton drive-by shootings, but he also emphasizes that there is a need to identify and rid America of illegal criminals. The plan is practical, based on sound economic principals and history, and even - surprise! - tilts in the right direction morally. Without thinking this is a perfect plan, I am impressed.
America should not be neglecting the immigration issue. It is important for economic recovery and growth, and quite frankly, it is deeply interwoven with our national identity. Many presidents have tried and failed to address immigration sensibly, and many others have ignored the issue. I support the measures taken by the Obama administration, but the President and Mr. Gingrich both need to be more vocal about the need for immigration reform. The entire country would benefit from some of the ideas they espouse.
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