President Trump has released his new proposal for immigration reform. Right now, one side attacks it for providing “amnesty” to children of illegal immigrants, while the other side attacks it for being “heartless.” Let’s consider it point by point.
(1) “Dreamers”–the older children of families in the U.S. illegally who are here through no fault of their own and have grown up here–will not only be allowed to stay, they will be put on a 10-year “path to citizenship.” President Obama had kept them from being deported with his D.A.C.A. program that President Trump has rescinded. This is a generous solution–perhaps more generous than the Democrats were offering–and could affect as many as 1.8 million people.
(2) Appropriations of $2.5 billion will be made to build a wall between the United States and Mexico.
(3) The family reunification program will be changed so that it only applies to spouses and minor children. Currently, an immigrant here legally may apply for the rest of his or her family–grandparents, adult sons and daughters with their children, etc.–may also move here legally.
(4) The visa lotteries will be discontinued. As it is, there are quotas for certain countries allowing a certain number of citizens to emigrate to the U.S. The necessary visas are awarded according to a lottery. That is, the visas are given out randomly.
(5) The lotteries and extended family provisions will be replaced by a process of awarding visas to individuals based on their education and skills. Though this proposal is being condemned by immigration activists as racist, elitist, etc., this is the practice in Canada and Australia, both considered immigration-friendly countries.
Both sides are condemning this framework in overheated rhetoric. Mark Krikorian of the Center for Immigration Studies is accusing Trump of betraying his base by offering amnesty to the Dreamers, saying “Time to start burning your #MAGA hats.” Meanwhile, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is saying that Trump’s plan is a “campaign to make America white again.”
But is his plan really so unreasonable?
Might the outrage from both extremes be evidence that the proposal has found the sweet spot? A measure in which neither side gets everything they want, but gets much of what they want, is what a bipartisan, compromise deal looks like.
This proposal is being called “dead on arrival,” but the legislative process makes it a work in progress.
It may be that our political system is so polarized that no immigration reform bill of any kind has a chance. In which case, neither side–in their demand for total victory–will get anything they want, with the Dreamers being deported AND illegal immigrants continuing to pour into the country.
But if President Trump can pull off immigration reform–something that has eluded the previous presidents, both Democrats and Republicans–he will deserve considerable credit.
Illustration by CristianFerranato via Pixabay, CC0, Creative Commons
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