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Pass New Immigration Reform Written
President Obama and Congress members met privately at the White House on Thursday for their first major discussion of immigration reform. Immigration is just one unsolved national crisis among many, and it was hard not to suspect that the parties might use the meeting which had already been twice postponed to dampen expectations for a bill this year.
The meeting was more encouraging than that. It led to a persuasive show of unity among Republicans and Democrats. Both sides made the case for getting a comprehensive reform bill written and passed this year, or early next. Mr. Obama announced that the homeland security secretary, Janet Napolitano, would lead a working group of both parties and houses of Congress to do that.
It now seems more likely than before that Mr. Obama is ready to lead the way, uniting problem-solvers in both parties out of a long-stalemated debate.
He’d better, because the alternative — another crashing letdown and the traditional exchanges of blame is awful to consider. Expectations for reform have been steadily rising since the unprecedented Hispanic turnout and Democratic victories of last November. Those hopes have been given a dreadful urgency by the harsh enforcement regime of raids and deportations begun under the Bush administration, which have piled suffering onto hopelessness for millions of people, but not brought the country any closer to a solution.
Thankfully, a path forward is coming into view.
Give credit, too, to Senator Charles Schumer of New York, who assumed leadership of the immigration subcommittee from the ailing Edward Kennedy. In a speech the day before the White House meeting, Mr. Schumer laid out core principles that could be a solid foundation for a bipartisan immigration deal.
The speech was notably tough-sounding, but the principles were solid. Illegal immigration is wrong. The borders and workplace need tighter enforcement. Illegal immigrants must be required to register, learn English and pay taxes or face deportation. But they should also be allowed to seek citizenship. The path back to a lawful system is through legalization and an improved, well-managed immigration flow.
Polls show that an overwhelming majority of Americans accept these principles, and it’s possible to imagine Congress uniting around them, too.
If there is a sticking point, it is the one argued forcefully by Senator John McCain after Thursday’s meeting: how to manage the future immigrant flow.
Many reform advocates are exploring the idea of a nonpartisan commission to set visa numbers for industries that need workers. Labor unions like the idea, businesses don’t, because both see the mechanism as a way to turn the flow of cheap labor on and off mostly off. We have our own serious doubts about a commission, beginning with the questionable assumption that the immigrant flow can be controlled like a tap, and that such a mechanism can be designed to fully protect workers’ rights and dignity.
Abogados June 29, 2009 11:51 PM | Preguntas Para Abogados
