See Colorado for immigration sense
Americans believe immigration is one of the most important issues facing the 2008 presidential candidates. People entering the country illegally take jobs for less pay and strain the welfare and health care systems.
The reason immigration has become a front-burner issue in recent years is because it affects almost everyone's life in a variety of ways.
When you combine legal and illegal immigrants that are moving into the U.S. every year, it's between 1½ million and 2 million people. That affects everything from jobs to education to health care to taxes.
That immigration benefits the U.S. enormously is never a question, but both Republican and Democrats seek the votes of pro-immigration groups, throwing the entire process into disorder.
Anyone who wants to reduce immigration is, at best, called an isolationist or, at worst, a racist.
Democrats rationalize that immigrants come here to better their lives and that their own families did likewise a hundred years ago.
Republicans are beholden to businesses that want to employ immigrants to cut labor costs.
In 2006 and 2007, Congress debated the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act which never became law. Most members of both houses agreed on the bill's importance, but disagreed on what it should contain.
In 2007, CIRA provided two classes of visas. One would grant illegal immigrants a "Z" visa, allowing them to remain in the U.S. with access to Social Security. After eight years, they would become eligible for full citizenship but would have to return to their homeland before applying.
The "Y" visa would allow guest workers into the U.S. for a period of up to two years. They would be required to return to their homeland for one year before requesting a visa extension.
Most Republicans called these proposed visas amnesty for those living in the U.S. illegally, while the majority of Democrats and Hispanic organizations attacked the guest worker program, claiming that it would create a group of underclass workers with no benefits.
Many from both parties criticized the bill because it required each guest worker to return home before renewing a visa. These workers would instead overstay their visas, only to become illegal immigrants. Immigration proponents attacked the bill as unworkable.
The solution to the immigration problem lies in a combination of amnesty, securing the borders and eliminating benefits for illegal immigrants, as has been done in Colorado, saving the state millions of dollars.
Richard F. Nelson
Aurora