The United States has been dealing with controversy with illegal immigration since it’s inception. Before, we would have issues with illegal settlers coming in and living on restricted land. Now, we have a massive influx of illegal aliens entering the country regularly. Indeed, roughly one in seven individuals living in this nation are here illegally. The convoluted immigration laws and policies have varied from location to location creating a special need for legal experts. New Jersey, for instance, has the Shulman Law Group, which focuses on immigration solutions for the state. However, the president is looking to effectively revolutionize the process for being recognized as a “legal citizen.” While it won’t diminish the need for experts in this branch of law, it will simplify things significantly. So says White House Chief of Staff Dennis McDonough has said.
“The system is broken,” McDonough said in an interview with CNN. “Tapping into qualified immigrants in this economy, over the course of time, is a great opportunity for us.”
The focus on the plan isn’t to pass universal amnesty. Indeed, it seems like the nation will be selectively choosing which immigrants to remain based upon their potential impact to the community. Those who have a higher potential to bring good will be more readily recognized than others. The plan proposes allowing illegal aliens to be recognized as legal citizens after eight years– provided that they aren’t criminals and have paid taxes.
Mixed Reactions:
The plan isn’t solely the brainchild of the administration. In reality, it is also the hard work of eight senators including Florida Republican Marco Rubio and New York Democrat Mark Schumer. The support and optimism surrounding the plan does seem to be marked by partisan ties. Rubio has come out stating that the plan is more than likely going to become “dead” the second it hits the congressional floor. Schumer, however, has indicated in interviews that he thinks “immigration has a very decent chance of being done.” Paul Ryan, the Republican representative from Wisconsin who was very recently Mitt Romney’s vice-presidential candidate, has indicated that he believes the move to be extremely politically motivated. Especially at this critical time of economic uncertainty.
Economic Issues:
The nation has been concerned with the state of its economy ever since the great recession in 2007. However, the recent massive government sequestration is causing even more angst and frustration. Citizens aren’t sure of what the economy will hold in store for them. Experts debate how this sort of immigration policy will impact our security.
Even McDonough acknowledged these concerns when he mentioned that “[t]his should not be a social-science experiment. This should be a question where we ask ourselves, ‘What is most important to the economy? What is most important to the middle-class families of this country?’”
The US economy faced a dismal last quarter amongst concerns of sequestration. Now that sequestration is in effect, an estimated trillion dollars will be cut from the budget over the next nine years. Amongst these concerns, the greatest support will be given to a system that is data driven– in that it helps allocate workers to where they are needed instead of taking jobs away from working Americans. Regardless, we can expect so see changes to our immigration system and, by extension, our economy in the weeks to come.
Image Credit: Barack Obama
