Immigration Reform: Shame on all of us for we have failed

Twenty-one years ago, at the height of his political power, Ronald Reagan moved through Congress the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. It granted amnesty to the roughly 3mil undocumented immigrants and promised increased border security and stricter enforcement of employer sanctions. We now know that that law was not only highly flawed, but set the stage for today's current immigration debate.

Today as the Senate prepares to vote on the current immigration reform bill, we are once again at a crossroads. …and once again we are about to take a path that will most assuredly lead to problems of even greater scope and scale than were ever caused by IRCA.

But before going into detail as to how great a mistake we are about to make, we need take to look at just how we got to this place


The rumblings about immigration began long before the 2004 Presidential race. Prior to being thrust into reality by the events of September 2001, a newly elected President Bush had made "immigration reform", in the form of a greatly increased guest worker program, a cornerstone of his new administration's policy agenda.

Back-burnered by world events, the issue lay dormant for a few years as a growing current of anti-immigrant sentiment grew in the right-wing of the President's party. Shortly after salvaging the 2004 election with a combination of wedge issues and personal attacks, the Republicans went looking for a new wedge to divide the Democrats and bring out the party faithful. Newly appointed Democratic Chairman, Howard Dean, warned at that time that immigration would be the next great wedge.

With a highly unpopular war, record federal and trade deficits, wage stagnation, a growing health care crisis, and an under-funded and failing education system, only a wedge issue of epic proportions could save the Republicans from sure defeat in the next election cycle.

And so the "immigration crisis" was born.

To the Democrat's delight the wedge has blown up in the Republican's face and divided the party as never before. Exposing the fragility of the coalition first put together by Nixon's Southern Strategy and honed by Reagan with the inclusion of the Christian Right and Reagan Democrats, the immigration issue, fueled by nativist xenophobia on one side and corporate greed on the other, has cleaved the party down the middle.

But in so doing, it has now left the nation equally divided and put us in a position where one of the worst pieces of legislation ever written is about to leave the Senate.

But now it is no longer solely a Republican problem. Democrats, through their inability or unwillingness to stick to the liberal and progressive ideals on which the modern party was built, are now equally culpable in enacting legislation that will manage to not only virtually enslave millions of current and future immigrants in a system of second-class citizenry, but also attacks the very working Americans who have long been the backbone of the party.

The greatest failure of the Reagan legislation, contrary to popular opinion, was not its lack of enforcement and employer oversight, or an amnesty that sent a message of permissiveness to a world anxious to take advantage of our perceived weakness.

In the years following the legislation there was no great rush to the border by all those "waiting for the next amnesty." In fact, the numbers of undocumented immigrants remained stable at around 3.5 mil for nearly ten years, until the mid-nineties, when border crossing soared.

The same is true of border enforcement. In the 21 years since the bill was enacted the number of border patrol agents has increased from 3,243 in 1986 to 11, 106 today. Spending on border security has gone from $700 mil to $2,792 mil.

Additionally with the enactment of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 hundreds of miles of border walls and fences were built along the most heavily populated and traveled illegal entry routes, yet with all this added man-power and spending, the number of border apprehensions went down from 1,692,544 in 1986 to 1,188,977 currently, while the undocumented population soared to 12 mil.

This is because the true flaw in the Reagan legislation was that it never changed the fundamental dynamics of illegal immigration because in didn't make the needed and fundamental changes in the legal immigration system.

Reagan essentially asked for a "do-over" and got it without changing the rules of the game. There were no quota changes, no changes in the number green cards issued, no change in processing of paperwork, no changes in the path to citizenship for those qualified, no provisions made for any further immigration. Basically 3mil undocumented immigrants...many of them refugees from Reagan's Dirty Wars in Central America were made legal essentially over night ...then business was resumed as usual....without addressing why there were 3 mil undocumented immigrants here in the first place.

And we are about to repeat the same situation again. In fact, outside of the roughly 3mil green cards that will be used to alleviate the backlog that was caused by our current failed system...once it's been cleared up, there will be 200,000 less green cards available on a yearly basis then there are even today…. and we all know what that will lead to....in five years or ten...we'll be right back where we started.

Additionally, we will end up with 12 million people in the perpetual limbo of the Z visa system where they will pay continual fees to remain in legal status while never being able to convert to LPR status (green card holder) due to the constraints of a merit system intended to keep them on the margins of society while favoring the kind of high-skilled workers already stressing certain sectors of the native –born workforce through the various temporary worker programs already in place such as the H1-b visa program.

These perpetual Z workers will never become citizens, never fully join society, never have a voice in the political system, and never achieve the rights all workers deserve to organize and demand fair treatment due to the fact that their very ability to stay in the country will hinge upon their ability to remain employed. If they get fired …and are not re-employed within sixty days …they lose all rights and privileges. … no matter how long they've been here.

But, perhaps the most insidious aspect of this legislation is the new temporary worker program which will serve no purpose outside of supplying a perpetual supply of little more than indentured servants to a corporate system all too willing to exploit foreign workers to keep the wages of all workers artificially low.

These are only the most glaring faults of the legislation, but anyone whose read through it can attest to the hundreds of loopholes, infringements on basic rights and protections that will not only apply to immigrants but all US citizens, capitulations to business interests and lack of protections of workers both immigrant and native-born.

But who is to blame for this monstrosity?

It's easy to blame the politicians, the corporate boogiemen, the opposition party, DINOS, RINOS, the DLC, Bush, special interests, and lobbyists.

But the only ones we can really blame are ourselves. The liberals, the progressives, the left, the unions …. All of those who are supposed to be the conscience of the Democratic party.

WE had an opportunity, after twenty one years, to right a wrong, to fix a broken system, but instead we sat back either relishing the meltdown of the opposition party, or spent the time infighting.

As we have done so many times in the past, we have allowed our small differences to divide us. Those concerned with the human rights issues surrounding immigration reform fight with those advocating for H1-b visa reform. Those who favor guest worker programs as a path towards citizenship fight with those who oppose the plans on the grounds they are exploitive.

We have allowed those who first brought this issue to the forefront to frame the debate. We argue in the language of the Republican right and corporate wings. We argue in the language of Lou Dobbs, Tamar Jacoby, Tom Tancredo and George Bush. "Open Borders", "willing employers" "amnesty", "rule of law", "xenophobe" "anchor baby", "Mexican invasion", "English only", "Nation of immigrants", "Jobs Americans won't do"...this is how we have argued this debate….and shame on us for doing so.

These are their words … not ours. These terms were not part of the Democratic lexicon. They were spawned in the think tanks and PR firms of the Manhattan Institute and Frank Luntz.

We could have held firm to our values and beliefs as liberals and progressives.

• We could have focused on workers rights and workplace enforcement of labor laws.



• We could have focused on addressing the root causes of migration and demanded changes to trade agreements and foreign policy to guarantee a change of the conditions in sender nations.



• We could have worked to change the quota system to ensure that it reflected our true labor needs as opposed to those imposed by corporate interests.



• We could have demanded that all new immigrants were guaranteed the same worker protections and rights afforded all workers to end the exploitive practices that lower wages for all.



• We could have ended all the exploitive guest worker programs that lower standards for all workers.



• We could have fixed the legal immigration system so that it worked for all Americans and those wishing to become Americans.

But instead we dropped the ball. We allowed ourselves to lose sight of our core beliefs and got caught up in a Republican cat fight.

We could have led on this issue - instead we followed. And now we will reap what we have sown.

To those who sat back and watched the Republican melt-down in glee, I say shame on you.

To those who allowed themselves to be blinded by the faux populism of the Republican right, I say shame on you.

To those whose rigid adherence to humanitarian concerns allowed them to lose sight of the bigger picture, I say shame on you.

To liberals, progressives and Democrats, I say shame on us…shame on us all.

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This week's upcoming immigration fight

The Senate spent most of today's afternoon session on little more than a series of long-winded speeches in attempts to set the stage for this weeks upcoming immigration fight.

Tomorrow morning the main event should resume with a series debates on proposed amendments and voting.

With the defeat of the Vitter (R-LA) amendment to strike title VI from the bill by a vote of 29-66 and the Dorgan (D-ND) amendment to kill the Y-visa program by a vote of 31-64 during the first week of debate, it's appearing as though the bill's opponents will not be able to muster the needed votes to kill this legislation in the Senate.

Having tested the two most controversial aspects of the bill, the earned legalization provisions that have been characterized as "amnesty" by the right, and the guest worker program opposed by those on both sides of the debate - and failed on both accounts - it looks highly unlikely that opponents will be able to stop the bill on lesser grounds.

Not surprisingly, the World Street Journal reported this past weekend that business interests have now moved their lobbying efforts over to the House.

In a further sign that passage is expected, business lobbyists and others seeking changes in the bill already were starting to make their cases in the House, which would take up the issue after Senate passage. The Bush administration was pushing hard for a top business priority: increasing the number of laborers who would be allowed in each year under a new temporary-worker program.

WSJ

The same is true of those on the left looking to modify the legislation. The Mexican American Political Association (MAPA) has advised that while still working to make the Senate bill more palatable through the amendment process, it is now the House that should become the center of focus.

The debate on and the amendments to the "grand bargain" in the Senate will continue this week, but shortly the debate will move to the House. In reality, this is where we will have more leverage. The main focus of our attention should be on the House Subcommittee on Immigration, chaired by Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren.

Link

Yet with that said, there are still many important amendments to be considered by the Senate, and they will be taking up 14 of them in the next few days...some the bill's architect, Jon Kyl (R-AZ), characterized today as deal breakers.

This weeks upcoming amendments

Those highlighted in red are highly troubling and should be opposed by all looking for meaningful progressive reform

1. Grassley 1166 - This amendment would broaden the restriction on judicial review of visa revocations. Currently, judicial review of visa revocation is already severely restricted. Judicial review is, however, permitted in the context of removal proceedings if the revocation is the sole ground for removal.


2. Cornyn 1184 - The amendment severely limits who would be eligible for legalization programs. Makes anyone who is inadmissible under 212(a) ineligible for the legalization program. This is virtually the entire undocumented population. Also makes ineligible anyone unlawfully present for one year or more and subsequently reentered. Significantly expands class of “Aggravated Felony” crimes and makes them retroactive. Gives the AG unreviewable discretion to use secret evidence to determine if an alien is ‘described in’ the national security exclusions within immigration law. Adds new grounds of deportability for convictions relating to social security account numbers or social security cards and convictions relating to identity fraud


3. Dodd-Menendez 1199 - amendment would undo damage in the compromise that makes it more difficult for the parents of U.S. citizens to obtain a visa. The compromise would place a limit on the number of visas for parents at roughly half the current usage. The amendment retains the limitation but raises it to 90,000 visas per year or roughly the current usage.


4. Menendez-Hagel 1194 - to extend the date for those eligible for back-log reduction green cards from May 2005 to Jan. 2007 to ensure that the entire family backlog already in line to become legal permanent residents will get addressed. The current bill would essentially toss out all applications filed after May 2005. Also calls for increased quotas in all categories (family based, employment based, and asylum/refugee) of green cards set aside for back-log reduction.


5. McConnell 1170 - Each State shall require individuals casting ballots in an election for Federal office in person to present a current valid photo identification issued by a governmental entity before voting. Each State shall be required to comply with the requirements of subsection (a) on and after January 1, 2008


6. Feingold 1176 – to set up a commission on wartime treatment of European Americans of Italian and German decent during WWII and a commission to address the wartime treatment of Jewish refugees during WWII.


7. Durbin-Grassley 1231 - to require all employers seeking a Y worker to first attempt to recruit US workers. Removes exemptions for employers in occupations and areas that the DOL has determined there is a shortage of US workers.


8. Sessions 1234 - to deny Earned Income Tax Credit to Y and Z visa holders paying back taxes.


9. Sessions 1235 - to deny Earned Income Tax Credit to legal immigrants with less than five years in the US,


10. Lieberman 1191 - to improve treatment of immigrants seeking asylum and to establish clear standards for treatment of immigrants in detention.


11. Allard 1189 - to remove the supplemental schedule for merit-based points for Z visa holders that gives credit for past employment, home ownership and having medical insurance when applying for green cards. In essence would eliminate the majority of Z visa holders from eventually obtaining permanent residency.


12. Cornyn 1250 - removes the confidentiality protections for legalization applicants and orders the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of State to provide the information furnished in applications filed under section 601 and 602, and any other information derived from such furnished information, to any law enforcement entity, intelligence agency, national security agency, component of the Department of Homeland Security, court, or grand jury in connection with a criminal or civil investigation.


13. Clinton-Hagel 1183 - to ensure that the spouses and children of legal permanent immigrants can immigrant into the United States to be with their family members.


14. Obama-Menendez 1202 - to sunset the point system after five years. The Senate never had the opportunity to debate the system out in the open; the result is a proposal that would gut family-sponsored immigration

Call your Senators – 1-800-417-7666 in English or 1-800-882-2005 en Espanol

UPDATES:

Grassley (#1166) abolishing judicial review on visa revocations made by the Secretary of State. Agreed to by unanimous consent on 6/4/07

Allard (#1189) to remove the supplemental schedule for merit-based points for Z visa holders. Failed by vote of 62-31 on 6/5/07

Durbin-Grassley (#1231) to require all employers seeking a Y worker to first attempt to recruit US workers. Passed 71-22 on 6/5/07

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What's going on behind those closed doors.

If Harry Reid has his way, tomorrow the Senate will finally take up the issue of immigration reform. After months of closed door negotiations between the Administration and Senate leaders, it's beginning to look like an actual compromise is close to being reached and may finally come up for debate.

But, exactly what the nature of that compromise entails has been shrouded in some mystery. Earlier this year Bush began shifting his position to the right in order to garner support from some of the Republican immigration hardliners. With last years Republican point man, John McCain avoiding this issue like the plague, fellow Arizonan, Jon Kyl has stepped up to take his place. Kyl, who led last years Republican effort against comprehensive reform, now seems to have had a change of heart once the mid-terms were over and is advocating for a more comprehensive immigration policy.

But with Kyl as lead Republican negotiator, "comprehensive" might not mean what it did last year.

According to details coming from the Wall Street Journal, we can expect a bill that has not only moved the debate substantially further to the right, but is also much more restrictive, business friendly and worker exploitive.

The core bill, like the immigration-overhaul effort that failed in the last Congress, promises millions of undocumented workers now in the U.S. a path to citizenship. Under pressure from Democrats, heavy fines of $10,000 that would have been imposed on immigrants seeking to legalize their status have been cut in half. It would take from eight to 13 years to qualify for permanent residency under the bill, and conservatives have won restrictions to try to stem the tide of immigrants who may follow this mass legalization.

New border-security measures would be given top priority in the first 18 months after enactment. Current immigration rules that favor families would be replaced by a merit system making it harder for new citizens to bring in siblings and adult children. Even parents would find it harder; the number would be capped at 40,000 a year, less than half the number that typically come in annually.

In the same spirit, the White House has walked a fine line in negotiating a new guest-worker program whose Republican motto is "temporary means temporary." The draft plan would create a new temporary "Y" visa for as many as 400,000 people a year, who could come to work in the U.S. for two to three years but then must go home. There would be exceptions in special circumstances for a narrow segment of workers, about 10,000 a year.

In the talks, conservatives such as Arizona Sen. Jon Kyl want to bar most guest workers from reapplying for another Y visa after their time here. Critics say this would create a permanent class of persons coming and going with no chance of ever establishing residency. Democrats argue that U.S. interests are better served if a guest worker can reapply -- after going home -- and be given a chance to earn points toward getting permanent residence.

…snip…

The temporary-worker issue is among the last major stumbling blocks to be considered at a senators' meeting today. Giving ground could help win a deal with Massachusetts Sen. Edward Kennedy, the lead Democratic negotiator. The administration last night said it was putting no pressure on Sen. Kyl on this issue.

The elaborate point system rewarding specialty or high-demand occupations is still evolving. Much depends on how many green cards the government is prepared to issue annually.

Wall Street Journal

It's too early to tell exactly where the negotiations will lead ….but from what's been coming out so far, it doesn't bode well meaningful reform.

Although we had all hoped that this years round of reform negotiations would finally produce the kind of practical, fair and humane legislation needed, clearly at this point it appears that no bill at all would be better than a bill that would allow for increased exploitation and division of families.

We can only hope that the Democratic leadership comes to it's senses and realizes that making compromises with this President on matters of conscience and public policy only leads to failure. Despite all the bluster and rhetoric of the far-right, the American people want an immigration policy that works ... not one crafted for political expedience.

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