Issue Position: Streamlining Immigration

Issue Position

That the United States of America reform her immigration system is of vital importance, both to the American people and to those immigrants who, often times for the most understandable of reasons, have come here illegally. The status quo with respect to immigration has allowed for the erosion of the rule of law on our southern border, constitutes a national security vulnerability, damages our nation economically as a general matter and leaves innocent young people at risk of being deported to countries of which they know nothing. For all of these reasons we must have immigration reform.

The main planks of immigration reform are as follows:

Step 1. Secure the southern border: The construction of a fence along our southern border and the fortification of that border with National Guardsmen (perhaps as many as six-thousand) would ensure that the influx of illegal immigrants (including the minority of violent criminals among them) as well as possible enemies of our nation would be effectively minimized.

Step 2. Provide legal status to otherwise law-abiding undocumented immigrants in our nation currently:

For most undocumented immigrants, while it is unnecessary to grant them citizenship, it is in the interests of our nation to see to it that they become registered as legal residents without fear of deportation and allowed to work so long as they have not committed serious additional crimes.

For children of illegal immigrants too young to consciously have chosen to come to this country, a pathway to citizenship should be provided, again provided they have a clean criminal history.

In select cases, allow temporary work permits for Mexican and foreign nationals to engage in agricultural and other labor as may be needed in our border states.
While these are reasonable steps that must be taken to combat illegal immigration, our legal immigration system is in need of fixing. It currently discourages the immigration of the most productive foreigners and incentivizes the immigration of low skilled immigrants disproportionate to the needs of our economy. As an economic matter and as a matter of fairness to those seeking to immigrate here legally, this problem must be solved.

Step 3. Reform the legal immigration system.

Restore ratios of skilled to unskilled immigrants into our country consistent with our economic requirements.

Eliminate rules and regulations that prohibits foreign graduates of American universities from being able to immigrate directly into the United States.

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