The Immigrant Magazine. Resources for Immigrans in America.

POLITICS :
Election 2008

2008 Election Primaries Already in Full Steam:
Any Solutions for America's Immigration Problems?

By Nfor Julio Barthson
Special to "The Immigrant Magazine"

This year, American citizens at home and abroad will participate in what most political pundits and international observers generally agree may be the nation's most important presidential election in a lifetime. The November 2008 election will literally determine the next leader of the free world after 8 years of George W. Bush.

The current President's stewardship of America has left the world with two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq; rumors of war with Iran over the Persian nation's purported nuclear ambitions; an unresolved Palestinian crisis that leaves Israel even more insecure than before; a global climate crisis of alarming proportions; and a massive immigration predicament that grows more and more difficult to resolve by the day.

In recent years, the debate over immigration reform has been at the forefront of all political battles between Democrats and Republicans, from the hallways of Washington, DC to the neighborhood streets of East Los Angeles, Calif. In spite of the support of a bipartisan core group of Senators and Representatives in the U.S. Congress, the Bush Administration tried unsuccessfully, last year, to pass a much touted Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act; the reform package was torpedoed, ironically, mostly by members of the President's own party.

FAILURE OF IMMIGRATION REFORM

According to sources familiar with the legislation, the bill formally known as the "Secure Borders, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Reform Act of 2007" was supposed to be a compromise solution that would provide both tougher border enforcement and drastic reduction of illegal immigration activity, and an earned path to legalization and citizenship for those undocumented immigrants who have been paying their taxes regularly and have committed no felonies during their sojourn on American territory.

The dramatic failure of immigration reform efforts by the Bush Administration means that whoever becomes the next U.S. Head of State will inherit a gigantic mess-of-a-problem that officially involves some 12 million people (though the count of illegal immigrants currently on American soil is sometimes estimated at up to 20 million, according to several conservative right wing estimates).

REPUBLICAN XENOPHOBIA?

Most of the Republicans currently running for the presidency seem to agree on one course: reinforcement of border security by multiplication of current Border Patrol agents, continued construction of a physical fence along the U.S.-Mexico border in order to stem the inflow of illegal immigrants from the south, and a repetitive clamor for the deportation of all illegal immigrants, especially those from Mexico. By and large - except for John McCain - the Republican candidates oppose all efforts at including the legalization of illegal immigrants into any reform bill, accusing such efforts as being tantamount to amnesty. Before he stepped out of the race, Congressman Tom Tancredo was known to be the most anti-immigrant of the bunch, producing several political ads in which immigrants of a particular ethnic origin were portrayed as being the source of crime in American streets. Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney has been heard over and over again blaming the rising cost of health care and other problems on illegal immigrants. Recently, Mike Huckabee shocked the public, in the aftermath of the death of Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan, by falsely declaring that Pakistanis constituted the highest number of illegal immigrants entering the United States through the Mexican border; he could not substantiate his claims, and it was clear he was raising the specter of terrorism.

DEMOCRATS: ALLIES TO THE IMMIGRANTS?

On the left side of the political spectrum, the Democratic candidates have all shown themselves to be more welcoming of immigrants and more favorable to the legalization of the millions of undocumented workers through a process most refer to as "earned path to citizenship." Barack Obama, for example offers a five-point plan that starts with the reinforcement of border security through additional personnel, infrastructure and technology; an improvement of the immigration bureaucracy so that legal resident visas and citizenship certificates can be delivered faster to those who have earned them; removal of incentives for illegal immigration through a crack down on employers who lure in illegal immigrants by knowingly giving low-paying jobs to undocumented individuals; bringing the undocumented out of the shadows and allowing those in good standing to pay a fine, learn English and go to the back of the line to work their way towards eventual legalization and probable American citizenship; and the active promotion of economic development in the world, especially in Mexico. Hillary Clinton and John Edwards also offer plans which basically reflect the core Democratic argument that, it is practically impossible to deport all 12 to 20 million illegal immigrants from the country, and commonsense dictates an approach that would include them, tax them, and bring them into mainstream American society where they could participate directly in the growth of the nation. Congressman Dennis Kucinich is the only candidate who declares that there is no such thing as an illegal immigrant because of his belief that America is a nation of immigrants and "no human being can be illegal anywhere on earth."

Ultimately, the importance of the 2008 elections in America - gubernatorial, congressional and presidential - can hardly be overemphasized. The next President of the United States could chart a new immigration policy for this country, and he or she may lead Congress towards accepting the concept of an earned path to citizenship for current undocumented immigrants. However, from all objective points of view, it would have to be a Democratic President and a Democratic majority in Congress for such reform to happen. Why? Well, because Republicans have been forced to take a hostile stance against comprehensive immigration reform by the right wing of their party due to the notion that those who are living illegally in the United States should never be granted what they call "amnesty" to the detriment of their own priority - border security.

The Power of the Immigrant Vote
In an election year, everyone has to cross the fence

By Yvette Fernandez

What happened to all the immigrants?
The Immigration debate, which sizzled during the primary campaign, ignited ardent flames of controversy, and now, the issue is too hot to handle.  Immigration suddenly seems to have been left to burn itself out of the election. Was the anti-immigrant cry in the name of American patriotism so loud and so strong, it sent all the immigrants “back where they came from?”  Absolutely not--and it wasn’t for lack of trying. Read More