Financial Times Editorial Comment: A new melting pot
Financial Times Editorial Comment: A new melting pot
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2007
Published: May 21 2007 03:00 | Last updated: May 21 2007 03:00
This is a crucial week for immigration reform in America: the Senate faces a historic vote on legislation aimed at tackling the mess that is America's immigration policy.
The legislation is far from perfect. As soon as the outlines of a deal were announced last week, opponents began attacking the reform proposals - and with good reason.
The bill makes an important philosophical break with the past: it encourages the immigration of highly skilled foreigners - the kind that will feed American innovation - and discourages the migration of huge extended families that cannot service the economy of the 21st century.
But there are plenty of other provisions that are far more problematic: the temporary worker programme offers no path to citizenship, and its onerous restrictions are likely to push even more immigrants into the shadows. As one critic of the reforms said, "there is nothing more permanent than a temporary worker". A flawed temporary worker programme will merely create a huge new pool of permanently illegal aliens.
The 12m illegal immigrants who are already living in America will get the chance to become citizens - but only after paying a prohibitively high fine and waiting for many years. It is not clear how many will be willing or able to do that. In addition, employers will be forced to verify the immigration status of all workers - a hugely costly and burdensome process for immigrants and Americans alike.
So the bill is not perfect - and neither is it final. There is no guarantee that it will emerge from the Senate floor without getting even worse. And even if it survives the Senate, reform must still pass the House - and the two bills must be reconciled before becoming law.
There is a real chance that whatever emerges will do nothing to solve the immigration crisis; it could even exacerbate it.
Still, the current bill is, sadly, the best that could be hoped for under the political circumstances. The alternative is even worse: already, scores of state and local governments have passed laws aimed at taking the immigrant problem into their own hands, by penalising landlords that rent to illegals and employers that give them jobs.
If Congress fails to adopt a national solution, the legal chaos in the states will only intensify. If Congress leaves a void, states and cities will surely fill it, creating a patchwork of bad local laws that will impose a high cost on business and the economy. That would surely be worse than the current deal - however imperfect.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2007
Published: May 21 2007 03:00 | Last updated: May 21 2007 03:00
This is a crucial week for immigration reform in America: the Senate faces a historic vote on legislation aimed at tackling the mess that is America's immigration policy.
The legislation is far from perfect. As soon as the outlines of a deal were announced last week, opponents began attacking the reform proposals - and with good reason.
The bill makes an important philosophical break with the past: it encourages the immigration of highly skilled foreigners - the kind that will feed American innovation - and discourages the migration of huge extended families that cannot service the economy of the 21st century.
But there are plenty of other provisions that are far more problematic: the temporary worker programme offers no path to citizenship, and its onerous restrictions are likely to push even more immigrants into the shadows. As one critic of the reforms said, "there is nothing more permanent than a temporary worker". A flawed temporary worker programme will merely create a huge new pool of permanently illegal aliens.
The 12m illegal immigrants who are already living in America will get the chance to become citizens - but only after paying a prohibitively high fine and waiting for many years. It is not clear how many will be willing or able to do that. In addition, employers will be forced to verify the immigration status of all workers - a hugely costly and burdensome process for immigrants and Americans alike.
So the bill is not perfect - and neither is it final. There is no guarantee that it will emerge from the Senate floor without getting even worse. And even if it survives the Senate, reform must still pass the House - and the two bills must be reconciled before becoming law.
There is a real chance that whatever emerges will do nothing to solve the immigration crisis; it could even exacerbate it.
Still, the current bill is, sadly, the best that could be hoped for under the political circumstances. The alternative is even worse: already, scores of state and local governments have passed laws aimed at taking the immigrant problem into their own hands, by penalising landlords that rent to illegals and employers that give them jobs.
If Congress fails to adopt a national solution, the legal chaos in the states will only intensify. If Congress leaves a void, states and cities will surely fill it, creating a patchwork of bad local laws that will impose a high cost on business and the economy. That would surely be worse than the current deal - however imperfect.
posted by Carlos T Mock at 7:40 AM
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