Illegal Immigration: The Need for a Discussion Beyond Walls and Sanctuary Cities

Illegal immigration is a topic that is much discussed but about which most people--and politicians--know very little, and what passes for "information" on the subject is often far from the truth. For example, illegal immigrants (undocumented workers for those on the left of the political spectrum) do not just take jobs Americans don't want; a significant number are employed in high paying blue and white collar professions, including law, academia and medicine. Nor is the often touted "fact" that illegal immigrants add significant value to our economy accurate; although many do in fact pay taxes, as a group illegal immigrants are a net drain on the economy.

The push for open borders and the unwillingness of both Democratic and Republican administrations in recent memory to enforce immigration laws pose serious public safety and national security issues, and no debate about immigration policy can ignore the humanitarian and ethical considerations for both illegal immigrants and for the far larger number of would-be legal immigrants waiting in line for years for their chance of a better life.
We have not yet begun a serious discussion of these issues and I fear we never will as the left and right will simply continue to politicize the issue rather than face the inconvenient truths that should be aired in an honest discussion about immigration policy beyond yet another simplistic and counter-productive Reaganesque amnesty by any other name is proposed and implemented. In my article, “Illegal Immigration: Economic, Social and Ethical Implications” North East Journal of Legal Studies (NEALSB) Vol. 22 (Fall 2009), I focused attention some of the vital issues that underlie our current predicament which is only likely to be made worse by any of the simple solutions to a complicated problem that have been aired in recent years and will once again rise from the ashes during the next administration. This is an issue I need to revisit formally in the near future as the data need to be updated, but the conclusions are unchanged.

Whatever your personal views on the issue. I hope you will read (and, if you are so inclined, share) the article, conduct your own independent research and perhaps add your voice in a meaningful way to the ongoing discussion--whether you agree or disagree with my conclusions. NEALSB is a refereed journal that is only available by subscription, but fortunately some of the recent volumes have been made available online, including the Fall 2009 volume in which my article appeared. You can download the article here: Illegal Immigration: Economic, Social and Ethical Implications.

In 2013 I published a second related article, “Dealing with Uninvited and Unwelcomed Guests: a Survey of Current State Legislative Efforts to Control Illegal Immigration Within Their Borders”, Int. J. Public Law and Policy, Vol. 3, No. 1 (2013). At the time, the U.S. Supreme Court had not yet weighed in on the constitutionality of state efforts to enforce federal immigration law in answer to the Obama Administration’s refusal to enforce the law. (No president from Reagan through Obama has made a sufficient effort to enforce the law, which explains why after President Reagan provided a general amnesty to most illegal aliens, effectively reducing illegal immigrants to near zero during his time in office, we find ourselves with more than 12 million illegal aliens today.) When the Obama administration challenged the Constitutionality of Arizona’s efforts to enforce federal immigration law within its borders, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled most (but not all) such efforts as Unconstitutional, holding that only the federal government (read: Congress, the legislative branch) can set immigration law and only the federal government (read: the President, the executive branch) can enforce federal law. The high court would later invalidate President Obama's efforts to grant amnesty by executive order unconstitutional. This particular article is, unfortunately, not available other than through subscription services. The brief abstract can be found at: http://www.inderscienceonline.com/doi/abs/10.1504/IJPLAP.2013.051013