Americans Agree: We Want a Fair and Just Nation

Way too often, limiting immigration is considered a conservative position. But anyone who knows how far reaching immigration laws are and how they touch on every aspect of our lives realizes that the issue transcends party politics.

I’m neither Republican nor Democrat. In 2003, I ran on the Democrat ticket for California governor in the Recall Gray Davis election. Eight years ago, disgusted with both major parties for their failures on immigration and the environment, I registered as an Independent. CAPS and the immigration reduction organizations headquartered in Washington D.C. are bipartisan.

The more Americans delve into immigration policy, the clearer the relationship becomes between increased immigration and the negative consequences it inflicts on Americans unemployed or marginally employed. The math is undeniable. If the economy adds 1 million new workers annually to a labor market that isn't creating enough jobs to keep up with population growth, the new immigrants will either displace existing workers or depend on welfare which the debt-laden federal government can’t afford.

During more than 25 years of trying to make my point with pro-immigration advocates, I’ve rarely succeeded. So when I see a self-described liberal speak out against immigration, and in this case the recently passed S. 744, I’m encouraged.

In the introductory paragraphs to his column, Why Liberals Should Oppose the Immigration Bill, T.A. Frank writes about what we have all experienced, namely that people who favor the immigration bill, and therefore disagree with our opposition to it, consider us unworthy and mean-spirited. Frank adds that he’s resigned to the futility of trying to persuade his liberal friends.

Frank remains unshaken, however. He knows that S. 744, if passed by the House, would set in motion the next wave of 11 million illegal immigrants and in the process, impose great hardships on low-wage Americans. He’s disappointed that Congress is obsessed with “potential new voters” and not in the least concerned that millions more low-skilled immigrants would inflict irrevocable harm on America’s most vulnerable minorities, Blacks, Hispanics, returning veterans and the disabled.

Here’s how Frank describes the America he'd like to live in:

The country I want for myself and future Americans is one that’s prosperous, cohesive, harmonious, wealthy in land and resources per capita, nurturing of its skilled citizens, and, most important, protective of its unskilled citizens, who deserve as much any other Americans to live in dignity.

Frank acknowledges that worrying about illegal immigration is not “fashionable,” especially among college educated elites who he correctly observes, “are little affected by illegal immigration.”

Those of us who work for common sense immigration often wonder if anyone is listening. Frank’s essay comforted me. He’s a frequent New Republic contributor and editor who lives in Los Angeles. If Frank persists, and I hope he will, maybe he can sway some of his friends. Read Frank's column here.