The Quote Below—More Misinformation from the Media
“For a minute there, it almost looked like Congress might finally do something about immigration reform. Early this month, independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina started circulating a “draft framework” for a proposed new law.
“The measure included $25 billion in funding to secure the border. . . . It even provided a pathway to citizenship for the 2 million undocumented immigrants known as “Dreamers,” people who were brought to the United States as children and have never really known any other country as home.
“Reform advocates thought they might finally have a solution within their grasp. The deal fell apart. Supporters of the agreement said they just couldn’t find enough Republican support.
“In the meantime, officials prepare for an already chaotic situation at the border to get worse. . . .
Congress has spent decades talking about immigration reform, but it hasn’t passed a comprehensive measure since 1986. Our elected leaders are great at talking about the border crisis. They just aren’t very good at doing anything about it.
“During George W. Bush’s presidency, a breakthrough compromise on immigration fell apart when congressional Republicans balked. Then, when Barack Obama was president, a similar measure passed the Senate but failed in the Republican-controlled House.
“When Donald Trump was in office, Democrats gave into White House demands to fund a border wall, and even then, Republicans wound up rejecting the deal.
“Now, with Joe Biden in office, another bipartisan blueprint appears to have fallen short because of Republican opposition.
“Is anyone seeing a pattern here? You might almost get the idea that Republicans don’t really want to resolve this crisis.
“Nevertheless, supporters of a long-lasting solution have to keep trying. Immigration is an issue that demands a bipartisan approach, and while this bill is hardly perfect, it does offer a viable way forward.
“Lawmakers in both parties must come together to resolve this crisis. Their continued failure to act is a national embarrassment.” – Immigration Reform Must Be a Priority for Both Parties, Daily Camera Editorial, Daily Camera (Boulder, CO), 12/27/22 [Link]
Fact Check of Above Quote: The Republicans who opposed the Sinema-Tills plan had legitimate reasons for doing so. With border control now in shambles, they didn’t think that passing an amnesty for illegal aliens was the proper message to send—particularly to the huddled masses of potential migrants south of the border. Also, these Republicans didn’t think that any appropriation for border enforcement would be spent wisely and effectively by an administration which seems indifferent to border security. In any case, Democrats too were responsible for the failure of Sinema-Tillis. They opposed it because they wanted no border control provisions at all.
This editorial is typical of the “mainstream” media, as they try to attach the label of “reform” on bad legislation dealing with immigration. From their point of view, reform always consists of a large-scale amnesty for illegal aliens. At the same time, it never includes provisions to put real teeth into immigration law enforcement, and it never proposes to reduce our gargantuan flow of legal immigration which has averaged one million a year for the past 30 years.
The bills this editorial endorses, those of former presidents Bush and Obama. are perfect examples of phony “bipartisan” reform. They offered amnesty for most of the illegal aliens in the U.S. Far from reducing legal immigration, they sought to increase it.
It really doesn’t matter how bipartisan immigration legislation is. To bring genuine reform, it must put the needs of the nation first, regardless of political affiliations. That means a level of immigration that will not strain our national unity with excessive diversity, depress the wages of our unskilled workers, and overburden our infrastructure and environment. Our current immigration policies serve none of these ends.