Immigration & The Government Shutdown

The House has proposed several bills now to reopen the government, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has blocked each attempt at a resolution because they do not include provisions for Trump’s border wall.

Not only that, but the country as a whole can’t even seem to agree on a reasonable compromise…Trump’s most ardent fans are digging in their heels in favor of a wall that will likely cost much more than the initial estimates and take years before it would come to fruition. Aside from probable court challenges at the legislative level, much of the land on the border is privately-owned and therefore would either have to be negotiated upon with each individual landowner or eminent declared to seize it for the purpose. In the past, various attempts have been made under eminent domain in Texas, and some of those cases (dating back over a decade) are still not resolved. A barrier is only as good as its weakest link, so unless the border wall was continuous and virtually impenetrable (including from above and below), it is hard to imagine that it would be an effective solution for keeping illegal border crossers out. In my opinion, that money would be much better spent on additional staff and technology, something that border officials have been asking for for a long time already. In Texas, game wardens and state troopers are tasked with rotations at the border in addition to their “normal” jobs to provide added support where it’s needed.

Aside from the logistical problems many people have with the idea of a wall, many also have ethical concerns that a physical wall conveys. While conservatives see illegal immigrants as an imminent danger to their safety and financial security, those on the other side of the fence (no pun intended) cite statistics showing a lower crime rate among immigrants and the fact that they cannot obtain federal assistance (a law that has been in place since the Clinton administration) as evidence to the contrary. To me, the issue is reflective of countless others that we are facing as a country.

Many of you know my background-that I was raised conservative, Catholic, Republican. I held those views for most of my adult life, until I finally began to have serious discussions about life with people who are different than me and my eyes and heart were opened. I finally saw that many of the assumptions I had based my thinking on were flawed at best, and often just plain wrong. I, like many others still do, used to believe that illegal immigrants were coming to the United States and receiving everything they needed for free…that all they had to do was have a child on U.S. soil, and they were set to stay. Factually speaking, even legal immigrants do not qualify for federal financial assistance until they have been here at least five years. I’m sure there is some financial burden in regards to healthcare due to the healthcare industry’s commitment to providing emergent care regardless of the ability to pay, but think about this…if you were here illegally and feared being deported, would you risk going to the ER because you stubbed your toe, or your child had a common cold?

The popular idea of illegals abusing the healthcare (or any) system doesn’t make logical sense. Just as immigrants, including and especially illegal ones, are less likely to commit crimes, they usually do everything they can to stay under the radar of any government entity specifically to avoid the potential scrutiny. That’s not to say it doesn’t happen, but despite the myriad news stories I’ve seen lately that are being used to kindle the fear of “illegals”, it just isn’t the pressing issue it’s being made out to be. Illegal immigrants are less likely than native-born citizens to commit all crimes, including violent ones, and legal immigrants significantly less likely. States with more undocumented immigrants even have lower crime rates than those with a smaller percentage ( Those studies are cited here). The fact that the Trump administration and his base are using the outliers as evidence for a “dangerous immigration crisis” is a massive overreaction. Similarly, the idea that anyone is arguing in favor of open borders is absurd. Democrats and Republicans alike have agreed that more security is needed at the border; the difference lies in the proposed solutions to the problem.

As many critics have asked, why is the border wall an emergency now when it wasn’t at any time in the last two years? The only thing that’s changed since then is Democrats gaining majority status in the House at midterms, so it’s not a big leap to ascertain that it may have something to do with Trump’s urgency now. He knows that if he can’t bully them into complying with his requests before the shutdown is over, it likely won’t happen before the end of his term. Since any piece of legislation has to follow a process, it is the responsibility of each group to do their part in order to get something passed. (For a quick, basic review of legislative process, see Schoolhouse Rock, I’m Just A Bill, which is still relevant.) It doesn’t matter how many times the House votes a bill through if McConnell kills each attempt before it goes any further; therefore, at the end of the day it’s up to him and Trump to do their part to end the government shutdown. They can’t blame the Democratic House for the lack of action any more than they themselves are to blame in my opinion.

Originally published at http://sincerelyaformerrepublican.blogspot.com on January 25, 2019.