Adicia Owens September 13, 2010 Professor Marini Research Paper FD Spending our Childrens Inheritance: The Cost

Illegal Immigration In recent years, not only has the United States been at war in Iraq, it has also been at war within itself. The debate over illegal immigration has become a divisive issue not only for the citizens of the United States but also the policymakers. The United States is a nation deeply rooted in the history of immigration, and yet it is that rich heritage that is bringing America to her knees. In his article Illegal Immigration: A Positive Economic Contribution to the United States Ramanjan Nadadur states People have flocked to the nations shores, seeking the freedoms that America guarantees and the economic opportunities that the American economy presents. In recent decades, however; the increasing presence of illegal immigrants has been troubling (Nadadur 1037). Twenty-four years after the Immigration Reform and Control Act was signed, illegal immigration continues to be a problem that appears to have no solution. No matter how much time or money has been delegated in an effort to stop the crossing of the American- Mexico border, the American population is estimated to increase by 1.5 million people each year. An estimated twelve million illegal immigrants are living in the United States, due to this dilemma; a financial burden has been placed on local, state and federal governments, and it has encumbered Americans from finding stable employment, and placed the security and well-being of the American citizens in jeopardy.

In previous months, state governments have been making some tough decisions as to which programs they could cut funding to, thus creating a deficit in the services we receive from state funding. Lumar Smith discusses in his article titled Illegal Immigration is a Tax Dollar Drain teachers salaries have been cut or they are made to take furloughs without pay, and some are losing their jobs. The one area that seems to warrant such large amounts of money is illegal immigration. In a recent report by Jack Martin and Erik Ruark, The Fiscal Burden of Illegal Immigration on the United States Taxpayers estimates the annual cost of immigration on the United States is approximately $113 billion dollars (8). Local and state governments are the ones that absorb the majority of these costs. Many states are operating on insufficient budgets, thus leaving the policymakers with the problem of trying to find ways to cut or reduce these negative burdens from illegal immigration. An example of this scenario would be the state of California. It has been approximated that California is already facing a budget shortage of $14.4 billion dollars this year, while being assessed with a $21.8 billion dollar expense for illegal aliens (Martin and Ruark 1). Jorge Durand states in his article, The Changing Geography of Mexican Immigration to the United States: 1910-1996 that the migration of Mexicans has never been evenly distributed among all fifty states (Durand 1). The states that were most susceptible to the large majority of immigrants were California, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. This was mainly due to the fact these states were just across the border. Mexican immigration has transformed in the last several years from a narrow focus, to a far reaching process that no longer involves just a few states. It has now matured into a nationwide movement with far reaching effects throughout the nation (Durand 14). One of the ramifications of the diffusion of the Mexican immigrants is the state and local governments having to absorb the liability of approximately $84.2 billion dollars. (Martin and Ruark 1) In his report for the Council on

Foreign Relations; The Economic Logic of Illegal Immigration Gordon H. Hanson stated that the federal government enjoys having a fiscal surplus from illegal immigration (Hanson 26). Some immigrants do pay taxes, but those monies received through tax withholdings covers about one- third of the cost that illegal immigrant generates. Hanson has confidence in the fact that immigrants and some illegal immigrants pay federal income and withholdings taxes, thus creating an increase from immigration and allowing the federal government to not suffer any additional expense (Hanson 26). While many illegals do not pay taxes, those that do, are usually reimbursed when they file taxes (Hanson 21). Federal expenditures on illegal aliens in the areas of education, medical and law enforcement are estimated at $28.6 billion dollars a year, although only a third of this expense is recouped by tax collections from illegal immigrants (Hanson 26). Recently, President Obama expressed his plan for amnesty, which would make illegal immigrants eligible for Social Security and numerous other programs, thus creating an even more colossal economic burden (Martin and Ruark 39). In the article Amnesty and Joblessness by Zach Swartz he states American workers currently face the worst job market in twenty-five years. An estimated fifteen million Americans are out of work, and each day they actively search for new jobs (Swartz 2). Despite their illegal alien status, over eight million illegal aliens are part of the American workforce. Americans should not have to compete with illegal aliens for jobs (Swartz 2). Many people are under the assumption that illegal immigrants are only taking jobs that the American people will not take, Scholars have argued that illegal immigrants perform jobs that no U.S. worker will fill (Ramanujan 1041). That is a misconception, Americans would take the job, but due to the wages being driven down by illegal immigrants, they would not be able to support their families. Low skilled workers play an important role in the American economy, they build houses, they

prepare food, they clean offices, and they harvest crops and take unfilled factory jobs (Hanson 14). Regardless of the education level possessed by legal citizens, they have all been hit hard by the loss of jobs. Citizens with less than a high school education have seen the unemployment rate climb to fifteen percent (Swartz 5). Nadadur states Significant numbers of illegal immigration harm the economy by displacing low skilled natives, depressing wages and neutralizing market pressures that would otherwise result in a rising trend in wages (Nadadur 1014). Congress has begun holding hearings on amnesty despite the ever present reality for the American workers. Amnesty would force Americans looking for jobs to compete with todays illegal immigrants for a very scarce number of jobs. As Dirk Eldredge stated in Crowded Land of Liberty: Solving Americas Immigration Crisis, America does not need immigrants; even skilled workers, to compete with our own citizens for the precious resources of jobs and opportunities (Eldredge 35). In her article, Evaluating Guest Worker Programs in the U.S.: A Comparison of the Bracero Program and President Bushs Proposed Immigration Reform Plan Kristie Morgan states before the U.S. established the Border Patrol in 1924, the citizens of Mexico and the U.S. were able to move freely between the two countries with little difficulty (Morgan 126). Mexico was not subject to the country quotas that were imposed by the National Origins Act that controlled immigration into the U.S. before 1965 (Morgan 126). It is believed that illegal immigration into the U.S. started after the end of the Bracero Program, while other instances of mass illegal immigration occurred between 1965 and 1986. The Bracero program was a way the INS could control immigration in the face of powerful economic forces driving immigration into the U.S. (Morgan 132). President Reagan trying to extinguish the large flow of illegal immigrants into the U.S. signed into law the Immigration Reform and Control Act in 1986.

This act was to approach illegal immigration in three ways: amnesty, tighter border security, and tougher employer sanctions, unfortunately the job magnet was never turned off. The government never followed through on the promise to crack down on the employers. Each year, the federal government spends $7.8 billion dollars on law enforcement because of illegal immigrants (Martin and Ruark 25). For many Americans, the events of September 11, 2001 forever changed the world and immigration. Alan Allports Immigration Policy states one of the most troubling discoveries during investigations after the 9/11 attacks was the fact that every airplane hijacker had been able to illegally obtain a social security card and drivers license despite only having entered the country on a nonimmigrant visa (Allport 105). In his book The Closing of the American Borders: Terrorism, Immigration, and Security Since 9/11, Edward Alden states Immigration and counterterrorism have also become hopelessly entangled on the southern border which continues to be the main route to the U.S. for most illegal immigrants (295). Many states like Arizona, South Carolina, and North Carolina have written their own immigration laws, because they feel the federal government is not coming forward to do their job in enforcing the immigration laws. Heather McDonald and the co-authors of The Immigration Solution: A Better Plan Than Todays states some of the most violent criminals at large today are illegal aliens (McDonald 75). Hans von Spakovsky states in his article Pampering Illegals, Endangering Americans: The Obama Administration Immigration Policy the death of a rancher in Arizona sparked the need for tougher enforcement, as did the death of a Catholic nun and the serious injury of two senior nuns in Virginia. Police cannot use the most obvious tool to arrest illegal aliens in cities where the crime rate of illegal immigrants is so high; their immigration status (75). The judicial systems hands are tied because of the lax immigration policy of the Obama administration. The policy offers selective amnesty for many illegal aliens while

spending tax money on those who break our laws. An example of the inadequate enforcement of Americas immigration laws is Carlos Montano. Montano had two previous convictions for DUI as well as being cited for reckless driving, speeding and public drunkenness. Officials in Virginia had notified the U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement at the Department of Homeland Security concerning Montano, an illegal alien; was released by ICE on his own recognizance pending deportation hearings. During that time, Montano while driving drunk, crossed the yellow line and hit head on into the nuns car, killing one and injuring the other two passengers. If Montano had been detained by ICE he wouldnt have been able to take the life of an innocent citizen. The only way to divert illegal immigration and its attendant train of criminals and terrorist; is to remove the job magnet (90). American Passage: The History of Ellis Island, Vincent Cannato states If Americans are not reassured that immigration is taking place in a legal and orderly manner that is beneficial to the economic well-being, social cohesion, and national security of the nation, then the entire ideal of immigration is at risk (418). Cannato believes as modern-day Americans seek ways to deal with immigration they too will have to find their own balance between the competing ideas of universalism versus national sovereignty, a policy of nondiscrimination versus democratic selfrule and feelings of generosity versus pragmatism (418). As Homer said over two-thousand years ago; Immigrants should be admitted based on what they will contribute to the realm. To strengthen any entity; a team, a school, a company, or a country (Eldredge 55). Francis A. Walker on Restriction of Immigration into the United States concludes; We should take a rest, and give our social, political, and industrial system some chance to recuperate (744). The Obama administration needs to take into account the many aspects of how the Immigration Reform and Control Act failed in 1986 before trying to initiate a similar action.

Obama needs to stabilize the economy, get legal citizens back to work and ensure that all American citizens are safe and their well-being is first and foremost.