The Effects of Immigration on National Security

October 21, 2007

Political Analyst, PAX Americana Institute

One of the paramount issues surrounding the United States today is immigration. As of right now, United States immigration policies are weak and very unstructured. If this nation is going to continue with its clumsy, misguided approach toward immigration reform, the chances of another attack on America are excessively high. As a conservative, I was glad to see recently that a piece of legislation was being proposed to combat the problems within immigration policy. The legislation I am referring to is the comprehensive immigration bill that recently failed in the United States Senate. In reading about this bill, however, I was upset with the ways the bill attempted to address the immigration problem. Throughout this article I plan to propose solutions that will help resolve this crisis and protect America.

The proposed bill allowed amnesty for illegal immigrants. This plan was flawed because it allowed for a greater possibility of attack on America. The President does not support amnesty. President Bush outlined a proposal to solve this problem in his 2007 State of the Union address. In that speech, President Bush explained, "It is neither wise nor realistic to round up and deport millions of illegal immigrants in the United States. But there should be no automatic path to citizenship."¹ The only reason this provision was in the bill was because the left refuses to support a bill without amnesty. Though liberals claim to defend peace and equity for all, too frequently they are willing to pursue these ideals at the cost of moral principle. Citizenship Declaration explains how the first and most important step America must take is securing the nation's border, which must occur before any real debate about adjusting legal immigration policy. The debate in politics today is not over a number of people that we are going to allow; rather, it is about how we are going to best protect our border. Later in this article, as well as in Citizenship Declaration, you will see a number of recommended steps for solving the border debate. The following quote from Citizenship Declaration really outlines the problem: "Americans are rightly concerned that the danger of an open border and of such rampant illegal activity is potentially much greater in the face of the threat of new, transnational terrorism."² The problem is not that people are coming over to this country; it is that they are coming over in excess and without being seen because we having a failing border that is not being properly protected.

Some of my critics will say, "Well, how can we do that if people continue to enter illegally?" The simple answer to that is, we do not let them enter illegally. That can and must be done! It can be done by increasing the number of border patrol officers by a significant margin and through the construction of a sizable physical barrier. Also, we must ensure that our border patrol guards are given the correct training in order to combat this problem. Our country's safety is not something we want to jeopardize; therefore it is important these steps be put in place.

The two most pertinent issues surrounding America in the 2008 Presidential election are the Iraq War and the immigration issue. As conservatives, we must take the lead in dealing with these issues rationally and realistically, and I commend President Bush for doing that. The legislation had certain sections that many conservatives supported, such as a fine for businesses employing illegal immigrants and a provisional guest worker program. President Bush, in his State of the Union address, outlined a vision for the American guest worker program: "Participation should be for a limited period of time, and the guest workers must return home after their authorized period of stay. Those who fail to return home in accordance with the law should become permanently i neligible for a green card and for citizenship, but that problem stems from the excessive numbers of illegal immigrants driving down the value of American labor."³ Though it may seem attractive that immigrants are willing to work for virtually nothing, it is more important first to employ our legal workers in these jobs so that we can:

Reform our poorly-conceived welfare system that liberals praise by offering renewed opportunities to millions.
Help the President's job approval numbers.
Most importantly, protect the American homeland from possible attack by closing the severe gap in our border security.

The biggest threat that the present approach to immigration plays is to the security of this nation. By allowing potentially millions of undocumented illegal immigrants into the nation every year, we are just asking for trouble. What many Americans fail to realize is that not all of the immigrants crossing the border are Mexicans or Canadians; anyone, including agents of Al Qaeda, can take advantage of our nation in this way. The United States government must put a greater emphasis first on screening all those who enter the country legally, which can only happen by first securing the border. That first step will help to flush out those who pose the greatest threat to this nation's security.

This President's policies thus far have been monumental and should be praised by generations. I say that because after September 11th, America cracked down on terrorism and we have not been attacked in six years. This can only continue if the border crisis is addressed firmly, with a timely policy that will preserve everyone's freedoms as equally as possible.

There are several things in this bill that conservatives enjoyed as I mentioned earlier, but one of those under the radar screen was the emphasis on the English language. By putting an emphasis on the understanding of the English language, we are also helping to prevent attacks on America. Any citizen wishing to enter the United States must first understand the culture and the language. As Newt Gingrich has stated in his American Solutions proposal, "English is the language of American success and provides the basis for American unity. Learning English is essential to patriotic assimilation in keeping with America's vision, because it is the language of economic opportunity, involvement in America's political culture, and of democratic self-government and history."⁴ This is something that the United States understands but is not taking proper steps to combat. Language and culture build nations, and by abandoning those core values, citizens are abandoning their patriotic duty. Therefore, through the encouragement of uniquely American culture, values, and principles, we are decreasing the likelihood of another attack on American soil. Conservatives have been working vigorously for years to get this kind of measure passed through Congress, and in so doing, it would benefit the security of this nation and its citizens.

If immigrants have no desire or willingness to learn our language or our culture, they should be deported or prevented from entering immediately. If, for example, Americans go to live in Mexico and do not speak Spanish, the Mexican government will not just cater to them and start doing everything in English. It is part of the culture and being a citizen to know and learn the language of the nation you live in. As with every policy, if we thoroughly enforce it and do not back down from our principles it will succeed, but, if not, the immigrants will win out and the United States will continue to sacrifice her principles of human freedom for nothing.

If we want to continue to see success and prevent this nation from further attack, we must take these specific steps:

Secure the border by whatever means necessary, to include a system of physical barriers and an increased presence of security personnel.
Do a much more thorough job of screening all legal immigrants that plan to enter this nation.
Work with our nation's combined intelligence assets to create detailed lists of those immigrants that pose a threat to America and prevent them from ever entering. That is legal under the PATRIOT Act, which allows agencies to take these measures.
Assure that every new citizen passes a meaningful exam, in English, demonstrating his or her grasp of America's principles and history.
Punish employers who knowingly flout the law against their own citizens. American businesses are rightfully receiving hefty fines for hiring illegal immigrants. American businesses have plenty of incentive to strengthen their own national economy and to protect legal workers.

America is the greatest bastion of freedom in the world today, and if we do not pass a sound piece of immigration reform, the chances of America being that shining city upon a hill will greatly decrease. Conservatives have been waiting for a quality immigration bill for years, and the one that was proposed was a step in the right direction. Other than the amnesty for millions of illegal immigrants, all of the other measures in this amendment supported conservative ideology, and we must commend this wonderful president for his unwavering leadership to get this bill through Congress. We cannot sacrifice our rights and freedoms for anything, and that is why, if we do not follow these detailed steps I have outlined, America's future could be in jeopardy. Americans need to realize that the liberals want equity even at the price of principle, whereas we the conservatives are willing to fight tooth and nail for tough immigration reform, which is built on principle. As conservatives, we want to be known to have passed comprehensive immigration legislation that will benefit our nation's future and that will allow future generations to live in a safe and prosperous America.

¹ President George W. Bush 2007 State of the Union speech, immigration initiatives.

² Citizenship: A Declaration, Pax Americana Institute 2007

³ President George W. Bush 2007 State of the Union speech, immigration initiatives.

⁴ Citizenship Manifesto, Gingrich, Newt. American Solutions for Winning the Future