‘twocents’ time!

What do you think?  tdr wants to hear from you.

Federal or State?

So Democrats and Republicans have been getting  lot of press recently when it comes to immigration reform. However, let’s not lose sight of a larger issue to be had with immigration reform.  Let’s reconsider what’s at the core of the debate:

Should states intervene on immigration issues, or is immigration solely a responsibility of the federal government?

That is, after all,  at the heart of why Arizona’s SB 1070 came into being — state leaders like Gov. Jan Brewer and even Janet Napolitano (previous AZ Gov. and current Secretary of Homeland Security) approved measures to do something about immigration ills in their state.  They cited that the federal government wasn’t doing enough to reform immigration policy.  In an Los Angeles Times article from this week, David Savage reports on the Supreme Courts hearings on the so-called “business death penalty” legislation in Arizona.  It’s seeming very split, with a possible tie being the result (Justice Elena Kagan removed herself from the decision because of previous involvement through the Obama Administration).

So easily we can get wrapped up in the emotionality of the immigration debate.  Appeals to us are made through stories about families being torn apart.  Irrational fears of Spanish-speaking cultures infiltrating America are utilized to shore up support for action against immigration policy.

 

But really, shouldn’t we put aside those emotional appeals and get to the heart of legal reform — if we cannot reconcile state and federal roles, we will have much larger issues to worry about.

 

Discuss!

Ch-ch-ch-changes (needed)

“Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free…”

We’ve recently spoken on tdr about the youth being the future of America.  Obviously we are the next generation to lead our communities and country.  Focusing on the DREAM Act and stories in higher education about the opportunities unauthorized immigrants may be granted is important to team tdr because we are young adults; the political decisions made today are what we will deal with in the future.

So, then, why aren’t our political leaders actually acting on legislation that will shape the future of our nation?  Given the recent GOP filibuster and tabling of the DREAM Act in the Senate this week, Edward Schumacher-Matos of The Washington Post points out the need for a change in the GOP’s immigration strategies. What his blog post advocated today was a moderate, reasonable approach to alter the GOP’s stance on  immigration reform.

Come January, when they will control the House, we can be certain that a new immigration legislation will be brought forth.  However, will they advocate to deport the estimated 11 million unauthorized workers and residents? (Remember this, too?)

We are a nation of immigrants, and to give in to the cultural fears as S-M points out, the “fear of the other,” and of Spanish identity itself is destructive.  American identity is changing. It always has been. To reject a path to citizenship for those 11 million undocumented residents and workers doesn’t uphold Emma Lazarus’ famous words and a national tradition of accepting immigrants.

More importantly, how will the GOP’s harsh deportation and border control stance affect Latino voters in upcoming elections?  According to Schumacher-Matos, deportation worries are on the minds of many Latinos in the U.S., foreign-born or U.S. native and regardless of citizenship status. If Republicans are really interested in doing what’s best for the country, maybe they should think about embracing lessons from these Spanish-speaking peoples and try to hold views that activate Latino voters’ support today and in the near future. It seems that alienating the growing demographic of Latino voters in our nation is akin to shooting yourself in the foot, it’s only that the pain won’t be felt for a few years (politically, at least.).

We need more voices like Schumacher-Matos who are critical of the GOP’s generally harsh stance of deportation and heavier border control.  Those activities don’t get at the root of the problem, they only inflame the situation and drain the party’s relationship with U.S. Latinos.