Maybe Trump has a plan for the border wall. I will give him
the opportunity to espouse it. And I hope he takes it. Maybe he should spend
time explaining to the independents and undecideds how his border wall fits
into the big picture. Maybe he can give us a comprehensive immigration reform package
along with it. All in all he should.
So, Mr. President to help you give us a plan I will frame some
ideas I have. Feel free to run with them.
Immigration reform has popped up as an issue infrequently,
yet enough times to actually mean something to the political body of these United
States. And we really do need reform. For example, have you seen how many
different types of cards immigrants, refugees, temporary workers, permanent
residents, temporary residents are handed out by the State Department in
general. And it breaks down into subtypes for some of these categories. Once
you receive one card for residence the immigrant works their way through hoops
to become either a permanent resident or possibly even a citizen.
If you are curious, here are a few websites you would need
to research to get started.
And this is just a walk through of various sites a person
would have to navigate if they want to come here. And by no means is this
everything. Do the internet search.
Consolidating just some of this process will be helpful to
people wanting to come here, yet it would also be helpful to the people who must
manage this program.
And then you need to manage the different types of groups,
individuals, refugees, workers students, tourists, asylum seekers, people who want
to live here and become citizens.
So as part of this process lets break down some of the
categories and talk about what we want to do with each group and afterwards
discuss border security. The “Wall” in your parlance Mr. President.
This is not an all-inclusive solution for all problems discussion.
This is a rough draft of some ideas our Congress and you should be developing
instead of hacks like me.
I think we can agree many people want to come here and live,
hopefully experiencing the greatness of our country and the Constitution. We
want to grant this opportunity to people who want to come here and contribute. Our nation is great because of the diverse groups
of people who have migrated here, found success, and raised families instilling
in them the virtues and values upon which we are founded.
Do we make it harder than before to become a citizen to
maybe limit the number of people entering our country? Do we open up more? I think
that is a question our Representatives need to ask their constituents to get a feel.
And then bring their answers to DC to
begin the process of the whole reform.
Procedurally it must be easier. We should break down the
categories into:
People applying for permanent residence and/or citizenship should
have the same criteria, same application, and well same red tape. And right now
this is pretty similar. The goal becomes how stringent do we make the
qualifications to apply. One card, one
process, one group with our government to manage them and keep track of them.
The next group(s) get a bit trickier. Let’s make refugees
and asylum seekers the second priority. Why? I think we need to define what we consider
potential eligible refugees and asylum seekers in advance. We lay out the criteria in general and so
anytime there is a crisis around the world, our State Department can apply to Congress
for people under this situation to become eligible to apply. The process
becomes the same no matter where they come from once the situation is
pronounced to meet the criteria. Every single person from everywhere gets the
same card, has the same restrictions, must follow the same rules, and must
contribute to finding a solution to get them back to their country of origin.
We do not have to and maybe we shouldn’t offer blanket citizenship or permanent
residents to a refugees at all. They can eventually apply via the process
determined for residency, but have to meet the criteria established with the
first group above. And each year the State Department would come to Congress
and prove there is still a need for the group in question to still fit under refugee
or asylum seeker status. Congress keeps passing laws for all sorts of
situations. We need to have one shoe to fit all feet so to speak. And have it
reviewed every year. And with predetermined criteria built into the system,
this annual process should be somewhat cookie cutter and also allows flexibility
throughout the year when a crisis develops. Once a scenario is determined to be
safe again, our State Department begins the process of repatriating the refugees.
Yes, this will incur some tax payer expense, but allows the government to
better manage the flow of people becoming citizens in general and people
overstaying their time. More on this when I discuss border security.
The third major group is temporary workers. And this
category encompasses a wide range of possible applicants, yet the same procedural
philosophy can be applied. All people wanting to be a temporary worker uses the
same application, goes through the same sub-group within our government, follows
the same rules and restrictions as all within this group, and has an exit
strategy with one exception which I will come to. The rules here apply to
anyone wanting to work here either on a short or long term basis. The only
different group would be people who work here year in and year out for seasonal
or contracted work, yet go home for part of the year. They follow all other
rules except they do not have an exit time frame. In days gone by, the term
migrant farm workers might come to mine, yet we would be a bit more expansive. The
exit time frame can be years from application, yet they are not here to become
citizens or permanent residents and only for those hired by companies for job specific
purposes. Here are some proposed rules for their employment. First there is
modified minimum wage requirements. And this is especially important for the
seasonal or temporary permanent workers. It applies to all though. Second, they
do not pay income taxes as we know it. Instead they would pay fees based on
their income. It would work like our graduated income tax is suppose to work. Income
tax is another disaster conversation for another day. I wish people would remember
there is a Constitutional Amendment (16) around this topic. For now though I
propose a graduated fee for working here on a temporary basis. This fee is
withheld from workers paychecks and is used to help fund the Immigration
policies, procedures, and personnel the government manages. It isn’t the full
budget for immigration, yet helps to offset the costs of the overall program. There are no forms to fill out like a 1040, no
refunds, no extra pay at end of year, it is an amount determined as a graduated
percentage by the amount of pay. And if pay varies, so does the amount
withheld. Also a small portion can be set aside to help employers pay workman’s
compensation which also has limited benefits, yet allows the temporary worker full
medical coverage for injuries on the job. They do not pay into or earn social
security. They do not receive unemployment benefits and if there job tenure
ends early they still need to leave early. Employers have three responsibilities,
one if they hire illegals fines are much higher than they are now and possible
jail time could be explored, two, they must report if the employee is no longer
working to the appropriate government group and give last address, contact and
family info known to them. A 2b would be
they need to update the temporary workers info regularly, and three they make
sure they comply with fee withholding and sending to the government. Enforcement
comes from the fees collected by the employers.
Next group is student visas. This can be real cut and dry. I
am open about them being allowed part time employment while students, but face
same rules as the temporary workers for the employment. Second the school is
responsible for their information being updated with the government once they
graduate or leave school. They can apply to go to a different school, but that
must be approved with the same process as their original application to study
here. The cannot arbitrarily change schools.
There are other categories, but this is a good over view of
what can be done, still allow immigrants, yet manage our resources. And if you
didn’t catch it, each category has its own subgroup within the State Department’s
umbrella. This allows the government worker to get to know and better
understand the groups they are managing.
Border security would be part of the mix in the comprehensive
reform to be passed by Congress. And let’s talk categories of people that cause
problems under the theme of border security. You can generalize and say anyone
not meeting the criteria established in the immigration reform is an illegal
alien and can be deported immediately. For now we will talk about the more
infamous situations.
Drug smugglers and drugs being imported into our country. I
am not going to address this because my ideas are so controversial that saying we
need to make marijuana legal is the least controversial part of the program. There
are an enormous amount of players involved that would need to be brought into
the negotiations and there is too much detail for this post which is already
running long. One benefit is the chance for Mexico to develop a larger middle
class once the program is fully established. Mexico having a stronger middle-class
was one of the selling points of the original NAFTA, yet corporate greed killed
that so we need to follow through if this proposal comes to fruition.
What about all the bad guys Mr. President? I agree we need
to be tougher. I think if an illegal or even legal immigrant breaks the law
they have two choices. Serve full time for the crime as any citizen of the US
would or be deported. No plea bargain and no time off for good behavior, they receive
max time under the law once found guilty of any crime, then they get sent home.
No appeal. If they come back, even without committing another crime, if found
would serve twice the adjudicated sentence with no chance to go home until the
full sentence is served. This may sound harsh to some, yet this is where the average
citizen has a right to feel protected in their homes and in this country. This is
the law, no exceptions.
People caught smuggling humans into the country, Smugglers get
full prison term and the people smuggled are treated as refugees with immediate
determination of their home situation to see if it meets the criteria determined
as outlined above. If no crisis in their home country, they are sent home via the
same process as refugees who are determined not to be given refugee status
anymore.
And in general we build a better tracking system for all
people entering our country for their benefit and ours. When their time is up
they have “X” amount of time to return home. If they do not return timely, our
government can seize assets to pay for their return home. Sounds harsh, but if
we want to have a successful immigration policy that allows a vibrant interchange
of culture and people we must protect ourselves against people overreaching or
taking advantage of the situation. Everyone has time to leave respectfully, but
there is a limit. Our government is given their information routinely by
employers etc, so there is no excuse or there are penalties for failure to
comply.
These are just a few examples of developing a broad immigration
reform policy, yes that might sound harsh on the surface, but if managed openly,
transparently, and gives people the chance to become permanent residents or
work here as wanted or needed we should embrace them being here. It is up to us
as citizens to teach and show them our culture and our values in a positive way
to make their experience beneficial for the short or long duration.
See Mr. President you can have immigration reform and not
spend one dime on a wall that is counter productive to the growth of our
nation. Remember for over 400 years that area of the world has been in flux
from exploration to the mix of people enjoying life, sharing culture and trade,
a moving boundary that is arbitrary at best, and one that for generations
actually means nothing because it is all family. Maybe it is only important to decide the most
basic of necessities, but if you live, work, or play on the Southwest border
you know how wonderful this part of the world can be if you treat the area and
all the people with respect. Problems can be solved if you define and identify
the problem and leave what works alone.
Cheers.
