Illegal immigration

For some reason I found myself watching 60 Minutes last night. Among the segments shown was a very interesting piece on illegal immigration. The story, I thought, did a good job of exposing the defects of our current immigration policy. Among the points highlighted:

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1. Cracking down on illegal immigrants in urban areas by putting up fences and other barriers has only succeeded in driving them towards crossing in rural areas.

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2. Crossing in rural areas is far more hazardous to one's health. As the story says:

60 Minutes took a first-hand look at the paths taken by migrants through the desert this summer when temperatures hovered above 100 degrees for weeks at a time. This year, the Border Patrol has reported a record 464 deaths, but by all accounts the number is much higher because of bodies that haven’t been found ... More than 20 percent of the deaths in the desert this year were women and children.

3. Since crossing the border is now more difficult, people don't want to make the risk of multiple crossings. Rather than working for a few months and then going back to Mexico, people are taking their families with them to the US. So arguably there are more illegals here because of the crackdown.

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4. The people that come here are looking for jobs -- and there are plenty of U.S. businesses willing to hire them. Indeed, Mexican and other immigrant labor is a key driving force behind the U.S. economy.

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My thoughts: The current system isn't working. As long as Mexico is desperately poor, and we are rich, immigrants will risk life and limb to get here. It's embarrassing both to the U.S. and Mexico that hundreds of people are dying horrible deaths attempting to find their way to a better life.

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Furthermore our economy needs that labor and benefits from it. There is a house under construction next to where my parents live. The workers, primarily Mexican immigrants, arrive at the site at 7 a.m. and work until sundown. They're there on holidays and weekends too. The guys that came by to paint the exterior of my house the other week were Salvadoran immigrants who work harder and charge less than their American competitors.

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Migrant labor does many of the jobs Americans aren't willing to take. Immigration doesn't seem to exert downward pressure on wages. Any informed immigration policy needs to be based on these facts. To that end it seems to me that President Bush's proposed guest worker program is a good start. As Bush says:

Our reforms should be guided by a few basic principles. First, America must control its borders. Following the attacks of September the 11th, 2001, this duty of the federal government has become even more urgent. And we're fulfilling that duty...

Second, new immigration laws should serve the economic needs of our country. If an American employer is offering a job that American citizens are not willing to take, we ought to welcome into our country a person who will fill that job.

Third, we should not give unfair rewards to illegal immigrants in the citizenship process or disadvantage those who came here lawfully, or hope to do so.

Fourth, new laws should provide incentives for temporary, foreign workers to return permanently to their home countries after their period of work in the United States has expired.

Ultimately, however, the problem will never be solved until Mexico gets its act together. If we really want to stem the tide we need to exert pressure on the country to implement needed reforms. We already know what the problems are, it's just a matter of implementing the right solutions. Until they do the tide of illegals won't stop. If the prospect of dying of thirst in the desert won't discourage someone, what will?