Immigration Op-Ed Published

This past week my latest opinion piece on immigration reform was published in newspapers from both Binghamton and Ithaca. You can view the column on line here. Or you can read the text below.

Perhaps one of the greatest benefits to come from the simple act of Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signing her state's new immigration legislation into law was the beginning of a much-needed, long overdue national discussion on the subject of border security.

There were understandable concerns raised when SB1070 was passed. Questions were raised about the possibility of racial profiling and police being put in a potentially untenable position when enforcing the law. But Arizona's governor quickly moved to sign HB2162, which clarified troubling aspects of the legislation.

What we were left with was, in fact, a law which closely mimics existing federal immigration regulations. This brings us to the question of whether or not the states, as opposed to the federal government, should be engaged in the enforcement of border security. It's an important issue and a debate that we should explore fully. But it still fails to address the underlying crisis that brought us to this point.

Arizona and our other border states have been asking for help for years now, but Washington has failed to address this very real threat in any meaningful way. What Gov. Brewer and the Arizona Legislature have done is not some sort of revolt against federal authority, but a final act of frustration, if not desperation. The utter failure to act by the federal government has left them with few options. When ranchers along the border were being routinely plagued by vandalism, assault and, in some cases, murder, with little or no help in sight from the appropriate authorities, something had to be done.

It is unfortunate that opponents of these measures have chosen to frame the debate in racially charged rhetoric, depicting supporters of Arizona's actions as being somehow opposed to immigration in any form. Our country continues to be enriched by the addition of motivated, hard-working immigrants who choose to follow a legal path to citizenship, pledging their allegiance to their new nation. I was particularly inspired by a recent speech given on the House floor by U.S. Rep. Tom McClintock of California who said:

"The purpose of America's immigration laws is not to keep people out. It is to ensure that as people come to the United States, they do so with the intention of becoming Americans and of raising their children as Americans. Unlike Mexico, our nation embraces legal immigration, and what makes that possible is assimilation."

Washington must move forward with robust immigration reform that puts a halt to the entry of those who would demonstrate disdain for our laws or, in the worst-case scenario, seek entry to do us harm. It is already illegal by definition to be in this country without the appropriate documentation. Now is the time to support the states most afflicted by this problem and enforce existing immigration law as we seek to improve it.