Secure Borders and Legal Immigration
US Immigration Policy
US immigration policy has been extremely haphazard for the past 50 years. The large increase in both illegal and legal immigration has become a very contentious election issue. As a first-generation immigrant, I intend to contribute significantly to addressing this issue in a sensitive and bipartisan manner. I promise to bring this nation a sane, balanced, and implementable immigration policy that is acceptable to a very large majority of the existing population.
Immigration to the US is primarily driven by the desire of immigrants to have a better economic life. This must be matched with America’s need to hire foreign workers legally for variable lengths of time. All other immigration—diversity-based, asylum, investment-based, etc.—must be small and openly discussed. Prime goals to allow immigration, permanent or temporary, should be clear and implementable.
American workers must not be adversely affected by any immigration policy. That is my commitment to you. In the past 50 years, America has been hit with the double whammy of outsourcing many manufacturing and other jobs as well as a fivefold yearly increase of legal immigration to over 1M a year green cards now. Illegal immigration has increased to over 1M a year as well. We must address these macro problems carefully and in a sensitive manner.
I support the immigration of skilled workers who have and can contribute heavily to, the success of American society. Silicon Valley is a prime example of skilled workers who not only contribute amazingly but also integrate appreciatively into the local society. The country-based quota for such highly skilled workers should be eliminated to further enhance the start-up culture. It must be coupled with encouragement to bring advanced manufacturing back to Silicon Valley. I will promote that investment visas should be used only for such focused purposes, not for any kind of employment creation, which is how it exists today.
We must protect our less-skilled workers, as they are the most affected by illegal immigrants. These include workers in many small businesses like restaurants, construction, farms, and other such professions. I will introduce bills to ensure that we protect our vulnerable workers. A country can’t have porous borders. Many corporations exploit or even promote porous borders, thereby encouraging slave labor conditions for the illegals. Progressive Democrats like Ro Khanna openly encourage illegal immigration and constantly support bills like the ‘new way forward’ bill to promote lax implementation of the existing deportation laws. They are even trying to protect criminals from deportation. This is counter to all American interests and is very disconcerting. Past Democrats were moderate, sensitive to the average worker’s needs, and supported eliminating illegal migration. Today’s progressive Democrats like Ro Khanna seem to be working for the wealthy individuals’ interests who contribute to his campaign. Corporations and wealthy individuals want Democrats to continue to keep and increase the cheaper labor pool. Will that eliminate poverty and the wealth gap, and increase wage growth for the average American citizens? No, with these approaches of the so-called Progressives.
The massive migration at the borders is alarming, costly, and full of security risks, and needs to be stopped quickly. It is admirable to help humanity at large, but we must justly consider its cost to us. We are not a ‘rich’ country, as is often claimed by my opponent to justify large-scale illegal and asylum immigration. We have 70 million people on welfare, and millions are homeless. 50% of our population lives in near-poverty conditions. They can’t pay their bills. Our homeless and veterans are being passed over for cost reasons, but we are spending billions on illegal immigrants. Additionally, we face a healthcare cost crisis, particularly for the aging baby boomers. I would implore all voters to take this issue seriously and demand that Congress pass strict laws to stop illegal immigration and economic migrants.
Let’s take care of our homeless, veterans, disadvantaged, and near-poverty people. Let’s limit asylum only to the most deserving—definitely not offer it to an economic migrant. Migration based on family reunification is important, and it makes sense to allow it for the nucleus family of your spouse and kids. We need to take care of DACA children and create a path to citizenship.
All guest worker programs must be implemented lawfully and tracked carefully with strict guarantees from the employers. Guest workers’ employment should have a rotational feature that will present economic opportunities to a wider number of foreign workers. The Guest Worker Program must be complemented with a strong nationwide job-training program for the jobs occupied by foreign workers.
We must encourage local and cross-state hiring programs to get Americans trained and working at good wages. Corporate greed to outsource jobs as well as the import of cheaper labor should be curtailed with balanced temporary worker laws that encourage more local hiring. Decent wage growth, thereafter, will increase the welfare of a large segment of the local resident workers and close the wealth gap that progressives often mention.
The Progressives’ proposal of taxing the rich and then redistributing money through social programs is the wrong way to solve the problem of the wealth gap. A sustainable solution is not to give a chance to the corporations and their wealthy shareholders to first accumulate wealth by opening floodgates of illegal and cheaper labor pools. The government’s increased role in the redistribution of wealth will likely corrupt the country like many socialist countries.
Let’s just optimize the employment of all American people and give them the dignity of good wages earned through good training and a healthy job demand. I will follow the principles of good economics to create good immigration laws.
