Ironies of illegal immigration.

• Author: Howell, Llewellyn D.
• Position: WORLD WATCHER

PRES. GEORGE W. BUSH'S proposal on immigration delivered during his State of the Union address was a political response to a complex and dire social problem. It is social because it has to do with the integration of American society and its continued relatively smooth functioning; dire because there are millions of immigrants in the U.S. who do not have health or automobile insurance or educational support for their children; complex because we not only need these immigrant workers now but, because the economy is doing so well, we will need more of them later. A political response may satisfy some constituent interest groups, but it does not address the reality of immigration.

Let's face the facts on immigration, legal or otherwise. First, the U.S. is going to have more immigrants. America's history is built on regular infusions of new labor, skills, and thinking. Immigrants are an infusion of fresh blood. Simply accommodating ourselves to the process of arriving peoples keeps us in touch with the diversity of cultures that make up the global mosaic.

Second, the country needs more immigrants. This is a paradox in the recovery of the Bush Administration economy. Economic growth over the last year has meant that the attractiveness of the U.S. for immigrants has gone from "push" (escape from Mexico) to "pull" (the U.S. economy inviting them). "Invitation" is presented in the lack of enforcement of immigration laws on U.S. businesses who are employing undocumented workers, despite the facility for requesting verification by the Federal government. The pro-business Bush Administration has an odd track record here.

The U.S. population primarily is growing as a result of births in the minority and immigrant communities. We do not like to think about it--as it is a political correctness problem--but there is stratification of labor, mostly along education lines, where the tough jobs in agriculture, manufacturing, and services are taken by those without recourse into the white-collar world of employment. Especially when these low paying jobs do not require language ability, immigrants historically have jumped at these opportunities as a way to get their foot in the door. The U.S.-born unemployed do not think first about having just any job to help plant their feet. They first think about what their wages will be. If you are here illegally, you clearly have a competitive advantage.

It is hard to argue in favor of illegal immigration, but let us at...