Republicans’ immigration problem

by | Jan 9, 2018 | Editor's Blog, Immigration | 6 comments

It looks like immigration is going to consume the national debate for the next few weeks. Trump appears ready to deport 200,000 people who’ve been here for almost a generation and Congress is going to get into a showdown over fixing DACA. From a political standpoint, this debate further damages the GOP brand with people of color.

The Trump administration’s rush to deport Salvadorans, and probably Haitians and Hondurans, is part of the president’s effort to appeal to his white base. It may score political points in the short term but it will leave the Republican Party as a serious minority party in the long term. It also does little to address the pressing concerns of our immigration system.

The DACA debate questions whether or not the GOP is willing to protect people who were brought to this country as children through no fault of their own. Democrats are threatening a government shutdown if the Dreamers who make up the DACA program are not protected. Repubicans say there’s not enough time for a comprehensive fix, but the debate has been dragging out for years.

Really, the immigration problem defines the Republican Party’s broader delimma. They’ve become a party beholden to a base that’s out of touch with most of America. While some Republicans may believe that people who have lived here for almost a generation should stay, they can’t get the rest of their agenda passed without support of the people who want them to go.

Trump believes firmly that satisfying his base is key to his success. It worked in the 2016 election and it’s keeping a significant portion of the 37% of Americans that support him happy. Republican leaders won’t rebuke him because they, too, need to keep that 37% on their side. It’s a short-term strategy. They’re relying on a segment of the population that’s shrinking while alienating the part that’s growing. I guess they’re calculating that they can eventually win over the immigrant community with tax cuts.

6 Comments

  1. ebrun

    Contrary to the claim in this blog post, DACA will likely turn out to be to Trump’s advantage rather than his ‘problem’. Trump stated today that he will sign whatever compromise the Congressional negotiators come up with. So some of his immigration policy objectives will be included in the bipartisan compromise, perhaps a reform of chain migration and the the diversity lottery along with increased border security. From the get-go, Trump has stated that he wanted a solution to allow DACA immigrants to remain in the country. He has never called for their deportation.

    BTW, the hysteria from the left over mass deportations of DACA recipients is pure political theater. There would be no chance for a mass deportation to occur. The immigration courts are already overwhelmed with non DACA illegals subject to deportation. Only DACA’s facing criminal charges would be at risk. The real problem would be the loss of their work permits, which will expire without a legislative solution.

  2. DB

    So what laws do we enforce? These people have been here since 2001. How many are working? How many are on the federal dime, tax payers money? How many are in jail?

    Every president has kicje the can down the road, why?

    • Norma Munn

      “According to an analysis by . . ., the Center for Migration Studies, Salvadoran beneficiaries have 192,700 American-born children; 88 percent participate in the labor force, compared with 63 percent for the overall United States population; and nearly one-quarter have a mortgage.”

      They return $4.6 billion annually in remittances to relatives in San Salvador. (source NY Times Jan. 8) I think one can safely assume many of them are definitely working and paying taxes. From what I have read, primarily in construction and various service industry jobs. Folks in Texas are already complaining that they need these workers to continue the repair work from Harvey.

      Also, El Salvador is considered the least safe country in hemisphere.

      Finally, the Salvadorans in the Temporary Protected Status category were given the opportunity to apply for that status if they had been in the US since 2001 by Pres. George W. Bush, and renewed by Pres. Obama. They, along with other groups in that category, constitute a few hundred thousand immigrants of the multi millions in this country.

      As for presidents kicking the can down the road, could it be because all the information shows them to be (a) mostly employed (b) tax payers (c) often married and with children who are American citizens, and (d) law abiding? Folks who go to prison are almost always deported when their sentence is over, or before in some instances. I know that reality is not the way the press tends to report it, but it is the case.

      You will have to research the rest of your questions.

  3. Norma Munn

    These deportations, and the newer proposals to limit immigration, also ignore the demographic reality of our country. We need younger workers in almost every field. And we will continue to need them as the birthrate for US citizens is not sufficient to meet that need.

    Politically, I think the analysis is pretty much correct, but the outcomes of the upcoming elections will still depend on who votes and how unfair the gerrymandering is. Add to that the economic insecurities of many, notwithstanding the stock market’s almost daily increases, and that 37% will still be where they were in Nov. of 2016. If one factors in the extra numbers that Democrats have to get to win (estimated in something I read at 8-10%) due to gerrymandering and that 37% is really about 45-47%. The odds change significantly at that point.

    I doubt that even pictures of the slaughter of returning Salvadorans would alter the views of the 37% that this, and other deportations, are fully justified. They are not “us.”

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