Immigration reform is back in the center of U.S. politics.
But so is border security.
Voters
reelected Obama as expected. But not simply a reelection, there was also an
unexpected revival, a seemingly miraculous resurrection of the prospects for
immigration reform. The election also seemed to mark a turn toward drug control
reform and the legalization of marijuana.
As
Republicans and Democrats recognize the political logic of finally fixing the
country’s restrictive and harsh immigration policies, there is bipartisan
support for immigration reform, Rather than being a untouchable “third rail” of
politics, immigration reform has emerged, as if overnight, as a political
imperative for both parties.
Largely because of dramatically increasing
political participation of Latinos, Asians, and other immigrant-based
communities, support for some type of immigration reform -- whether a
comprehensive overhaul or piecemeal revisions -- spans nearly the entire
political spectrum in post-election America.
Advocacy
for immigration reform is breaking into various camps – from those only
supporting an expansion of guest-worker programs to those who insist on
comprehensive immigration reform. Virtually all sectors regard border security
as a precondition for immigration reform. Border security is the common ground
for all camps favoring immigration reform, even among immigrant-rights advocacy
groups.
When
speaking about the new prospects for immigration reform after his reelection,
President Obama made the now required nod to border security. It’s rare to hear
any politician or reform advocate speak favorably of immigration reform without
the apparently requisite bow to border security. As President Obama said, "I think it should include a
continuation of the strong border security measures that we've taken because we
have to secure our borders.”
The Muddle of Border Security
Support is building for immigration reform, and states and
communities are rejecting harsh federal drug laws. However, the border security
buildup – which is almost exclusively focused on immigration and drug
enforcement – continues. CIP’s latest International Policy Report, The
Border Patrol’s Strategic Muddle
[PDF | HTML], chronicles the Border Patrol’s missteps, examines the
agency’s evolving strategy, and points to new directions in border policy.
“At a time when
corrective initiatives are building to reform restrictive federal policies for
immigrants and marijuana – the two traditional targets of border control
operations – the Border Patrol seems stuck in a strategic muddle, as evident in
its new strategy document,” says the report’s author, Tom Barry.
Following
intense criticism for its billion-dollar high-tech programs, excessive and
cross-border violence, and continuing failure to provide performance and
cost-benefit evaluations of its various new security initiatives, the Border
Patrol released the 2012 – 2016 Border Patrol Strategic Plan.
The latest plan
was intended to put critics’ concerns over these problems to rest; it instead
ignores them entirely. According to Barry, “The 2012 – 2016 Border Patrol Strategic Plan is not a serious document.
It includes repeated references to vague tactics such as rapid response,
intelligence, community engagement, whole-of-government approaches, and
inter-governmental integration.”
Newly reelected President Obama declared that operations to
“secure our border” are fundamental to immigration reform. Yet, as the Border
Patrol’s new strategy statement illustrates, the administration’s border policy
lacks firm strategic directions, apparently driven more by politics than any
assessment of threats to homeland security.
2 comments:
I truly like to reading your post. Thank you so much for taking the time to share such a nice information..
Immigartion Consultant
I think that they should really amend the policy and improve it more to protect the country and the citizens. It's not only about the materials, it's the plan also..
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