Immigration Debate and Illegal Minors

[hardblue.livejournal.com]

Over the last two years, a crisis has developed on our Southern border: a children’s migration of increasing scale, in which thousands of unaccompanied minors from Central America have made the dangerous journey to the U.S.-Mexico border, many apparently motivated by the belief that some sort of legal status awaits them. [...]

The young migrants are not, obviously, deeply familiar with the ins and outs of U.S. politics; they’re following smuggler-spread rumors, for the most part. But the rumors exist for a reason: They’re fueled by a sense that “if you want to get into the U.S., now is the time,” a scholar of Latin America told The Washington Post. And the Obama White House has conceded that a “misperception of U.S. immigration policy” is playing a role — one significant enough to dispatch Vice President Joe Biden to Central America to clarify that we are not actually opening our borders to any minor who reaches them.

-- Ross Douthat at The New York Times

Although Obama has been fairly heavyhanded in deportations, there has been some more shows of compassion toward children immigrants. And we are in the middle of another round of debate over immigration enforcement and amnesty.

Comments

[hardblue.livejournal.com]

Well, when it comes to the prospect for any actual lawmaking,
I suppose the issue is really on the back burner. This is perhaps
the most gridlocked issues for our gridlocked legislature.

[geezer-also.livejournal.com]

Strangely enough (given that I am a conservative) The "laws" are the least of my concerns; and while I am concerned about the cost, I am more concerned about the conditions these kids are being housed in.

Heck, I don't want to play a blame card, I'd rather something be done. If the border is so secure how are hundreds (if not thousands) of kids getting in?

[hardblue.livejournal.com]

I don't think anyone is saying that the border is not porous,
but no one has come up with a knockdown idea for securing
the border. The idea of a Chinese/Berlin Wall is the closest such idea,
but that is generally considered impractical and perhaps not really
such a final solution, either - 14-foot fence, 15-foot ladders and such.

That's why Douthat makes that final charge: give us effective enforcement
first before we do another round of amnesty. But no one knows
what effective enforcement would look like, especially since our industries
need those workers.