Congress and Other Politicians: Illegal Immigrates in the Country of Intelligence?

What with immigration being one of the hot issues of the day, month, year, decade, … you would think that Congress and states’ legislatures would have found some viable and functional approaches to setting the legal and policy direction on it. But of course they have not. Is it because the two parties cannot find a way to work together? No, even when they have had the opportunity to pass whatever bill they have wanted the ‘best and brightest’ have flounder without a concept; or vacillated on some direction; or lurched toward some ‘tough on illegal aliens’ bill that was toothless, blind, and addle pated in its efficacy.

Is it because the solutions are beyond the ability of men and women of good will to conceive of or comprehend something of value? No, even politicians, including some members of Congress, have the wherewithal to understand a good idea when they hear one. Makes you wonder why they haven’t heard one doesn’t it?

Is it because the public would not accept a reasonable, prudent and principled approach to reforming immigration? Harder to answer, but in general at least 7 of 10 Americans would support both an informed and practical immigration policy and law. They would even vote for those politicians who sponsored and backed such legislation. Most Americans are not inflexibly bound to either major Party’s failed and outdated positions on immigration; as the public is fundamentally interested in the impacts that the past and present immigration laws have wrought upon the land. At this point, the public would welcome a political leader who stood up and presented an immigration strategy that addressed those facets of American society that are being dealt real and significant damage from the ineffective and unproductive process that exists today.

So where is the politician that will seriously think about immigration and develop that creative position to bring intelligence, insight and innovation to the fore? Who will recognize the factors that motivate and drive the illegal immigration and the counter-measures that are appropriate to deal with them?

It appears that they are not in the Democratic or Republican Parties. It appears that they are not in the State legislatures, nor are they members of the staffs of these politicians. It appears that the politics of the day have stagnated the imaginations, and solidified the mind-sets of the very people that are supposed to tackle these problems for the American people.

Maybe it would help if we gave them a hint. To solve this problem there is an essential principle that needs to be attended to: First, you have to understand the problem. And that is where the immigration reform effort needs to start, and the politicians need to exert their energies. Only when they see the real problem will they have any chance of finding an effective solution.