Immigration researchers cannot even agree over immigration reform. How can politicians?
This might come as a surprise, or not, depending on your point of view relating to immigration reform. Of course, there are two sides, the pro and con, two clashing political parties and two feuding immigration research centers. There are even knock-down, drag ‘em out fights over who is on the right road to getting reform achieved. How about we just leave the boxing gloves at the door and get on with actually doing something?
The feuding between two well known immigration research centers is a harbinger of things to come in the political arena on the Hill. The two outfits are so deeply divided over how to achieve immigration reform it will be hard to reach any type of consensus. Chances are, despite politicians mumbling to the contrary, this will be mirrored in the White House and on the floor of the House.
The strict immigration enforcement proponent, the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), recently trashed a report from the somewhat liberal Migration Policy Institute (MPI), stating the government forked out $187 billion for immigration enforcement in a 26-year period. CIS says that’s garbage and smacks of trying to peddle Obama’s immigration agenda. MPI staunchly defends it position and facts. Interesting how rank politics shows up in just about any organization when the question of immigration reform comes up.
The long and short of the dust-up between the two think tanks was that it appeared the MPI blew it on their budget figures, or not, depending on whom you listen to and that despite the “findings,” there were no policy recommendations, just high flown rhetoric. If you take a moment to think about that, it will likely strike you that two dueling immigration policy think tanks are just the same as the Democrats and Republicans when they begin debating and attempting to work on comprehensive immigration reform. In other words, not much gets down, but it certainly generates a lot of verbiage and good news clips.
With the amount of finger-pointing going on in this country over what to do or not to do about immigration reform, one wonders if, once again, anything will get done, despite what Obama says in the news. Bickering has its place, but at some point, the issues need to be addressed because people elected this government to actually “do” something about immigration reform. Lest we forget.
Scientific debate or political debate? The Hatfields and the McCoys? Think tanks versus politicians? Bottom line is where is the beef?
Sally Odell – Rifkin & Fox-Isicoff, PA is an immigration lawyer in Miami with immigration law offices in Orlando and Miami Florida. To learn more, visit http://www.rifkinandfoxisicoff.com.
