Say Anything Blog

Free market backers like George Mason economist Alex Tabarrok and Benjamin Powell of the Independent Institute say that the best way to solve the illegal immigration problem is to let more immigrants in legally, which is something I’ve been saying for a while now as well.  Lou Dobbs responds by calling these men “complete idiots” and “jackasses.”

Because that’s how you win a debate.

I think I may actually be dumber now for having watched Dobbs’ response.

Regardless, there should be no denying at this point that the key to solving illegal immigration is making legal immigration easier (along with securing the border and actually forcing current laws against illegal immigration).  The only restrictions on legal immigration, I believe, should be basic screenings for national security and health concerns.  If a potential immigrant is not a terrorist or criminal and does not carry a dangerous communicable disease I say let them all in with no restriction on numbers.  As long as they come here, become Americans and take up the tax and regulatory burdens the rest of us citizens carry I see no problems with it.

Unlike many who argue this “free markets” approach to immigration, however, I do see serious problems with the current state of illegal immigration.  First and foremost, simply looking the other way on illegal immigration and/or granting amnesty to those who have come here illegally undermines our rule of law and shows a great deal of disrespect to the people whose representatives passed the current immigration laws in the first place.  I think our immigration laws need to be changed, but until they are changed they should absolutely be enforced.  And I will never support amnesty for those who thumbed their noses at our laws by coming here illegally.

Second, if we don’t require that people who come here become American and pledge some sort of fealty to our country and laws by becoming actual citizens we are going to end up with a sub-class of pseudo-citizens who are more interested in setting up Mexico del Norte than living as Americans.  Which is dangerous.  America’s great boon through out it’s history is it’s ability to assimilate people of all nationalities and cultures into it’s free society.  That assimilation doesn’t seem to be happening with a lot of illegals, and that’s troubling.

Third, Milt Friedman was right when he said that open immigration was not compatible with a welfare state.  While many illegal immigrants do come here to work, many also come here to leech off of our social programs.  We can’t have that, though really Friedman’s charge is more of an indictment of our nanny state mentality in this country than an argument against open immigration.