Immigration : Federal Of State Responsibility

Immigration has always been a complex issue in the United States. Previous and current administrations have had great difficulties in setting policies and programs in place to address this problem. During the course of American history, laws were enacted to address such issues. There were numerous legislative milestones in regards to immigration in the United States. In order to understand the current issues regarding immigration, we have to look back at the policies that were in place along with the goals that they intended to serve. According to (Barusch, 2012), the United States had an open immigration policy; which means that anyone could relocate to this country. As a result of this policy, the government had to redefine

More and more immigrants are coming in to the United States each year, and we as a nation

Currently, one of most debated policy issues in America is immigration. Starting with the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, the American government created several immigration laws that sought to put an end to illegal immigration by mandating workplace regulations, employer sanctions, internal enforcement mechanisms, and border security (Nowrasteh 2). According to immigration policy analyst Alexander Nowrasteh at the Center of Global Liberty and Prosperity of the Cato Institute, by the 1990s, legal immigration was essentially impossible to the United States unless the immigrant was highly skilled, had a close American citizen or legal permanent resident relative or friend who could sponsor him or her, or was a refugee. The Arizona immigration laws should be repealed due to damage done to the state’s economy, the benefits of immigrants to the American economic structure, and the societal harm imposed upon citizens.

Back in 2007 there were several concerns over immigration as a whole and exploding proportions of illegal immigrants crossing the border in the Arizona area. Arizona attempted to resolve the influx of people across the border by imposing heavy fines on employers hiring illegal immigrants. At that time in Arizona there was a democratic governor Janet Napolitano that continually vetoed the Arizona’s legislature attempt to reduce illegal immigration. In 2009 the state replaced the Democratic governor with a Republican governor Jan Brewer who was supportive of reforms for immigration in Arizona. In 2010 the immigration problem was so sever that Arizona passed legislation allowing the state to enforce federal law for identification of legal immigration into the United States. This sparked a nation wide discussion on illegal immigration and immigration reform.

On August 15, 2012, the same day that United States Citizenship and Immigration Services began accepting applications under the Obama administration’s new Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer issued an executive order preventing the state of Arizona from issuing driver’s licenses and public benefits to young undocumented immigrants who receive deferred status and work authorization under the

The state of Arizona has issued a new state law which enables police officers to act as immigration officers. With this underestimated powers given to the police, it will cause a lot of problems, and sensitivities to all the legal and illegal immigrants (Cnn.com). Undocumented students residing Arizona will be in a constant fear of being deported since any minor issue such as calling the police for help in any case given can put their lives in the danger of deportation. It’s only a matter of time if the government doesn’t stop this act, Arizona will impose unfair laws for education toward undocumented students. This will only cause chaos, and taking away the validity of the American Dream.

According to the author of this law, Mr. Russell Pearce, the state senator of Arizona’s 18th legislative district and the author of the new Arizona law SB 1070, argues that the United States Federal Government has not been doing their job correctly. The new law gives police officers the power to enforce immigration law. Pearce stated that police officers will not abuse of their powers given by the SB 1070 law because the SB 1070 clearly states the law provisions and how to enforce it. Therefore, he took the lead and implemented this law on his state to eliminate undocumented people at least in Arizona. Through this law police officers will have the power of prosecute anyone who is suspicious of being an illegal alien.

It is clear that illegal immigration has gotten out of control and constringent measures need to be taken to protect the United States borders. The local Government of Arizona recently decided to take control of the situation, by passing the “Support our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act” {House Bill 2162}. This bill gives law enforcement officers and agencies the authority, to lawfully stop, detain and arrest anyone who appears to look like an illegal alien. The bill out-right condones racial profiling and it violates civil rights, as well!

Texas has a reputation throughout history of differing views from the federal government in laws and politics pertaining to social, fiscal, and educational issues. On the whole, Texas operates as a largely conservative state. Because of this, policy-making is often right wing. With the institution of a Democratic, liberal president, the State’s dissent from the Federal government has only increased over certain issues. One hot topic of the 2012 Presidential election was immigration. With the major increase in immigration, it is no surprise that the issue was so emphasized. Between 2000 and 2011 there was a 30 percent

Other police departments have practices prohibiting or discouraging officers from verifying immigration status, and many departments have no official stance. Some departments proactively reach out to immigrants in their community without regard to immigration status in order to build trust.” Leitner and Strunk identify Arizona and Alabama as good examples of states that have passed laws laws that target immigrants by, “…requir[ing] local police to determine the immigration status of persons arrested or detained, if there is reasonable suspicion that they are in the country without authorization.” Conversely, Srikantiah states that California has, “…enact[ed] laws granting undocumented immigrants

The reforming of America?s immigration policy is something that can no longer be avoided and must be dealt with as soon as possible. Years of neglect by governmental agencies and policies makers have now made this issue one of the biggest in American politics. First of it must be understood that immigration does no only effect curtain areas of the country and curtain aspect of public life but rather all of American life. Both legal and illegal immigration affect major issues such as jobs availability for all citizens, wages, education in public schools system and in general, health care issues, and the homeland security.

This research paper explores the political issue of Immigration in the present day (2016) United States. The paper is meant to give an understanding of the issue, the importance of immigration reform, as well as a thorough analysis of the role the three branches of The United States Government: Judicial, Legislative, and Executive; and their role in the matter. By using several different peer reviewed journals, and articles the paper will give a well analysed view on the situation of reform currently in America by touching on the case of DAPA and DACA plans proposed by President Obama. The essay will also cover the positions of presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald J. Trump to show a future America could be heading towards.

The Arizona Immigration Law that just passed has caused many other states to question if this was unlawful because it is targeting Hispanics. Some cities in California even boycotts doing business with Arizona because of the new law. This law has brought divided attention to the American people. States that have borders with other countries are paying close attention and reacting to this law as carefully as it can because it can affect them. Other states that do not have this issue are just thinking of what is right in their terms.

In recent years there had been more and more immigration related laws imposed by state governments. In 2012 there were nearly 1,000 immigration bills presented, 156 laws were instituted and 111 resolutions were approved (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2015). In 2013 this increased with 184 laws being enacted and 253 resolutions being approved. Immigration issues encompassing employment, identification/drivers’ licenses, and law implementation were top property in states (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2015).

Immigration is a controversial topic that has impacted our society for decades perplexed by policies media coverage, perceptions based on one’s own lack of knowledge, personal experiences and a host of other factors that influence how our society views immigrants and immigration policies. The United States is a diverse population of people and filled with experiences that come from various walks of life that contribute to enhancing our social culture, economic development, and cultural acceptance.