My Immigration Policy

Disclaimer: this is a rough draft of my ideas. I am open-minded about every single thing listed. The most important thing is to have dialog, which America is badly in need of. If someone has a better idea than me, and can convince me of that, I am willing to change my views. You should be too.

1) Let those who are here apply to become permanent residents but do not allow them to vote. If they had come here legally, they would have a say in our government. We cannot get rid of 11 million people. We must make them legal so that they can feed their children (who are American citizens) without fear of being arrested and sent away, and can do things like go to hospitals. But they do not deserve the vote.

2) Get rid of the law that makes anyone born on American soil an American. This does nothing but encourage illegal immigrants. Many of the European countries have abolished similar laws.

3) Reinforce the border. Invest in the long term. We need more agents on the border and we need more agents arresting illegals who do not apply for permanent residency.

4) End the catch-and-release program. If they are caught they must be thrown out like an unruly drunk from a bar. If Mexico has a problem with us throwing them back into Mexico, tell them to enforce their borders.

5) Fine the businesses that hire illegals into oblivion. Use the money to pay for border patrol.

6) Make it easier to become a citizen legally. Encourage people to come to America the right way. It is very difficult to become a citizen right now and this encourages illegal entry. We cannot let everyone who wants to come in, but those we do allow should not face so much red tape.

7) End the War on Drugs. Send the agents who are hunting drug lords out to combat illegals. A major (if not the only) reason illegals come to America is because their homelands (all of Central and South America) are torn by war and ruled by drug lords. The wars are about drugs. The drug lords have more money than the governments. The farmers plant illegal substances because they are poor and illegal things make more money than legal things. We can stop this. We can take the drug lords' money away. We can make it more profitable to grow coffee than anything else. We can give power back to the governments. How?

Take drug policy-making away from the federal government. "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." Remember that? The Tenth A-mend-ment? Each state should decide for itself how to handle drugs. What is right for Iowa is not right for New York. I, personally, believe that my state should experiment with government-regulated distribution. Sell marijuana, cocaine and heroin at a fraction of the cost on the street. The majority of every purchase will go to the state for drug treatment. With every purchase will be pamphlets on the dangers of drugs, clean needles, and information on how to receive help. Children will no longer be able to get drugs. We have been successful at keeping minors away from cigarettes and alcohol. Drug dealers do not card. We cannot control drug abuse if we are not in control of the drugs. When an addict buys heroin and uses in an unsafe way, it is between him, his dealer, and the dirty needle. We need to be part of the equation.

The benefit in terms of illegals: we will end many of the major problems in their countries because we will no longer be fighting the supply of drugs, we will be controlling the demand of drugs. I guarantee that every country south of us will benefit. NO MORE DRUG LORDS. And our own addicts will benefit. Did I mention that the prisons will empty? And that money can go to other things, border patrol among them? It's a win-win-win situation.

P.S. Having the state governments control drugs will mean that they are given both money and power that they do not currently have. We will return to being the country our forefathers believed we would be. States will be in control of their prisons, their police (who will be able to spend their time with violent criminals, not addicts) and we will be able to help addicts recover by making sure they are safe until they decide to seek help. THE TENTH AMENDMENT IS THE REASON I BELIEVE IN THIS COUNTRY. SAVING IT WILL SAVE BOTH AMERICAS.

In summary: If we bust businesses that support illegals, stop the flow into the country, adequately deal with the ones who are here, make it easier to come here the right way, abolish the born-here-citizen-here law, and end the War on Drugs so that there is less reason to come here to escape their countries in the first place, WE WILL NO LONGER HAVE ILLEGALS. We will have Americans. Like my ancestors who came here legally. America is a land of immigrants. LEGAL immigrants.