Guest Columnist Monty Berns on Comprehensive Immigration Reform

Here is a guest column submitted by Monty Berns.  I am not sure that I agree but it is food for thought.

KJ

Will some reasonable leaders please stand up. We’re getting close to the 2 week period set aside by the senate to discuss immigration reform yet forces opposed to such reform seem to be doing everything possible to make sure comprehensive immigration reform does not succeed. The first of these forces working against comprehensive reform is big media. Yes Lou Dobbs is correct…big media does hide the truth about immigration! Increasingly since 9/11 we have had a humanitarian crisis that has been largely ignored by the mainstream media. This crisis is blatantly obvious to those who bother to notice but since those affected live in the shadows of society, the problem has simply been ignored or swept under the rug. Occasionally there are reports or stories of families torn apart by Ice raids and deportations. People who have lived & worked here for years, established roots, then suddenly sent back to their country of birth, often a country with which they are no longer familiar. Even though such heartbreaking events have become commonplace the mainstream media has done its best to unjustly conceal the human factor of illegal immigration. Yet poll after poll shows that the vast majority of Americans recognizes that we must deal with our existing illegal immigrant population humanely and fairly. Poll results are clear that most people support a path to citizenship for those undocumented workers that meet a list of criteria. One would assume that with most Americans onboard comprehensive reform should be easily achieved. Unfortunately the mainstream media is, once again, complicit in working against such reform. Just as big media seems to avoid bringing attention to the social and human plight of illegal immigration they are equally negligent in reporting the will of the average American. This is particularly evident on the cable news networks where most immigration related reports seem hell-bent on ignoring this truth and, instead, favor catering to that small restrictionist minority who want to deport every undocumented worker. Unfortunately even though the majority of Americans support comprehensive reform they, partially for the reasons mentioned above, consider other issues like that little problem in Iraq as far more important. So when it comes to immigration reform the voices that are heard are a loud minority who have made illegal immigration their core voting issue. This group of enforcement only supporters also comprises a sizeable chunk of the Republican base so, naturally, the politicians vying for their votes tend to pander to the cruel enforcement only intentions of this group. Not surprisingly many prominent Republican candidates like McCain, Giuliani and Brownback have moved to the right on the issue. How can we possibly have comprehensive immigration reform when these powerful politicians ignore the will of the majority and adjust their viewpoint to appease this restrictionist minority? And since these candidates obviously feel that this minority will play a major role in selecting a Republican presidential candidate it is unlikely that any of the most prominent Republican candidates will lead, as many did last year, a push for comprehensive reform. So the upcoming Republican primaries might, effectively, spell the death of any comprehensive immigration reform effort. Another major factor rallying against immigration reform has really become part of the mainstream media. Yep you guessed it, those dishonest cable news show hosts! It is not surprising that their audience largely comprises that very same republican base that seems to dictate Republican immigration policy! The populist rhetoric of hosts like O’ Reilly & Dobbs is especially effective at veiling the human factor of illegal immigration while dishonestly attempting to justify an enforcement only approach to illegal immigration. If you’re not in favor of total immediate enforcement without any amnesty then you’re an open border anarchist who invites criminals and drunks to our country. These populist demagogues blame all of America’s ills on these undocumented workers. They completely ignore any practical approach to immigration reform that deals with the very ills of which they complain but also treats our existing illegal immigrant population humanely. Equally to blame if comprehensive reform fails will be those democratic leaders who are content to stand on the sideline and happily watch those republican leaders scuttle any attempts to fix the system. Politically these democrats stand to benefit from such a tactic but it is reprehensible to think that anyone would ignore the will of their constituents who want comprehensive immigration reform. For comprehensive immigration reform to succeed we need honest leaders from both sides of the political spectrum to take charge. Republican leaders like John McCain need to stop pandering to that small but loud restrictionist group of the Republican base and democratic leaders need to recognize that a reasonable middle ground must be found. Together with some form of legalization most Americans also favor better border security and stricter interior enforcement. But the most urgent issue is the treatment of the existing 12 million illegal immigrants already living in the country. The status quo is totally unacceptable. It is our humanitarian obligation to make sure this issue is dealt with immediately or we will be endorsing & ignoring the continuance of this hidden humanitarian crisis.