Around the Water Cooler panelists answered the following: Do you expect national leaders to enact comprehensive immigration reform in the next four years?
Jim West: “Yes, it’s an issue the Democrats ran on and Republicans must now realize that if they want to regain the White House, they’re going to have to be more successfully reaching out to minority voters.”
Richard Place: “I think it’s impossible to obtain a non-partisan immigration bill in the next four years, unless the credit for the bill is given to the Democrats. The public sees it as the responsibility of government to do the right thing. The parties see their responsibility as a tool for power.”
Louise Ledesma: “Hopefully yes. This election showed that America has not swung to the ultra conservative right and whites are now in the minority. Our Congress needs to move to the center and reach a compromise.”
Ruth Erickson: “When states like Arizona try to take control of their border problems and curb illegal immigration, and the federal government won’t enforce its own federal laws to help Arizona and other border states, how can national leaders reform anything?”
Mary Zanger: “Yes. Our economy would collapse without the contribution of people without papers. Our laws need to provide a path to citizenship or legal residency. We need to require domestic registration for those living here and bestow green card legality. We need to collect proper paperwork domestically and at borders. Record keeping means fingerprinting, immunizations and driver’s licenses. Legalize border crossing with green cards, visas, temporary residence, permanent residence, and/or paths to citizenship. Computer records will be far less expensive than walls, guns and police. The gun barrel will never provide security and will destroy our souls and our economy in the process.”
