I've been following the immigration reform bill as it slowly winds it way through the legislation process. It's starting to look like the bill's final form is settling into place, but since there have been no formal votes nor a bill sent to the President, it's a little early to start an in-depth dissection.
That said, I'm pretty much with Ezra on this one.
The worth of the new bill hinges on whether you think an effective amnesty for the country's 12 million undocumented immigrants is worth a 400,000 to 600,000 person guest worker program. That's the trade-off: A bad guest-worker program set against a broader path-to-citizenship program. My sense is that the system we've got right now is so bad, that even a regulated guest worker program is better than what we're living with. And bringing the 12 million undocumented immigrants who currently live in this country into the light would be a huge boon. So my snap reaction is that the guest worker program is problematic, but this might nevertheless be a deal worth making.
I really don't like guest worker programs: they've been problematic in other countries, and given the proclivities of many US employers, I don't see that we'd be able to avoid similar problems.
I'm also a bit dubious about the whole "go back to where you came from to apply" part of the process for moving current illegals onto "the path to citizenship". Why should someone have to make a multi-thousand mile round-trip just to file some papers? That seems wildly counterproductive and even a bit punitive.
And I know that some of my friends currently on the path towards citizenship are disappointed that they may not be able to bring their parents to America as easily, if at all.
At any rate, I'm reserving the right to change my mind on this issue if the final bill changes significantly and/or when more details emerge.
