A Nation of Immigrants

The U.S. population was almost entirely the result of immigration that occurred throughout many decades and centuries, so this country is essentially built by immigrants that began to call themselves Americans. Still, there is a heating political battle over immigration, especially because of terrorism, the drug war, and the national debt. Even though much attention has been provided to illegal immigration it appears that less was paid to legal immigration, and I view that as a problem. There are many who have drastically different views on the solution to the problem. I do not believe any solutions should be labeled as as strictly Liberal or Conservative because both sides constantly argue on how to approach the situation. However, the is little agreement in Congress between both sides as they fight political battles against each other, largely for monetary gain or self-interest. I believe the level of legal immigration should be increased and the illegal immigrants that lived in the U.S. for many years should be given a clear path to citizenship. I fail to understand why someone that may have lived in the country for many years should not be given the right to vote when they do not plan to leave the country and have so much interest in the nation's success. Obviously, allowing all the illegal immigrants a right to vote would significantly shift the political landscape, especially in political powerhouses like Texas, but I view that as a positive development for democracy when millions of people living in the country cannot vote today. I believe that immigration is great for the country to grow economically, culturally, demographically, and in general as it would increase the nation's decreasing weight on the world stage. I believe the nation's image would improve drastically on the international stage with more viewing America as an open and welcoming country. The labor force would increase and those struggling financially would finally get a chance for a better life, and this is important considering the country was built on immigrants and by immigrants. Still, other countries would lose their top intellectuals to America and less-skilled Americans may have fewer job opportunities with increased competition in the job market, but I view competition as a positive development that can decrease complacency of those without skills to encourage them to acquire valuable skills for the job market. There are many other factors to consider that I would rather leave for the Wednesday discussion.