Try, Try Again: Reform Repeatedly Rebuffed

TRY, TRY AGAIN REPEATEDLY REFORM REBUFFED Comprehensive immigration reform is a hot-button issue these days, particularly since we're starting to gear up for the next presidential election. And everyone's got an opinion on how to fix the system. But time and time again, efforts to enact any reform measures fail miserably. Let's take a look at the different attempts at reform, who's been on each side and why the efforts haven't worked. BY THE NUMBERS What's the picture of immigration today? 11.4 MILLION That's about the same as the population of Ohio, (2) Estimated number of unauthorized = 1 MILLION immigrants living in the U.S. in 2012 (4) 990,553 24 Number of people who became lawful permanent residents of the U.S. - or "green card" recipients – in 2013 (1) = 10,000 Number of years some people have been waiting for their green card ) Factors for length of wait include: (3,4, 5) Country of origin Luck (for diversity visa lottery) Family situation Employment 52,000 unaccompanied minors and 39,000 adults with children have been NEARLY 2 MILLION apprehended along the Mexican border since October 2013. These unauthorized immigrants are held in detention centers as they await appearances before immigration judges. " Number of undocumented immigrants deported by the Obama administration since 2009 (6) 15 FEET 1,000 Number of unaccompanied children held in one large detainee-processing center in Nogales, Arizona (8) Height of barbed-wire fences separating groups of unaccompanied children by age (8) An ACLU complaint filed against U.S. Customs and Border Protection alleges some children experienced: () MORE THAN Verbal, sexual and physical abuse 360,000 Prolonged detention in squalid conditions Backlog of pending deportation cases in federal immigration courts (6) A severe lack of necessities like food, water and beds The number of illegal immigrants has tripled since 1980, but numbers have held more or less steady recently. 4 MILLION 8.5 MILLION 1980 10.5 2000 MILLION 11.8 MILLION 2005 2007 11.6 MILLION 2010 11.4 MILLION 2012 DEALING WITH THE PROBLEM The public has its own ideas of how to implement immigration reform. In a 2012 survey of U.S. adults, respondents said the priority for dealing with illegal immigration should be on.. (10) Don't know 28% Tighter restrictions and stronger 42% enforcement An equal blend of both tactics PASSPORT, 27% PASSPORT Creating a path to citizenship TIMELINE OF IMMIGRATION REFORM The road to comprehensive immigration reform has been a long and bumpy one, with (6, 11-17) ramped-up efforts aimed at fixing the system spanning nearly 30 years. 1986 President Ronald slowed at all under Reagan signs the Immigration Reform application the 94% amnesty and Control Act of acceptance rate, and 1986, but the law is few resources are allocated to border widely considered a failure. Illegal immigration isn't enforcement provisions. 1996 President Bill Clinton immigrants' access aims to reduce illegal immigration through strict reform, but to healthcare and attempts to bar them from public THE WHITEE HOUSE public backlash schools are watered down or completely rolled back. means efforts to sincerely. limit undocumented Priu Cuutou 2000 Republicans block his effort but pass their Clinton tries to rectify a technical misstep resulting own version of the bill, which Clinton eventually signs - the Legal Immigration Family Equity Act (LIFE Act). from the 1986 law whereby hundreds of thousands of immigrants are left in legal limbo. 2004 President George W. Bush calls for reform, pushing for a guest worker program illegal immigration. The Immigration Reform Act of 2004, aimed at where foreigners would receive strengthening border security and temporary work visas. providing a pathway Conservatives push back, warning of the dangers posed by to citizenship, dies in the Senate Judiciary committee. 2005 Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005 is an enforcement-only The Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act calls for a multistep path to citizenship balanced with tighter had notoriously House bill. The bill included a provision declaring illegal immigrants to be control of borders but dies in the Senate Judiciary committee. felons. It's rushed to a vote and passes in the House, but not The Border Protection, Anti-terrorism, and 2006 the Senate. The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006, which would give amnesty to many illegal immigrants already in the country, passes the Senate, but not the House. 2007 The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007, aimed at enforcement, had bipartisan support in the Senate but was reviled by the public. It died after a failed increasing legal immigration as well as border vote for cloture. 2009 President Barack Obama says comprehensive immigration reform is a priority, but that he won't be able to take action on it for a while as a result of all the other things he's focusing on. 2013 2014 The Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act, spanning nearly 900 pages of text, passes the Senate. It says: The House refuses to consider the Senate's ambitious bill, and efforts to draft a House version of the bill collapse. Of the significant immigration bills in the House of Representatives: Children of undocumented adults may become eligible for a green card via the 4 BILLS voted out of Judiciary Committee along party lines DREAM Act Employers must use the E-Verify system to crack down on 1 BILL voted out of Homeland Security Committee unanimously employment of undocumented workers 8 BILLS introduced independently and not yet considered at Unauthorized adults may obtain "provisional legal status," a stepping stone to citizenship committee • On June 25, Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-IL, declares the "end of immigration reform," the House has missed its chance to act. • On June 30, Obama says he will seek $2 billion in aid from Congress to deal with the influx of undocumented minors. In a speech, he takes House Republicans to task for their inaction on reform and says will use executive orders to fix the immigration system on his own. SOURCES 1. http://www.dhs.gov - 2. http://quickfacts.census.gov - 3. http://www.visanow.com - 4. http://blogs.wsj.com 5. http://travel.state.gov/ - 6. http://www.washingtonpost.com - 7. http://bigstory.ap.org -8. http://www.dallasnews.com 9. https://www.aclu.org - 10. http://www.people-press.org - 11. http://cis.org - 12. https://www.govtrack.us 13. http://www.visalaw.com - 14. http://www.washingtontimes.com - 15. http://immigration.about.com 16. http://takingnote.blogs.nytimes.com - 17. http://www.nytimes.com INFO GRAPHIC WORLD DESIGNED BY www.lnfographicWorld.com ****