Serve to Stay: Immigration Reform That Actually Solves Problems
I was watching the movie “Gangs of New York” last night and there was a part that really stood out for me. It was a scene involving Irish immigrants arriving in America. They were immediately greeted with smiling politicians looking to secure a new voter constituency and two pieces of paper. One was to make the immigrants US citizens; the other was an enlistment contract in the Union Army. This got me thinking. Instead of just giving away citizenship to lawbreakers for free (let’s get real, we all know that is where it is headed), why don’t we offer them a choice. Enlist in the military, if eligible, for a 4-year term and become a citizen or get deported.
I’m sure there are some who would have a problem with this method, but hear me out. We have enemies in countries all over the world that need to be dealt with. With a multi-million troop influx, our forces could go to all the areas of conflict and clean house. It will give a better understanding to the “new citizens” of what it means to fight for freedom.
The next benefit from this method of “naturalization” would be that a large portion of the immigrant community would immediately become productive citizens. Rather than having a large majority of them signing up for government “assistance” programs such as welfare, WIC, etc., they would gain employment and benefits for the entire family. They would also gain useful skills that could be applied to the civilian sector if they decided to get out at the end of their enlistment. They would also gain educational benefits that would help pay for a college education.
This plan should work politically for both sides of the aisle. The Dems and GOP can both make the claim of working together to ensure the immigrant population gets to stay in the US. The right should be placated by the idea that only those who truly love America are staying. No one will risk going to war and dying for a country they don’t love. The left will brag about job creation and for once it will be kind of true. Wins all around and the only one unhappy might be President Obama, mostly because it wasn’t his idea.
To make this work, however, would require significant government shrinkage and budget adjustments. Defunding overly large DC bureaucracies such as BLM, IRS, DHS, Dept. of Education, and especially the offensively empowered EPA, would make applying funding to the DoD much more plausible. Passing flat-tax legislation would practically eliminate the need for the IRS and encourage more businesses to come back to/remain in America. This would create more jobs, more spending, and eventually more revenue. Returning much of this bureaucratic power back to the states would be a large step in the right direction.
Those out there who would say that this immigration plan is unfair to the immigrants have obviously never served. For those who have served, they understand what it means to sacrifice for their country. Everything from missing births and baby firsts, unattended funerals and weddings of loved ones, to the ultimate sacrifice have been experienced and paid by our Service members. Why is it too much to ask the same of those who have been enjoying freedoms they did not fight for and took advantage of them by breaking the law? They should want to put on the uniform and stand proudly with the modern day heroes that have sacrificed so much.
