Journal Entry #4

Exploratory Journal #4

Lydia Birt

Alden, Edward. "Immigration and Border Control." CATO Journal 32.1 (2012): 107-24. ProQuest. Web. 12 Oct. 2014.

            My fourth source was written by Edward Alden, and it is entitled Immigration and Border Control. This scholarly journal discusses what the government has done in the past in regards to illegal immigration, and what is in its best interest for the future. Pre-9/11 and an increase in illegal immigration from Mexico in the 1980’s, America did not have to put much effort into enforcing its immigration policies. Since then, Border Patrol has updated its technology, and recent studies show that pressure from our government has led to less attempts continue the effort to secure our borders, despite budget constraints. He notes that the desire of immigrants to enter our country will not decrease, and that a decrease in immigrants would hurt our economic system. According to Alden, the enforcement of policies and the security of our borders are inevitable, the questions are only how much and how much does it cost. He claims that instantaneous action is taken by the government after any weakness in border security is shown, and suggests a temporary worker program to reduce illegal immigration. He also proposes an independent government commission with the power to adjust immigration policies in correlation with our economic system.

            All of my sources so far have had opinions on the effects of immigration on our economy. Gerking and Mutti repeated that immigration is a useful resource for cheap labor, and losing that would be damaging. In fact, the only costs they attributed to immigration were in regards to the enforcement of policies, whereas the benefits were numerous.  Perry agreed, affirming that an increase in policies punishing both legal employers of immigrants and immigrants themselves would not only be confusing, but also expensive. The cost of enforcing policies, as described by Mukherjee and Adams, is only reciprocated by a social cost as well. My fourth source, Alden, asserts that enforcement is essential, but also admits to an incapability in the government to consistently increase border security and pay to enforce policies. Whether or not the source advocates for an increase in border security does not dismiss the fact that there is an economic inadequacy without immigration, and an economic struggle to enforce immigration policies.

            I chose this article because it outlaid the changes in immigration policy over the last 30 years or so. Before the American public was frightened of terrorist attacks and being overrun by the foreign, not as much focus was set on border security. However, there was less of a desire for illegal entry back then, and since then there has been an increase in attempts at illegal entry. Alden made it clear that the Obama Administration and Congress are both actively trying to update border security and place a lot of effort in securing our borders. I found out the specific policies that were being implemented, and I constantly noticed the fact that be it updating Border Patrol’s technology or actively seeking out illegal immigrants, enforcing our current policies of immigration is too expensive for our government to support. I liked Alden’s idea of a government commission, because it offers some flexibility to our economy, which is dependent on cheap labor. If we have the power to adjust our policies as needed, it would take a lot of pressure off of our government’s budget. I also liked his idea of a temporary worker program, because it would reduce illegal immigration altogether, thus reducing the punishment of immigrants and the spending of our government. I wonder why the government wants to enforce its policies when immigration holds many benefits, and enforcing policies against immigration holds many costs.

            My next step in research will be what my third journal said my next step was going to be. This journal was only to show me the government’s current actions and policies regarding immigration. For the fifth one, I will research different states’ opinions on immigration, and if public opinion differs because of the state’s location in the country. Although I have been finding a lot of evidence that the government should not be enforcing border security and should legalize immigration, I still believe solidarity of opinion is necessary for change, and finding out public opinion will help me decide my argument.