Some Info on Undocumented Immigration to the US

Firstly, the poll is supposed to say: Assuming that illegal immigration from Mexico and other parts of Central and South America is a problem, what is the best solution to decrease illegal immigration to the Unites States?

The number of undocumented immigrants in the United States has increased more than 40% since 2000.  Depending on the source it has been estimated that there are from 7-20 million people living in the United States illegally.  Border Patrol in Nogales, Arizona claims to have netted 9,000 arrests in 2006; however, every year more than 500,000 people either successfully cross the Arizona border or overstay their visas. 

According to the Urban Institute, the number of unauthorized immigrants arrested at workplaces increased from about 500 in 2002 to almost 5,000 in 2007, but far less then 1% of unauthorized workers have been arrested.  

Independent groups such as The Minutemen now legally patrol stretches of the border hoping to catch illegal immigrants. Secure fencing exists on 106 miles of the border already, but in 2007 Congress provided the Department of Homeland Security with $1.5 billion for upgrading infrastructure and technology on the border. With a virtual fence already having cost $2.5 million, talk of a 700-mile fence along the entire US-Mexico border suggests costs around $49 billion (including 25 year maintenance).

President Bush proposed a guest worker program that was estimated to grant amnesty to 12 million immigrants.  It required employers to first search for a citizen to fill the job, then permit would be issued to immigrants following "requirements and laws," harsh penalties were proposed as being harsh for employer violations, and those in the program would have to apply, pay a fee, and then return to their country when their permit expired.

Barack Obama and Joe Biden's Plan:

Create Secure Borders: more infrastructure, personell, and technology

Improve Immigration System: increase number of legal immigrants and straighten out immigration bureaucracy

Remove Incentives: cracking down on employers

People out of Shadows: undocumented immigrants pay a fine, learn English, and go to back of the line for naturalization

Work With Mexico: Promote economic development in Mexico

John McCain on Border Security and Immigration:

Securing our Borders first: physical and virtual barriers, adequate funding, deploy aerial vehicles, continue US-VISIT

Comprehensice Immigration Initiatives: prosecute bad employers, implement temporary worker program, address the undocumented, and eliminate the family backlog.

What is US-VISIT? A program for non-citizen travel in and out of the US. The requirements on a Mexican citizen include having a visa, having a I-94 Form, and being between the ages of 15 and 78. The program includes fingerprinting and tight inspection rules.

What is the family backlog? The line that Mexicans face for naturalization that tends to take 20 years.