Under current U.S. immigration policy everybody loses. Most bad policies have at least some small beneficiary, but our virtually nonexistent immigration policy is just good enough to keep out any winners and just bad enough to make sure that everybody loses. Case in point is the current political, social and now constitutional crisis over two border patrol agents who are in jail for forcibly restraining a suspected illegal border-crosser.
Early this year, two border patrol agents in southwest Texas, Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean, were put in jail for shooting a Mexican drug smuggler who resisted arrest, allegedly with a weapon. Currently our border patrol policy does not allow law enforcement agents to further pursue suspects once they begin to flee. With such rules it is a wonder that any illegal entrant -- migrant worker or terrorist -- is ever caught. The procedures are so flawed that two committed border patrol agents were unable to patrol the border effectively and legally, and now these two public servants sit in jail.
Suspects and criminals also lose as a result of our flawed immigration policy. Osbaldo Aldrete-Davila, the drug-smuggler in this case, was shot. This suspect was later found to be smuggling nearly 800 pounds of marijuana into the country in the back of his vehicle which, regardless of one's stance on legalization, is currently against the law. Nevertheless this criminal, who is a repeat offender and is now suing the federal government for millions of dollars, did not deserve to be shot. If border patrol agents were given the authority and resources to capture suspects humanely then such incidents could be avoided.
Immigrants of the hardworking, family-oriented variety also lose under our current policy. Instead of leaving the doors open for more people to create better lives for themselves and their families, we are condemning so many to poverty by shutting them out. Our lax policy allows many people to slip across the border illegally and then live and work here without proper documentation or adequate protection. Our policy fails even those workers that do make it here legally and still face the stigma of illegality.
Of course consumers (all of us), taxpayers (most of us) and employers (some of us) also bear costs associated with our ambiguous immigration policies.
Our immigration policy is failing, and the incarceration of Ramos and Compean has made us see just how badly. The absurdity of this case took our immigration failure past failing groups of individuals to precipitating a full-on constitutional crisis.
This constitutional crisis began with widespread, popular outrage at the jailing of two border patrol agents. Members of our Democrat-controlled Congress heard from their constituents and thereafter took action. After unsuccessfully asking the Republican president to pardon these agents, Congress has passed a bill essentially pardoning Ramos and Compean -- not allowing federal dollars to be used to jail the two agents. But, of course, Congress does not have the power to pardon. In this age, many people worry about the Executive Branch usurping the powers of Congress. To cite just one example, many people view the ambiguous Iraq War declaration as the Executive taking what is rightfully the Congressional power to declare war. But constitutional -- or rather unconstitutional -- usurpation cuts both ways.
Even if such a legislative pardon was constitutional, or if President Bush chose to pardon Ramos and Compean, this would not substitute for real action. Pardoning these two law enforcement agents who acted against a criminal smuggling hundreds of pounds of drugs is a clear political winner and fodder for many an impassioned campaign speech, but it only simulates real change. It does not address the lack of authority and resources given to border patrol agents, and it certainly does not address the more fundamental issue of which and how many immigrants we should want to keep out.
Congress is not facing the reality that they must take a serious position on immigration policy and will soon have to face the reality that their political stunt is not only unproductive but also unconstitutional. Towing what is rapidly becoming the standard two-party-line -- pretending no problem exists -- on issues like Social Security and Medicare as well as immigration will not do. At the very least Congress has to put forward an immigration policy in which at least somebody wins. Their current inaction is now harming the integrity of the Constitution as it continues to harm law enforcement officials, criminals, immigrants, consumers, taxpayers, employers and pretty much everybody else.
