The de facto open-border policy supported by the Democrats is pro illegal immigration and has put our nation and New Hampshire in peril because it is destroying the rule of law.
Lax border policies empower drug and human trafficking cartels. The majority of fentanyl and other drugs are smuggled across the border with Mexico. Fentanyl, cocain, and heroine are causing death and despair here in New Hampshire and throughout the country.
These horrible policies have empowered MS-13 gang members and “coyotes” that engage in human trafficing across the border and within our border. The Biden Administration telling ICE to not enforce the immigration laws on the books is a disaster; the fifty-three people who died in the tractor trailer in San Antonio a couple of years ago should never have happened, and yet was easily predictable.
Open borders are a security risk. Mexican cartels threaten the stability of the Mexican government and are a serious political threat to all of us. A secure nation must know who is entering it and needs stable secure neighbors. A strong nation has strong borders, and a compassionate nation provides refuge for people seeking political asylum and an efficient lawful pathway to citizenship.
Our country attracts immigrants from all over the world who are here to strive for their American Dream. We need smart and sensible immigration reforms to provide streamlined processes for legal immigrants like myself 35 years ago. My own brother legally waited in-line for 13 years before he got a visa to come to America with his wife and son. Strangely, a Mexican citizen would have to wait for 18 years based on our current outdated quota system. No wonder they just walk across across the border.
We must enforce current immigration laws already on the books. ICE must be adequately funded and supported politically to enforce those laws. Catch and release policies must be terminated. I supported President Trump’s original proposal to secure the border first and then bring Dreamers, which includes DACA recipients without criminal records, to a legal status allowing them to pursue a pathway to citizenship. Unfortunately, the Democrats in DC continue to play politics subverting long-term solutions. We need smart and sensible immigration reforms to provide streamlined processes for legal immigration.
I will support our law enforcement professionals to secure our border. I will work to propose smart and humane immigration reforms to ensure our economy will grow with an adequate workforce, that all our people will prosper and live the American Dream.