The death of Kate Steinle at the hands of a repeat-felon illegal immigrant was a tragedy as well as a travesty of failure of multiple levels of government. But itap a mistake for Americans to let this terrible story color our views of immigration and, because itap worth reminding ourselves that we’re talking about human beings, of immigrants.
Not surprisingly, data on the impact of immigration on the United States paint a mixed picture. The most convincing studies suggest, as does common sense, that immigration — especially illegal immigration across our southern border — depresses wages for the least-educated Americans.
However, as a recent Wharton School study notes, “The available evidence suggests that immigration leads to more innovation, a better educated workforce, greater occupational specialization, better matching of skills with jobs, and higher overall economic productivity.”
They add that “Immigration also has a net positive effect on combined federal, state, and local budgets. But not all taxpayers benefit equally. In regions with large populations of less educated, low-income immigrants, native-born residents bear significant net costs due to immigrants’ use of public services, especially education.”
In short, immigration is economically a net positive for the country but has definite, and often quite visible, losers. Those who lose economically should be considered when it comes to government policies, not with a nationally self-destructive “close the border” approach, but rather a better education system, more emphasis on technical training, and a reduction in the welfare state which discourages hard work.
Those who lose jobs should not, however, be the primary focus of immigration policy when the mostly unseen benefits of immigration accrue to tens of millions of Americans.
Some facts may surprise you: Immigrants are less likely than native-born Americans to commit crime.
And another: As economist Jacob Vigdor puts it, “Basic indicators of assimilation, from naturalization to English ability, are if anything stronger now than they were a century ago.”
Immigrants, including likely your grandparents or great-grandparents, came to the United States for a better life, for the chance at the American Dream. Why do so many of today’s Americans assume that current immigrants are different?
Partly because the ability to get taxpayer-funded benefits, from food to housing to education, leaves us wondering whether people are coming here for the “free” stuff or to work their way into a better life. The answer, however, is not to curb immigration; itap to rein in those legislators who make their careers buying votes with our money.
A prominent politician once complained about the “multitudes of men of the lowest class from the south” coming to America. Was it Donald J Trump? Was it Jeff Sessions? No, it was the racist “progressive” Democrat Woodrow Wilson, lamenting the then-recent wave of Italian immigrants whose descendants are now thoroughly interwoven into the fabric of America. Both for rule of law and national security purposes, we must have control of our borders. However, for the benefit of the nation, we should increase the number of people we allow into the United States as immigrants.
The details will be tricky. How do you deal with the overseas families of immigrants who would like to move here? Do you make categories based on skill levels? Based on geography? How do you wall off taxpayer-funded benefits to ensure that people are coming for the right reasons? What do you do with those already here illegally? These are the difficult political questions which will require honest discussion and compromise to reach a durable and sensible solution.
History may not repeat, but it surely rhymes. Letap not allow truly terrible events which happen to involve immigrants poison the mostly beautiful verses that immigrants bring to American life and culture.
Ross Kaminsky is host of “The Ross Kaminsky Show” weekday mornings on 630 KHOW.
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