Today, I continue to examine the speech that Secretary Napolitano made last April at Santa Clara University (Available as a free podcast on iTunes). Today, I am going to focus on her thoughts about reforming immigration policy. Secretary Napolitano started her discussion about immigration reform by clearly stating that America is not allowing enough legal immigrants into the United States. She stated that the visa system must be reformed and that technology must be improved at the border and at ports of entry.
Additionally, Secretary Napolitano said that the issue of unauthorized foreign nationals must be addressed. She mocked the “report to deport” proposal that was so popular last year and suggested a process where unauthorized foreign nationals are required to register, pay a fine, learn english, pay taxes, remain out of legal trouble, and get into queue for eventual naturalization. She questioned whether law enforcement could better spend its money when addressing the unauthorized foreign nationals issue and emphasized that the government must deal with the demand side of the issue.
True immigration reform will only come from Congress and the President. Nevertheless, Secretary Napolitano will be able to affect many immigration policies. One change that seems pretty obvious is an uptick in the prosecution of employers of unauthorized foreign nationals. Good luck to Secretary Napolitano in her new position, may you serve the American people well.