Across partisan divide, comprehensive immigration reform (CIR) always had three basic tenets, "3 legs of the stool":1)deal with borders; 2)address undocumented immigrants in country and a pathway for citizenship; 3)define and welcome future flows (for our changing economy). 1/
Over the last few weeks, it has been close to unbearable how each of these tenets has been completely eviscerated. . We have "dealt" with borders by separating families. We have booted soldiers seeking status and denied them the least controversial means to citizenship. 2/
We have come up with some notion of a "denaturalization" force to make those citizens here lawfully feel unwelcome. We have instituted tariffs that make us less a part of a global economy and therefore less appealing to global competition for talent. There are more examples. 3/
I know it's totally accepted to say our immigration and border system are broken. I think it has been much more complicated than that as we promoted flow in and out of this country. It was a "problem" but the crisis today is of the WH's making. 4/
So the point here is its important to not buy into the idea, promoted by Trump, that the solution is some CIR or legislative changes. The WH and DHS have done everything to destroy CIR's basic tenets, and they can't be rebuilt based on these policies today. 5/5
