Bush Institute Monthly Immigration Update

Hello, Friends.

 

In news that will surprise few of the readers of this newsletter, the American public supports an immigration policy compromise that Congress isn’t interested in legislating. Congress isn’t interested in the old paradigm of tougher border security and relief for the undocumented, as Michelle Hackman and Aaron Zitner note in the Wall Street Journal. Legislators from both parties are more interested in fixing the border first.

The border has big problems and needs bold solutions. But tackling the border alone is merely politically convenient – it won’t do a thing to fix the broken legal immigration system, which is driving much of the disfunction along the Rio Grande.

And let’s not forget that Americans still broadly support a permanent legislative solution for Dreamers, something few in Congress seem to show any interest in moving. It’s true that relief for Dreamers won’t fix the border or our broken legal immigration system. But it’s the right thing to do and something Americans want as well. Perhaps it’s the sort of small victory we could all feel good about this year.

 

Kind Regards,

Laura

Figure of the Month

821%

Data Dive

 

• Between January 2023 and January 2024, more than 459,000 people scheduled appointments to enter the United States through the CBP One mobile application process, with the largest nationalities crossing with appointments from Venezuela, Mexico, and Haiti. The CBP One mobile application was introduced at the beginning of 2023 to help expedite and simplify the asylum application process but has been criticized for too few slots and a lack of equitable access for certain migrants.

• The United States is on track to resettle 92,979 refugees in the 2023 fiscal year – the largest number of resettled refugees in any single year since 1995 but still below the 125,000 ceiling. Still, this is excellent progress on rebuilding the resettlement pipeline that was decimated during the last administration.


• The refugee resettlement program is a model for immigration policy, Vox notes, with high levels of coordination between the federal government, states, and private resettlement agencies. Studies have shown that income earned by resettled refugees generates more than enough in taxes to cover the cost of the public assistance they initially received.

• Indians now comprise the third largest group of undocumented immigrants in the United States, and India is the only country of origin in the top five that is outside of Latin America. Since 2011, the number of undocumented Indians in the United States has grown by 70%, the fastest rate of all nationalities.

• Commentary from the Baker Institute argues that Congress should expand the use of the TN (Trade NAFTA) visa to help mitigate the severe labor shortage in key industries like construction and agriculture. The TN visa, an often overlooked program that was created as part of the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994, works well for both employers and visa holders. There is not a cap on the total number of TN visas issued, making it responsive to market demand. The TN visa, however, can only be used by Canadians and Mexicans, and it includes only 63 occupational categories, which desperately need to be updated.

• An essay in the Wall Street Journal smartly observes that "more walls and police will never be enough to stop migrants from coming to the U.S. for the lower-skilled jobs the American economy needs." Evermore restrictive border enforcement has driven migration underground into the hands of dangerous smugglers and pushed otherwise temporary migrants into permanent ones. Any credible border solution should invest in increasing the capacity to screen asylum claims as well as open more channels for legal migration, including low-skilled workers who fill crucial gaps in our workforce.

• The New York Times has a heartwarming story about a retiree who teaches Afghan refugee women in California how to drive. It’s always nice to read about good people helping our new neighbors integrate.

• Read: Annunciation House makes the crisis at the border better, not worse

• Listen: A woman will likely lead Mexico this summer. Will she impact border politics?

• May 14, Baker Institute for Public Policy: The Future of Immigration in the 2024 Elections

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