An Immigration Policy Rooted in Exclusion Represents the Worst of US Politics

Both former President Donald Trump and the Biden administration have proposed harsh new restrictions on immigration.

There are important differences between the two sides, but neither is offering anything that would make our country safer. Instead, we’re seeing a pathetic political game—with potentially deadly consequences.

Border closures, mass deportations, family separations, and crackdowns on asylum seekers accomplish nothing. These approaches are costly for taxpayers—as well as inhumane, illegal, and ineffective at making Americans safer.

I want our leaders, regardless of their party or desire to be reelected, to stop scapegoating immigrants and do what we’re paying them to do: Address the real threats to our safety.

Even the stated goal of “safety” relies on a completely false narrative. Presenting immigration as a threat is a distraction at best and a racist dog whistle at worst. There is no evidence that immigration in any form, including asylum and migration across the southern border, negatively impacts American security.

In fact, the opposite is true.

If anything, communities with immigrants—documented or undocumented—are safer. As one criminologist and co-author of a 2023 book on the intersection between immigration and crime put it, “more immigration equals less crime.”

U.S.-born citizens are many times more likely to commit violent crimes, including mass shootings and domestic terrorism. We’ve known that for years. Yet federal spending on immigration enforcement outpaces the cost of all other criminal law enforcement agencies combined.

Immigration isn’t just safe. It’s good for this country.

Both conservative and liberal researchers have long argued that immigration fuels economic growth and increases the incomes of both U.S.-born and foreign-born workers. And with our population aging, our birth rate declining, and businesses in desperate need of workers with a wide range of skills, immigration is a critical part of our country’s future.

Our country also has a moral and legal obligation to provide protection to those who fear persecution. That means we must not only protect but actually improve the asylum and refugee system to make sure it’s fair and humane.

People fleeing violence or danger leave behind all they hold dear when they seek protection in this country—only to endure our staggeringly slow, retraumatizing, and hostile system in the hopes of meeting the exceedingly narrow definition of a “refugee” under U.S. law.

They do this because they fear they’ll be killed, abused, tortured, or suffer gender-based violence if they ‘re forced to go back. It would be unconscionable to bar these people from the opportunity to seek sanctuary.

So we don’t need lawmakers fear-mongering and chasing short term political wins on the backs of people who are already vulnerable to violence and exploitation. What we need is a properly funded, orderly, and humane system with lawful and transparent pathways to temporary and permanent residency.

Migration is inevitable—whether because of regional instability, climate change, the legacy of colonialism, or because people will always move towards safety and opportunity. Embracing that reality and rebuilding our system to manage it efficiently while embracing the benefits of immigration will help us all.

If politicians don’t change course, all we’ll get is more of the same. Unfair and illegal policies like those in the news now will lead to lawsuits that will cost taxpayers billions. We’ll miss out on the economic benefits of immigration. And for refugees and immigrants, the consequences could be deadly.

I want our leaders, regardless of their party or desire to be reelected, to stop scapegoating immigrants and do what we’re paying them to do: Address the real threats to our safety. Get guns out of the hands of domestic abusers and extremists. Better prepare for climate disasters. Do something to reduce poverty and other root causes of crime.

An immigration policy rooted in keeping people out—and on pandering to a vocal anti-immigrant minority—represents the worst of politics. Instead, we deserve a bold and strategic vision rooted in reality, which serves our interests and protects the rights of migrants.

The America I believe in can and must do both.