Who's Hostile to Immigrants?
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Michael Gerson was right to criticize Republican extremists for exploiting prejudice against Latino immigrants ["Losing the Latino Vote," op-ed, Oct. 7.] But he failed to mention that the Democrats are doing the same. The Obama administration has launched an unprecedented number of investigations against employers suspected of hiring unauthorized workers, most of them Latino and Asian.
Employers of immigrants now face heavy fines for minor paperwork violations, while authorized workers, including U.S. citizens, risk losing their jobs because their legal status may not show up in notoriously unreliable government databases. Many applications from employers seeking legal permission to hire foreign professional workers are also being rejected for unjustified technical reasons.
Far from making more jobs available for Americans, this shortsighted policy damages the U.S. economy. The Immigration Policy Center, for example, estimates the combined purchasing power of Latinos and Asians in just one state, New Jersey, at more than $65 billion.
America deserves better from a president who spoke out against scapegoating immigrants during his campaign.
ROGER ALGASE
New York
The writer is an immigration lawyer.
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Michael Gerson's warning to the Republican Party about committing political suicide over immigration issues was both helpful and misplaced. It was helpful in reminding us that the loudest must not be permitted to become the face of legitimate debate over important issues. It was misplaced because the rants he described are not at all representative of the concerns shared by many Americans, including those who support the GOP.
Most Americans, and that includes Republicans, support immigration and immigrants. However, they want the government to insist that immigration follow an orderly and legal process. And they want immigrants to "become Americans," which means that they become, over time, more emotionally attached to their new country than their old one.
These are basic, legitimate and desirable expectations, and were they to be met, much of the anxiety underlying our immigration debate would fade away.
STANLEY RENSHON
New York
