Time and time again, we hear that Vice President Kamala Harris is “addressing the root causes” of the immigration crisis. I have not heard anyone in this administration address what we have on the books — only what is being done in the Northern Triangle. Well, if we have learned anything from the catastrophe at our southern border, it is that conditions in Central America are not the root cause of this problem — it is our own immigration laws.
Right now, we have an immigration system in place that incentivizes illegal immigration. Due to loopholes in our asylum laws, migrants know that once they cross our border, they are home free. The Abolishing the Lottery and Immigration Enforcement Now Act will severely mitigate these problems.
First, a crucial step in reinforcing our immigration system is establishing merit-based entry. As long as the visa lottery system is in place, we cannot do that. Every year, thousands of visas are distributed through this program, never considering an applicant’s merit, need, employment status, or family relation. For fiscal year 2023, up to 55,000 visas through the Diversity Visa Program will be given out at random. As long as we distribute green cards through a random lottery, no one can seriously claim that we have an efficient immigration system.
Our legal immigration system further sets us up for failure. Thousands of people enter the country legally only to overstay their visas with little to no consequence. In fiscal year 2020, the entry/exit overstay report estimated that there were almost 600,000 suspected in-country visa overstays. More than half of all illegal immigrants in the country did not illegally cross the southern border — they overstayed their visas.
This is an unacceptable number. Right now, our visa overstay penalties are incomplete. People who abuse our visa system deserve more than being prohibited from reentry for three years or obtaining a new visa for 10. The language on the books allows this abuse. These loopholes need to be closed, and we must eliminate drivers of illegal immigration. We need severe financial disincentives, serious jail time, or permanent bans for people applying for reentry. The ALIEN Act provides these necessary penalties, securing our entry and exit system.
But what is the root cause of most illegal immigration? It is our egregious asylum loophole that exists in the “members in a particular social group” category. The set categories for establishing credible fear include a person’s political affiliation, religion, and nationality. It also includes a nebulous “membership in a particular social group” catchall. This final category is unacceptable and is responsible for an inordinate amount of illegal migration. Aliens present themselves at the border and claim asylum under this final category. They claim that their fear of gang violence and domestic crime rates marks them as a member of a particular social group. Immigration judges historically reject most of these asylum claims. But while they wait for their cases to wind through the immigration courts, aliens get access to work permits and a quasi-regular status in the United States. Even if their case is dismissed, they still have exactly what they wanted in the first place — they are already present in the U.S.
Federal courts have repeatedly recognized the phrase “membership in a particular social group” is ambiguous. Neither the Immigration and Nationality Act nor the implementing regulations define “particular social group.” Anyone from anywhere can claim “credible fear” of gangs and/or crime in general to gain asylum in the U.S. Removing this catchall category and clarifying that fear of gangs, a problem even in the U.S., is not appropriate for asylum will go a long way in restoring integrity to our asylum process. This fortification of our asylum law will streamline the whole process and ensure that those with serious claims can get the help they need.
This administration is disregarding policy changes that would prove successful and allowing migrants to run freely within our country. It is not until we update our immigration laws to respond to present realities that we will see the results we desire. It’s time for a substantiative change. For decades, we have put amnesty and political expediency above rectifying our immigration laws. The carrot can no longer come before the stick.
Rep. Pat Fallon is a Republican who represents Texas’s 4th Congressional District.
