Comprehensive Immigration Reform: Undermining National Security and Public Safety for Political Expedience

In the wake of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the 9/11 Commission was created to determine what vulnerabilities contributed to the worst terrorist attack ever carried out on American soil and to prevent future attacks.

This is not unlike the commission convened after the Space Shuttle Challenger was lost to a devastating explosion 72 seconds after liftoff, and not unlike the way the NTSB investigates every airplane crash to do everything within reason to prevent a similar tragedy.

Once the experts establish what remedies are needed to prevent future tragedies, changes are implemented as quickly as possible. No one would question whether or not to make the appropriate fixes.

This is only common sense.

Members of the 9/11 Commission staff took a hard look at the way that terrorists have entered the United States and sought to carry out attacks here. They compiled The 9/11 Commission Staff Report on Terrorist Travel.

The preface of the report stated:

It is perhaps obvious to state that terrorists cannot plan and carry out attacks in the United States if they are unable to enter the country.

However, supporters of S. 744, the Senate’s amnesty bill, have totally ignored the findings and recommendations of the 9/11 Commission and its staff. Many of these supporters have even rejected the need to secure the U.S./Mexican border or address any of the myriad vulnerabilities in the immigration system.

S.744 supporters ignore the current lack of integrity to the adjudications process by which aliens are granted immigration benefits, including lawful immigrant status and even U.S. citizenship, never even considering how a system that cannot handle its current workload could deal with a sudden influx of millions of additional applications.

On March 21, 2012, the Huffington Post published a disconcerting article that focused on a hearing conducted that day by the House Committee on Homeland Security. The greatest threat in the U.S., the article said, may be Iranian-backed Hezbollah agents, who are known to be in America.

Recent U.S. embassy closings make it clear that al Qaeda continues to have the U.S. in its crosshairs, posing a clear and present danger to America and Americans.

On July 30, 2013, The Washington Times published a truly disturbing report that Homeland Security had lost track of 1 million foreigners in the country. It also was disturbing that the focus of the title and the article itself was on how this monumental failure would impact the “immigration deal,” instead of how this undermines national security!

Any proposed immigration legislation must be guided by, and consistent with, the findings and recommendations of the 9/11 Commission. Adequate resources for effective, comprehensive enforcement and administration of laws must be made available. There’s a clear mandate to follow through on both the letter and spirit of the 9/11 Commission findings and recommendations.